| Historic Name: |
Booth Building |
Common Name: |
South Annex, Seattle Central CC |
| Style: |
Spanish - Mission |
Neighborhood: |
Pike/Pine |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1906 |
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| Significance |
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This is one of Broadway's earliest buildings, constructed only a few years after Broadway High School opened in 1902 and the street was paved in 1903. The Cornish School of Music, operated by Miss Nellie Cornish, moved to this location in 1914, soon expanding to include dance and painting. Classes were given at all grade levels from kindergarten though high school, as well as training for arts teachers. Rather than offering only scattered classes in individual arts, Cornish offered a complete program, granting a diploma to those who finished the entire course. The school was so successful that additional space was needed and funds were raised to build a new school at Harvard Avenue East and East Roy Street. Cornish School moved to that location in 1921. After Cornish moved, the building continued to be used by smaller dance schools that made use of the building's nineteen rooms with hardwood floors suitable for dancing. It also housed the Burnley School of Art, which later became the Seattle Art Institute. Various retail uses, restaurants and banks have occupied the storefronts. Seattle First National Bank owned the buidling for many years, and modernized the corner storefront in 1964 for a branch bank. The building is currently owned and used by neighboring Seattle Community College.
This was one of the first sections of Capitol Hill to develop. It was platted by David T. Denny, the trustee for the estate of John Nagle, who filed the donation claim for the area. In 1891 a streetcar line was extended from James Street, running north on Broadway (one block east of this site) to the city limits at E. Lynn Street, with direct service to downtown added on Pike Street in 1901. Soon, students were coming from throughout Seattle to attend the new high school and Broadway, already an important street, flourished with new businesses. By 1910 the area was largely developed, with small commercial buildings, numerous apartment buildings and homes. Further apartment and commercial development occurred in the 1920s, when the Broadway district boomed to become one of the city’s premier shopping venues. The Great Depression of the 1930s led to general stagnation, and the neighborhood changed significantly after World War II. Broadway High School closed in 1946, replaced by Edison Technical School, a vocational training institution. Its successor, Seattle Central Community College, demolished and replaced most of the old high school buildings in the 1970s. The institution has continued to grow and now has several blocks of renovated and newly-constructed buildings includig this one.
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| Appearance |
| This building is not only located at an important intersection across from Seattle Central Community College, but its appearance is made more imposing by its square Italianate turret at the street corner, with a pyramidal roof and broad eaves with decorative brackets. The building's two original Mission-style parapets and some of the cornice detailing have been removed. The rectangular building is of masonry construction clad with stucco. The tower has two large square windows on each floor with square label molding above. The end bay on each has two narrow rectangular windows on each story with a single label mold. The center of each facade has a combination of rectangular and round-arched windows with square or rounded label molds. All the windows have newer fixed-pane sash. The storefronts on Broadway have been modernized with new windows and entries; the corner has a modern recessed entry. The storefronts on Pine have been filled in with stucco. |
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| Status: |
No - Altered |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Stucco |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Flat with Parapet |
Roof Material(s): |
Unknown |
| Building Type: |
Commercial/Trade - Business |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Masonry - Unreinforced |
No. of Stories: |
three |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Arts, Education |
| Integrity |
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Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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Changes to Windows: |
Extensive |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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Williams, Jacqueline B. The Hill with a Future: Seattle's Capitol Hill 1900-1946. Seattle: CPK Ink, 2001.
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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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