| Historic Name: |
Burwell, A. S., Residence |
Common Name: |
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| Style: |
American Foursquare - Craftsman |
Neighborhood: |
Capitol Hill |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1905 |
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| Significance |
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In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the National Register of Historic Places. |
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In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance. |
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In the opinion of the survey, this property is located in a potential historic districe (National and/or local). |
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This notable example of the Craftsman style, built in 1904 (permit #26816), is one of the earlier houses on this street and one of several in the vicinity designed by James Schack. His client was Anson S. Burwell, an officer of the Seattle Hardware Company. This company, first established in 1885, was a prominent retailer in early Seattle that benefited greatly from the Klondike Gold Rush, for which it was major supplier. The house was later owned form many years (1940s-1970s) by Charles H. Todd, an attorney with Wright Innis Simon & Todd, and his wife Anne.
A native of the Schlesweg region of Germany, James Schack arrived in Seattle in 1901 after receiving architectural training at various Chicago firms. He was a partner of Daniel Huntington from 1907-09, primarily designing apartments, commercial buildings and residences, as well as the First United Methodist Church in downtown Seattle. He is best known, however, for his later partnership with David Meyers and Arrigo Young, which began in 1920. The firm designed the Seattle Civic Auditorium complex, the town of Longview and numerous residences and commercial buildings. It remained in existence until the 1990s.
This was an appropriate location for the home of a person of Burwell's importance. He was one of many businesses leaders who built in this section of 14th Avenue East, known as Millionaires' Row, an “Avenue of Mansions.” At that time, the street had a spectacular view, thanks to clearcutting, and it was a logical place to build after the west slope and First Hill were developed. The Olmsted Plan recommended that this be a parkway, forming a grand entrance to Volunteer Park. However, the property owners were given control of the street between Prospect and Roy streets. A median strip in the center was planted with shrubs, and each owner added street trees, creating the appearance of an avenue. It became a showplace, attracting dignitaries such as President Harding and busloads of tourists en route to the park. It was the main route for funeral processions going through the park to Lakeview Cemetery, north of the park. To deter the stream of traffic, an ornate gateway was built at Roy Street. But by 1924 traffic had become so bad that property owners petitioned the Park Department to take back control of the street. The gate and the median plantings were removed as a traffic hazard.
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| Appearance |
| This large 2-1/2 story house is basically a Foursquare, but is more horizontally oriented than most. It has a slightly flared hipped roof, with elaborate brackets and two hipped dormers on the main (east) elevation and one each on the north and south ends. Cladding is of clinker brick on the first floor, with wood shingles on the second floor. The wide front porch covers the middle section of the first floor, with a hipped roof supported by three square brick columns. Most windows have nine-over-one or eight-over-one double-hung wood sash, some with leaded glass transoms. Newer windows flank the porch, with a trio of six-over-one windows; to the south is a single large window to the south. In the center of the second floor is a shallow three-sided bay with three windows. The north elevation has a one-story hipped roof bay. There is a detached garage at the northwest corner of the lot, constructed in 1989. |
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| Status: |
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| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Brick - Clinker, Shingle |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Hip |
Roof Material(s): |
Asphalt/Composition-Shingle |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Single Family |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
two & ½ |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Commerce |
| 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: |
Slight |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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Polk's Seattle Directories, 1890-1996.
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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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City of Seattle, Department of Planning and Development, Microfilm Records.
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