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Male, US, born 1879-11-16, died 1960-05-28
Associated with the firm network
Storey, Ellsworth P., Architect
Résumé
Draftsman, Frost and Granger, Architects, Chicago, IL, summers of 1901 and 1902.
Draftsman, James H. Schack, Seattle, WA, 1903. (See The Alumni Record of the University of Illinois, James Herbert Kelley, ed., [Urbana-Champaign: University of Illinois, 1913], p. 310.)
Principal, Ellsworth Storey, Architect, Seattle, WA, 1903-1937. Between 1908 and 1918, Storey operated his architectural office in Room #642 of the New York Block. (See R.L. Polk and Company's Seattle, Washington, City Directory, 1908, p. 1240.) In 1925, he maintained an office in Room #308 of the Pantages Building.
His obituary in the Seattle Times indicated that Storey worked until 1952. His name did not appear in the architects section of the Seattle City Directory past 1937. Historian Heather M. MacIntosh, stated that Storey retired in 1945. (See Heather M. MacIntosh, HistoryLink.org, "Storey, Ellsworth Prime [1879-1960]," written 11/03/1998, a
According to his daughter, Storey designed "nearly sixty major" commissions, most of which were single-family houses. He also produced designs for churches, a country club, and park and military buildings. (See Anne L. Lindsay, Evolution of the Faculty Club on the University of Washington Campus 1909 through Present, Masters of Architecture Thesis, [Seattle: University of Washington, 1987], p. 66.)
Professional Activities
Patron, Seattle Architectural Club, Seattle, WA, 1910.
Member, American Institute of Architects (AIA), Washington Chapter, 1910-1911.
HIgh School / College
Graduate, Chicago English High and Manual Training School, Chicago, IL, c. 1893. According to the University of Chicago Library: "The Chicago Manual Training School was the only independent institution of its kind when it opened. Along with Washington University’s Manual Training School in St. Louis, it was the most influential in the country. Influenced by educational movements in late 1870s and 1880s America, the school’s founders sought to provide a comprehensive three-year education that gave equal attention to 'book work' and 'shop work.' Students were given a secondary education in mathematics, science, and literature, as well as training in drawing, carpentry, and mechanics. Founding director H.H. Belfield declared the industrial age an 'age of brains' in which engineering advancement was equally the product of intellectual innovation and technical skill. Believing that 'a republic should have no proletariat,' Belfield and the other trustees rejected both traditional secondary school instruction and the apprenticeship model for trades." (See University of Chicago.edu, "Guide to the Chicago Manual Training School Records 1882-1913," accessed 11/10/2020.)
B.Arch., University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, IL, 1893-1903. His education was interrupted by a year-long European and Middle Eastern vacation taken with his family, and by periods of working in Chicago architectural offices. Storey belonged to the Delta Tau Delta Fraternity at the University of Illinois.
Relocation
Ellsworth Prime Storey was born in Chicago, IL, and his family lived at 292 Walnut Avenue, in the city's Maywood Neighborhood. He began study at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana in 1893; he and his family spent over a year traveling abroad in Europe and the Middle East.
He moved to Seattle, WA, in 1903 after graduation from college. His daughter stated: "On graduation from Illinois, he immediately headed west to Seattle to build two houses, one for his parents and contiguously, one for himself and his bride-to-be." (See Anne L. Lindsay, Evolution of the Faculty Club on the University of Washington Campus 1909 through Present, Masters of Architecture Thesis, [Seattle: University of Washington, 1987], p. 65.)
In 1910, Storey lived at 260 Dorffel Drive in Seattle, located in the Denny Blaine Neighborhood overlooking Lake Washington. At this time, Storey had a Swedish servant, Anna Wilson (born c. 1887 in Sweden), and a boarder, Mark Soderberg (born c. 1884 in Norway), who worked as a draftsman in an architect's office, probably Storey's. Storey's retired parents, Henry Clifford and Mary Lavinia Storey, lived next door at 270 Dorffel Drive.
During World War I, the architect was inducted as a private in the US Army in Seattle, WA, on 10/28/1918 and was discharged in 12/1918 at Camp Taylor located just outside of Louisville, KY.
Ten years later, Henry Storey had died, and Lavinia lived in Ellsworth's house at 260 Dorffel Drive; by the next decennial census, she was still living in the house. At this time, the 270 Dorffel Drive House had been rented (for $85 per month) to Alfred F. Woolsey (born c. 1889 in OR), a bond salesman, and his wife, two children and a servant. In 1942, Ellsworth Storey and his wife continued to reside at the 270 Dorffel Drive address. His obituary in the Seattle Times of 06/01/1960, said that he moved east to Ithaca, N.Y., to be near his daughter in 1956. Granddaughter Alice Chapman Speers indicated in an email to the author of 02/13/2012: "His life ended in Ithaca, NY where he was cared for by his elder daughter Eunice. His ashes were scattered in Puget Sound according to his wishes, and his marker is in Champaign, IL as is Phoebe Mulliken's." His marker was also in the Roselawn Cemetery, Champaign, IL.
Parents
His parents were Henry Clifford Storey (born 06/16/1845 in Hartford, CT-d.11/11/1911 in Seattle, WA), and Mary Lavinia Northway, (born 09/01/1856 in New York, NY-d. c. 1947). They married on 11/07/1876 in Cook County, IL. (See Ancestry.com, Source Information Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Marriage Index, 1860-1920 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015, accessed 10/25/2022.)
In 1880, Henry operated a furniture store in Chicago, IL. The 1880 US Census referred to Ellsworth's mother as "Mary L. Storey." The 1880 Census indicated that both of her parents came from NY. The Storey Family in 1880 was prosperous enough to have a servant, 15-year-old Ella Lukens (born c. 1865 in IL), working in the home.
The architect was named for an uncle who died at age 17, Ellsworth P. Storey (born 07/19/1841 in Philadelphia County, PA-d. 02/23/1959 in Chicago, IL), an elder brother of his father, Henry.
His paternal grandparents James Webb Storey (born 11/11/1814 in Lansingburgh, NY-d. 07/28/1885 in Chicago, IL) and Clarissa Prime Storey (07/12/1812 in New Haven, CT-d. 10/13/1887 in Chicago, IL) lived in Hartford, CT, in 1850, where he worked as a drover. The family owned a substantial $3,000 in real estate at that time. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1850; Census Place: Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut; Roll: 41; Page: 152b, accessed 10/25/2022.)
Spouse
Ellsworth Storey married Phoebe Mulliken, (born 02/25/1881-d. 09/25/1954), on 09/29/1904 in Champaign, IL. (See The Alumni Record of the University of Illinois, James Herbert Kelley, ed., [Urbana-Champaign: University of Illinois, 1913], p. 310.)
Phoebe was born in IL. Her parents, John Wallace Mulliken and Josephine Danforth (d. 10/08/1909 in Seattle, WA), married on 09/10/1876. Before her marriage, she matriculated at the University of Illinois, where she joined the Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority.
Phoebe died at age 73 after a “sudden illness," and her memorial service was held in the Church of the Epiphany #1, designed by her husband. She cremated and buried at the Roselawn Cemetery in Champaign, IL.
Children
Storey had two daughters: Eunice Storey DeChazeau, (born 07/13/1905 in Seattle, WA), and Priscilla Storey Chapman, (born 08/16/1909 in Seattle, WA). (Priscilla married Kenneth Chapman and lived at 3442 Bell Street in Everett, WA, in 1942. On his World War II Draft Registration Card, Priscilla was named as a "person who will always know your address.")
An earlier note in PCAD was erroneous that "he [Storey] also had a son, Ellsworth A. Storey, (born Seattle, WA, 12/29/1918-died Rochester, NY, 12/30/1993." This was corrected by Alice Chapman Speers, a granddaughter of his, in an email to the author received 02/10/2012. Thank you for the correction.
Biographical Notes
According to Grant Hildebrand, when in Europe c. 1900, Storey "...was most strongly affected by the chalets of Switzerland." (See Grant Hildebrand, "Ellsworth Storey," in Shaping Seattle Architecture, Jeffrey Ochsner, ed., [Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1994], p. 102.
The Storey Family took a year-long trip through Europe and Middle East during 1894 and 1895. Storey's daughter, Eunice recalled this vacation: "In September 1893, he entered the University of Illinois. After one year of general academic studies it was decided by his parents that he should be prepared for architecture by travel. This excuse for a 'grand tour' was, I am sure, laid hold of with avidity by my grandmother who was always eager to do the correct and adventurous thing. And at that time nothing was more correct or more adventurous than an European journey. The year proved, in fact, a great success...The group wandered over Europe and the Middle East for more than twelve months, touching everywhere but in Russia and Scandinavia. They inspected Turkey and Greece, sailed up the Nile, surrounded Italy and returned by easy stages through Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France, and the Netherlands and the British Isles... It was rather the miniature, domestic buildings of Switzerland and Austria that captured his imagination. Perhaps he saw it transplanted to the new background and dramatic landscape, and the same resources. Wood excited him more than stone and brick." (See Anne L. Lindsay, Evolution of the Faculty Club on the University of Washington Campus 1909 through Present, Masters of Architecture Thesis, [Seattle: University of Washington, 1987], p. 64.)
PCAD id: 1760
