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Overview

The City Building was one of the first buildings designed by architect William E. Boone in Seattle, before his productive partnership with George C. Meeker (1849-1919).

Building History

The City of Seattle operated its governmental functions in rented spaces between 1869 and 1882. The Seattle Common Council contracted with architect William E. Boone (1830-1921) to design the first purpose-built Seattle City Hall in 06/1882. On 06/25/1882, it passed Ordinance #285 allocating $8,000 for the construction of a combined Seattle Common Council meeting chamber, fire engine house, and city jail. Boone worked with building contractor E.W. Rea, who won the contract with a bid of $7,525. Boone and Rea completed the building on or before the first Friday of 11/1882, which was 11/03/1882.

According to the Seattle Muncipal Archives, "The building, located at what is now Second Avenue South between Yesler Way and Washington Street, was a modest brick and wood two-story structure, measuring 40 x 60 feet. Fire Engine Co. No. 1 occupied the first floor and City Hall was upstairs." (See Seattle Municipal Archives.gov, "Seattle's City Halls," accessed 03/21/2018.) This city hall functioned for a total of seven years before disaster struck.

Building Notes

Ochsner and Anderson indicated in their notable work, Distant Corner that the first City Hall was located on the east side of 2nd Avenue South (which was known as 3rd Avenue at the time) between Main and Washington Streets. (See Jeffrey Karl Ochsner and Dennis A. Andersen, Distant Corner, [Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2003], p. 297). The Seattle Muncipal Archives "Seattle City Halls" web site stated that it was sited "...at what is now Second Avenue South between Yesler Way and Washington Street....: " (See Seattle Municipal Archives.gov, "Seattle's City Halls," accessed 03/21/2018.)

This small, brick and wood building had two stories. The fire engine company and jail occupied the first floor, city offices and meeting rooms on the second. The city hall had a rectangular shape measuring 40 by 60 feet, with brick walls and wooden floor and roof joists. The front facade had a tripartite composition, with the central bay being the widest. A large door opened the center of the first floor front, enabling the admittance of the fire-fighting engine. Two paired doors stood to one side, while a double-hung window lit the opposite side bay. All window and door openings were trimmed by segmental arches, each with a keystone in the center. To one side, a stairway took visitors to a doorway that led to second floor governmental rooms. A parapet lined the flat roof and a bell for the fire company was covered by a belfry positioned on the roof's center. The belfry had a pyramidal top and a hipped portion that flared out just above the bell. As per Victorian tastes, the belfry's roof had a mixture of shingle colors with a wrought-iron weather vane at the top.

Demolition

The Seattle City Hall #1 burned in the Great Fire of 06/06/1889. Many important city documents were lost in the blaze, including tax records covering 1885-1887. According to the Seattle Muncipal Archives, "In the wake of the fire, City offices were moved temporarily to a converted house between Fourth and Fifth Avenues and Yesler Way and Terrace Street. The site of the burned building was traded to Josiah Collins in 1895 for property between Fourth and Fifth Avenues South and Weller and Lane Streets, to be used for city stables, a blacksmith shop and a storage yard."

PCAD id: 8498