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Building History

Builder Horace C. Henry (1844-1928) made a fortune in association with building contractor Henry Balch, when they formed Henry and Balch, a construction company that won many contracts for railroads and roads throughout the US. Henry, born in North Bennington, VT, fought in the Civil War as an orderly sergeant with the 14th Vermont Volunteers. He contracted tuberculosis soon after the war and was sent by his family to relatives in MN to recuperate. Once he recovered, he moved, without much success, from job-to-job in OH, IL, and back to MN. He formed his partnership with Balch in 1876 (focusing on jobs in the Midwest) and also was married to Susan Johnson of New Brunswick, Canada. While his business expanded, so, too, did his family; he and his wife had four children, a daughter and three sons. Work brought him to WA State in late 1891, and, liking what he saw, he began to make investments in local businesses. Henry rapidly became accepted into the local business community, where he became a Vice-President of the National Bank of Commerce (1893) and subsequently an officer in other banks and financial institutions.

The firm of Chamberlin and Siebrand designed this first house for Henry and his family. The pair worked in Seattle only during 1894, 1895 and 1896, a difficult time to be in practice, as a deep economic depression had slowed construction work across the US, including Seattle. Architect Arthur Bishop Chamberlin (1865-1933) had roots in Minneapolis, MN, and is likely to have known Henry there. Chamberlin came to Seattle, like so many other architects, following the Fire of 1889, seeking work. In succession, he worked for three of the city's most talented architectural firms, Saunders and Houghton (1890-1891), John Parkinson (1891-1893) and William Boone (1893) between 1890 and 1893, before forming a partnership with Carl Siebrand (1865-1938) in 1894. Following the dissolution of the Chamberlin and Siebrand office, the former returned to Minneapolis, where he formed a partnership with George Emile Bertrand (1859-1931) that lasted between 1896 and 1931.

Demolition

This residence burned in a fire and was replaced by a larger residence completed in 1904.

PCAD id: 8530