The Building Boom of 1889: Seattle’s Rapid Transformation
A look at the official building permits issued in May 1889, documenting the surge of brick and frame construction that was reshaping the city just weeks before the Great Seattle Fire.
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.
Building Inspector Abbott yesterday issued permits for the following premises: H. W. Hill, four-story fence, lots 7 and 8, block 18, Maynard's addition, $350; M. Hill, two-story frame, lot 7, block 18, Maynard's addition, $1,500; C. Schaller, one-story frame, lots 1, block 7, Terry addition, $400; A. J. D. I. S. G. & Co., four one-story frames, lots 10, 11 and 12, block 24, Pontius' addition, $750; Arntson & Smith, two-story frame, lots 5, block 1, Maynard addition, $2,000; F. More, two-story frame, lot 6, block 18, Maynard addition, $1,500; Joseph Winship, two-story frame, lot 4, block 18, Maynard's addition, $1,500; D. Webb & L. Cohn, one-story frame, lot 4, block 36, D. T. Denny addition, $300; M. Hill, one-story frame, lot 4, block 1, Maynard addition, $250; E. Calvert, two-story frame, lot 3, block 2, Bell & Denny's addition, $800; J. L. DeWitt, one-story frame, lot 7, block 1, Pontius' addition, $400; E. Calvert, two-story frame, lot 4, block 2, Bell & Denny's addition, $800; W. H. Woodman, two-story iron, lot 6, block 6, Bell & Denny's addition, $1,750; K. R. Woodman, two-story iron, lot 7, block 6, Bell & Denny's addition, $1,750.
“Building Inspector Abbott yesterday issued permits for the following premises...”
These 1889 building permits capture the frantic pace of development in Seattle just weeks before the Great Seattle Fire leveled the business district. Today, the names of these neighborhoods—Maynard, Pontius, Bell, and Denny—remain central to Seattle’s geography, and the tension between wood-frame residential growth and brick commercial density continues to define the city's housing debates.
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