The Palace of Belltown
W. W. Bell constructs a massive, modern hotel at Front and Battery streets, signaling a new era of growth for the northern expansion of Seattle.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
W. W. Bell is completing a new, colossal hotel at the corner of Front and Battery streets in Belltown. The structure is four stories high, including a Mansard roof, with a 90-foot tower. It features 105 bedrooms, wide halls, and is finished in black walnut. Designed by architect N. S. Hoffar, the building represents a $30,000 investment and is intended to anchor the future growth of the northern part of the city. While Bell has received offers to rent the space, he is determined to ensure it operates as a first-class establishment.
“The structure is on the corner of Front and Battery streets... its general appearance is very imposing, the outer ornamentation being attractive and tasteful.”
Belltown was then an up-and-coming northern suburb of Seattle; today, it is a dense, high-rise urban core. This story captures the 'booster' spirit of 1880s Seattle, where every new brick was seen as evidence of an inevitable metropolis.
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