Independent Carpenter, Seattle, WA, c. 1901. President, James Black Masonry and Construction Company, Seattle, WA, c. 1903.

In 1901, the Polk's Seattle City Directory located Black's residence on the "southeast corner, Interlake Avenue and North 39th, Edgewater." According to a City of Seattle, Department of Neighborhoods' Historical Sites Summary for 419 Occidental Avenue, "The contractor for the building [the Manufacturers Building] was [the] James Black Masonry and Contracting Company, Seattle and St. Louis. The company’s first substantial contract in Seattle was the Alaska Building, with which Saunders and Lawton were also involved. This building was considered James Black Masonry and Contracting Company’s third major project in Seattle." (See City of Seattle, Department of Neighborhoods, "Historical Sites Summary for 419 Occidental Avenue,"Accessed 02/25/2013.)

The Manufacturers Building,