| Historic Name: |
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Common Name: |
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| Style: |
American Foursquare - Craftsman |
Neighborhood: |
Crown Hill/Ballard |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1902 |
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| Significance |
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Residential Ballard is generally described as extending from the 8th Avenue NW to the east and the bluff to the west, and from NW 85th Street on the north to NW 65th Street to the south. The area primarily contains single family houses, but also includes a collection of mutli-family dwellings, commercial buildings, schools, churches, and other buildings. Most of the historic buildings in Ballard are modest cottages and builder's houses, and were not architect-designed. Building styles include, but are not limited to, Victorian (primarily Queen Anne), vernacular, Craftsman, American Foursquare, Colonial Revival (including variations), Tudor Revival, Minimal Traditional, and Ranch. The historic building fabric of Ballard is threatened by a rapid pace of development.
The City of Ballard was incorporated in 1890. It was the first community to incorporate after Washington achieved statehood in 1889. Although population increased rapidly, north Ballard was still relatively rural. In 1907, primarily due to lack of adequate water for its population of 15,000, Ballard citizens voted to be annexed to Seattle to ensure a good water supply for the area.
After annexation Ballard’s street names were changed to conform to Seattle’s: Ship Street turned into 65th Street, Main Street became 15th Avenue. During the Great Depression and World War II, construction in Ballard nearly ground to a halt, with the exception of some houses built by Earl F. Mench. However, following World War II, fueled by the G.I. bill and the rise of the automobile, Ballard boomed again, and new housing followed. In recent years, the demand for new housing has spurred a tremendous amount of change in Ballard, with old, modest houses being replaced by large box houses and multi-family units. These changes threaten to alter the character and feeling of this historic neighborhood.
According to the online King County Assessor’s Report and the Property Record Card, this house was built in 1902 or 1907, respectively. It is located in the Great Northern Addition to Ballard (1890), Block 31, Lots 5 and 6.
This house was located on Findlay [now 72nd] between 6th [now 28th] and 7th [now 30th], and the first entry in the 1905 Ballard City Directory shows Ernest B. Mills, a timekeeper, at 624 Findley. Early deeds show that that Mary Baxter and her husband sold the property to Henry and Loamy Mills in 1901, who in turn sold it to their son Ernest Burton Mills in 1903. The builder is not known, but Henry, a farmer, and Ernest, a timekeeper, were the owners when the home was built. Ernest B. Mills is listed at several different addresses in the early Ballard City Directories, but each is very close to the Findlay address and it seems likely the variants may be approximations or incorrect. The addresses are corner 7th av and Sloop (1903), 7th av. W. corner of Shelby (1904), 624 Findley (1905), 7th Av northeast corner of Canoe (1906), and 640 Canoe (1907). The 1905 Sanborn Atlas doesn’t cover this area, but Findlay is roughly in line with Canoe, and just north of Shilby/Shelby.
Ernest Burton Mills (1880–1939), a timekeeper and clerk for the Seattle Electric Co., and later road master for the Seattle Municipal Railway, and his wife Edith Ina Mills (1881–1937), lived in the home from 1903 to 1937. The home was remodeled in 1935. Ernest Mills and Edna were married in Michigan about 1900, and soon after moved to Seattle. Ernest was vice-president of the Civil Service League in 1937, president of the Civil Service League in 1938, a member of the Junior Order of American Mechanics, the Streetcar Men's Union, the Seattle Civil Service League, and Seattle Lodge, I. O. O. F. Edith was born in Fremont, Michigan, was a member of the Junior Order, Daughters of America, Daughters of Veterans and Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic, and died in 1937. Ernest remarried in 1938 to Myrtis S. Savage, a former deputy collector of internal revenue in Tacoma, and lived in the home until his death in 1939.
By 1942, Judson B. Pittsford (1891–1971), a steelworker, and his wife Leola M. (1890–1961) owned and resided in the home. They were married in 1911 in Denver, Colorado and moved to Seattle about 1913. Prior to moving to Seattle, Leola “spoke often and longingly” of the city and told her husband that “you could dry clothes even in the rain – it was so mild”. After “growing weary of layoffs from the railroad” Judson said “Let’s go to Seattle”. “In Seattle, Pittsford worked for the Union Pacific Railroad six months and then was streetcar operator until 1918, when he went to work for the Bethlehem Steel Co. rolling mill here. He retired in 1956.” Judson was a member of the Free and accepted Masons, Royal Arch Masons, Knights Templar, Nile Temple of Shrine, and Ballard Shrine Club. Their son Robert C. Pittsford was at one time a chief inspector at Bethlehem Steel. Leola died in 1961, and Judson continued to live in the home until he died in 1971.
In 1972, the home was owned by Ross Hunter, an equipment serviceman for Metro Transit, and his wife Marian. The two lived in the home until 1974, and in 1975 the home was vacant.
In 1985 and 1989/1990, Josephine Johnson, a nurse lived in the home.
In 2000, Paul B. & Anita R. Beatty sold the home to Shana Y Iverson & Michael K. Speers, the current owners, as of May 2006, (from 2000–). According to Cole Seattle directories, they had lived in the home since 1994.
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| Appearance |
| This ca. 1902 Craftsman house is 1.5 stories and has a side-facing gable roof. The roof is clad in asphalt shingles and the walls are clad horizontal asbestos siding. A centrally-located dormer has a hip roof with bell curves and features two three-over-three light windows. The left corner of the first floor juts out and has a small first-floor-level hip roof and a large, twelve-over-one light window. All rooflines are defined by deep eaves and exposed beams. The left two-thirds of the house steps out further than the rest of the house and has a curved, catslide roof. The front door is central to the front façade, is reached by five cement stairs angled to the left, and is flanked by tall, narrow, multi-pane windows. A large, multi-pane window is located under the catslide. A brick chimney is located on the side facade, approximately central to the gable end. |
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