| Historic Name: |
Keuffel & Esser |
Common Name: |
vacant |
| Style: |
Modern - International Style |
Neighborhood: |
Belltown |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1955 |
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| Significance |
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This sleek Modernist building, designed in 1955 by Durham, Anderson & Freed, is one of a number of buildings constructed during this period at the north edge of Belltown. This area, and the adjacent Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, was underdeveloped compared to nearby areas, and when the post-war economy recovered sufficiently these areas proved to be fertile ground for construction of small commercial buildings. This was built as the Seattle office of Keuffel and Esser, a prominent firm that designed, manufactured and sold measuring instruments and optical tools, such as those used in land surveying and construction. The company, founded in 1867, declared bankruptcy in 1982, although its name and products have continued under new owners.
This building was an early work of the architectural partnership of Durham, Anderson & Freed. Robert Durham, a Seattle native, graduated from the University of Washington School of Architecture in 1936. He worked for the Federal Housing Authority during the war, and formed a partnership (1942-54) with B. Dudley Stuart to work on war housing. Following Stuart’s retirement, the firm was reorganized as Durham, Anderson & Freed (1954-80). The firm designed many banks, churches and schools, as well as master plans for The Evergreen State College (1971) and the U. S. Naval Station, Bangor (1978). Buildings include the Evergreen State College library, the AGC building (1965), the University of Washington Atmospheric Sciences building (1970) and the Horizon House Retirement Home, Seattle (1971).
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| Appearance |
| This one-story concrete building has a glass-enclosed pavilion and recessed entry at the southeast corner. The north part of the façade projects a few feet and has large vertical aluminum-sashed windows. The façade is clad with gray-painted brick with plywood along the cornice. The rear and sides are concrete, with steel sash windows and a newer metal awning on the south. |
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| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Brick, Concrete - Block, Glass, Wood |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Flat |
Roof Material(s): |
Unknown |
| Building Type: |
Commercial/Trade - Specialty store |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Concrete - Poured |
No. of Stories: |
one |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Commerce |
| Integrity |
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Changes to Windows: |
Slight |
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Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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Shaping Seattle Architecture: A Historical Guide to the Architects. Jeffrey Karl Ochsner, ed. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1994.
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King County Tax Assessor Records, ca. 1932-1972.
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