Historic Name: |
Mount Baker Center |
Common Name: |
same |
Style: |
Art Deco |
Neighborhood: |
North Rainier Valley |
Built By: |
John Graham, Sr. |
Year Built: |
1930 |
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Significance |
In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the National Register of Historic Places. |
In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance. |
In the opinion of the survey, this property is located in a potential historic districe (National and/or local). |
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This is the only commercial structure in Mount Baker, a planned community first developed in 1907-09 with strict land use covenants. Twenty years later, the relatively isolated community had reached a population of 25,000 and saw a need to provide more convenient shopping and services. One of the Northwest's most prominent architects, John Graham, Sr., was hired to design a building that would provide services and be a crossroads for the neighrbhood. The building originally had a floor of offices for doctors and dentists, a garage and seven stores, including pharmacy, a beauty parlor and a grocery store. Kefauver's Grocery was here until the late 1950s, when people began going to large supermarkets. At various times, there has also been a library, a playhouse, and a popular restaurant. The upper floors are currently apartments, with a restaurant, a beauty salon and a design firm on the first floor. It remains a community crossroads today.
John Graham, Sr., came to Seattle from England in 1901. He practiced architecture with David Myers from 1905-09, prior to opening his own practice in 1910. He was responsible for many of Seattle's finest buildings. Early works included the Ford Assembly Plant, Frederick & Nelson and the Dexter Horton Building. He later became particularly well-known for his Art Deco buildings, including the Bon Marche, the Exchange Building and the U.S. Marine Hospital. It was at this time (1930) that he designed this building, using the Art Deco vocabulary.
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Appearance |
This is a complex building in the form of a semi-circle. It is built of reinforced concrete, clad with red brick and extensively trimmed with cast stone. It has three stores, with the upper floors set back in the Art Deco fashion, allowing second floor deck space for the apartments. The main (east) façade is a zigzag shape, with a wide cornice clad with cast stone with an Art Deco motif. The cornice of the third floor is similar, with cast stone medallions in the center of each bay and cast stone lintels above the very large metal window sash. A rounded pavilion is at the north end of the second floor. The storefronts are on the east and north elevations. They are largely intact, with original metal sash and tile bulkheads. The garage entry is on the south elevation. |
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Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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Cladding(s): |
Brick |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
Roof Type(s): |
Flat |
Roof Material(s): |
Unknown |
Building Type: |
Commercial/Trade - Specialty store |
Plan: |
Irregular |
Structural System: |
Concrete - Poured |
No. of Stories: |
three |
Unit Theme(s): |
Commerce, Community Planning/Development |
Integrity |
Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
Changes to Windows: |
Intact |
Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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Major Bibliographic References |
Gilbert, Rich, and John Gracey. "There was a Place for Us: Architecture at the End of the Line," in Preservation of the Vernacular Environment, Vol. II, University of Washington, CAUP, 1996.
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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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Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl, ed. Shaping Seattle Architecture, A Historical Guide to the Architects. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1994.
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