OpenStreetMap (new tab)

Google Map (new tab)

Building History

Money was authorized to build this school in 1909, with the commission going to the Seattle Public Schools' architectural consultant, James Stephen (1858-1938). According to historian Paul Dorpat, the school accommodated on average 500 students and 15 teachers each year. The building ended as a primary school in 1979, although an alternative school operated for six more years. (See Paul Dorpat, "Colman School survives and thrives as the Northwest African American Museum," Seattle Times Pacific Northwest Magazine, 07/15/2018, p. 26.)

Building Notes

The effort to open this museum was led by educator Carver Clark Gayton (b. 1938); he first proposed the idea in 1981. The Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle bought the school in 2003, and the museum became a reality in 03/2008. In 2018, the museum occupied the former school's first floor, while 36 apartments for low-income residents existed on the second and third floors.

Alteration

The school district purchased additional land around the school after World War II. "Enrollment swelled during World War II, when the feds built a large housing project nearby. With peace, enrollment dropped. Still, in the late 1940s, the city bought the entire block for the school. Eventually, Atlantic and 24th were vacated to extend the school's lawn." (See Paul Dorpat, "Colman School survives and thrives as the Northwest African American Museum," Seattle Times Pacific Northwest Magazine, 07/15/2018, p. 26.)

PCAD id: 5077