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Black, the owner of the Seattle Hardware Company, erected a large Swiss Chalet on acreage in the Beacon Hill Neighborhood of Seattle, WA. The chalet was divided into six apartments during World War II, to house workers at nearby industries. Two multi-story apartment houses were built on parcels of the Black Estate, one in 1948, the other in 1969.

The Landmarks Board named the cobblestone structures on the Black Estate to compose a Seattle City Landmark in 1981.

In 1914, Black added extensive landscaping, cobbled retaining walls and stairs, driveways and walks, a milk cooker, a cobbled gatehouse, cobbled gateposts, and a Japanese garden. The gatehouse (1914) had one room and a veranda that featured a view of the Olympic Range.

The Black House was demolished in 1985. During the World War II housing shortage, the main house was divided into six apartments. In 1948, an apartment building was built in the northeast corner of the property. In 1969, another multi-unit structure went up in the southwest corner. The house underwent many other exterior and interior changes, and the estate lost most of its original character.