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Summary for 1909 E CALHOUN ST E / Parcel ID 6788200605 / Inv # 0

Historic Name: Schille Residence Common Name: 21 Van Droof Residence
Style: Vernacular Neighborhood: Montlake
Built By: Year Built: 1922
 
Significance
This residence has been altered with additions, new cladding, new window sash and porch alterations that has significantly altered the building's original character, and it is not a contributing resource to the Montlake Historic District. From at least 1928 through 1938, Anthony G. Schille in 1928, Superintendent of Buildings, Metropolitan Building Company, & his wife Olive owned the house. Phyllis B. Galloway, a stenographer, owned thehouse in 1948.The home was owned by J. A. Scott, a branch manager at Rexair, and his wife, Gloria in 1958.

 

Montlake is generally described as extending from the Washington Park Arboretum west to Portage Bay/15th Avenue E., and from the Montlake Cut on the north to Interlaken Park. The area is a significant and cohesive collection of residential architecture typical of early 20th century Seattle and is eligible as a NRHP historic district under Criterion C.  Construction occurred primarily between 1910 and 1940, with a variety of Craftsman and  revival styles ranging from modest cottages and builder's houses to high-style architect-designed residences, impressive institutional buildings, and notable parks and natural features.  There are few intrusions of newer buildings.  In the early 1960s, construction of SR 520 and the unfinished R.H. Thomson Expressway bisected Montlake, but the neighborhood retains its basic integrity as a pre-World War II Seattle neighborhood.  

Montlake was incorporated into the City of Seattle in 1891.  Although the first  plats (Union City 1st and 2nd additions) were filed by Harvey Pike in 1869-1871, development did not really begin until plats were filed by John Boyer (Interlaken, 1905) and H. S. Turner (1907). Montlake Park (north of SR 520) was platted in 1909 by the developers James Corner and Calvin and William Hagan.  With the 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition came a streetcar line on 24th Avenue E. and an impetus for development. In 1916, the Lake Washington Ship Canal was completed and the Montlake Bridge linked the neighborhood to the university area in 1925. A small commercial district grew along the car line.

The 1903 Olmsted Parks and Boulevards Plan of 1903 surrounded Montlake with parks.  Montlake Boulevard (then call University Boulevard) connected Lake Washington Boulevard to the A-Y-P grounds.  Washington Park, the eastern boundary, was acquired by the City in 1900 and developed as an arboretum in 1936-41. At the southern edge is steep, forested Interlaken Park and boulevard.

By 1915, the neighborhood had developed enough to require a temporary school building; the permanent structure opened in 1924.Soon afterwards came a playfield and shelter house (1933-36) and a library (1944, replaced 2006). Other noteworthy structures include the Seattle Yacht Club (1920), the NOAA Northwest Fisheries Center (1931), the Museum of History and Industry (1952) and St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church (1962).

Major Bibliographic References:

King County Tax Assessor Records, 1937-2014.  

Becker, Paula.  Seattle Neighborhoods: Montlake--Thumbnail History.  HistoryLink File # 10170, accessed 12/2/2013.

Gould, James W. Montlake History. http://www.scn.org/neighbors/montlake/mcc_history.Jim_Gould.html

Polk Directory of Seattle, 1938-1958.

Smith, Eugene. Montlake: An Urban Eden, A History of the Montlake Community in Seattle. La Grande OR: Oak Street Press, 2004.



 
Appearance
This two-story house has vinyl cladding, an irregular plan and a side-gable roof with a front-gabled second-story addition with roof decks on both the north and south. The enclosed entry at the center of the primary façade has a wood panel door. Grouped three-part plain fixed or casement sash are on each side of the entry; other windows are varied replacement sash. A brick painted chimney is on the east elevation. It is on a sloped lot with a rockery, four large conifer trees, shrubs and groundcovers.

Detail for 1909 E CALHOUN ST E / Parcel ID 6788200605 / Inv # 0

Status:
Classication: Building District Status:
Cladding(s): Veneer- Vinyl Siding Foundation(s): Concrete - Poured
Roof Type(s): Gable Roof Material(s): Asphalt/Composition
Building Type: Domestic - Single Family Plan: Irregular
Structural System: Balloon Frame/Platform Frame No. of Stories: two
Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture
Integrity
Changes to Plan: Extensive
Changes to Interior: Unknown
Changes to Original Cladding: Moderate
Other: Extensive
Changes to Windows: Extensive
Major Bibliographic References
King County Assessor Property Characteristics Report, database at http://www5.metrokc.gov/ --parcel locator

Photo collection for 1909 E CALHOUN ST E / Parcel ID 6788200605 / Inv # 0


Photo taken Jan 31, 2015
App v2.0.1.0