| Historic Name: |
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Common Name: |
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| Style: |
Colonial - Colonial Revival, Vernacular |
Neighborhood: |
North Rainier Valley |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1919 |
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| Significance |
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Built in 1919, this building was constructed after John Gilman purchased the property in June of 1912. Mr. Gilman was a builder. In 1928, Mr. Gilman added a garage. The building underwent a remodel in 1934. By 1931 through 1961, John and Mary Gilmore resided in the building. Mr. Gilmore worked at the Wharfinger Schwabacher Dock & Wholesale Company. The 1965 Polk directory lists the building as vacant. Benny Williams purchased the building in August of 1967 and remained through 1968. Cheasty Boulevard South is a parkway by formal definition with emphasis on the landscaping and a curvilinear undivided roadway that is woven into the natural park-like setting. The adjacent houses and residential buildings are secondary to the integrated concept of the parkway and have little to do with its design integrity. Residences flanking Cheasty Boulevard South to either side of Anthony Place South contribute to the understanding of the development of the down slope housing area between Cheasty Boulevard South and Martin Luther King Junior Way South as low to middle income working class residences. The general massing, heights, dates of construction, setbacks and architectural style variations define these properties as a collective entity. Properties west of the boulevard on the uphill side are comparatively recent in construction dates and character and represent an intrusion of newer properties into the parkway corridor. The City’s acquisition of undeveloped greenbelt surrounding the parkway contributes to maintaining its original character.
The North Rainier Valley consists of a depression created by glaciation between the ridges of Beacon Hill and Mount Baker. The valley derives its name from Mount Rainier because of stunning views of the mountain. The area’s growth followed the early streetcar line, which was completed to Columbia City in 1890. The North Rainier Valley includes the area north of Columbia City and contained many early vegetable farms. Commercial development followed along the streetcar line, with housing built nearby.
During the first decades of the 20th century, the area between Massachusetts and Atlantic Streets was home to Seattle’s largest Italian enclave, “Garlic Gulch.” Dugdale Ball Park opened on the corner of Rainier Avenue and McClellan Street in 1913, and was succeeded by Sick’s Stadium in 1938. World War II precipitated a surge in housing development, including the public housing project, Rainier Vista, in 1943. Following the war, the area attracted a mix of African-Americans, Asians, and Filipinos. Today this diverse, low-to-middle income neighborhood is unique within Seattle with its long narrow form focused on the Rainier Avenue transportation corridor.
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| Status: |
Yes - Hold |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Wood - Clapboard |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Gable |
Roof Material(s): |
Other |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Single Family |
Plan: |
L-Shape |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
one & ½ |
| Unit Theme(s): |
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| Integrity |
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Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
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Changes to Windows: |
Intact |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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City of Seattle DCLU Microfilm Records.
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King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
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Polk's Seattle Directories, 1890-1996.
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City of Seattle. Survey of City-Owned Historic Resources. Prepared by Cathy Wickwire, Seattle, 2001. Forms for Ravenna Park structures.
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Tobin, Caroline. (2004) "North Rainier Valley Historic Context Statement."
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