Seattle Landmarks: Parsons House (1905)

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Address: 618 W Highland Drive, Seattle. Reginald H. Parsons (1873-1955) came to Seattle in 1903 to represent the Bemis Bag Co. He branched out into mining, and into agricultural and financial businesses. Maude (Bemis) Parsons (d. 1955) was a patron of the arts and a founding member of the Seattle Fine Arts Society, precursor to the Seattle Art Museum. They built a home on the south slope of Queen Anne Hill where other prominent Seattle residents were erecting large residences. The Seattle Daily Times Publisher Alden Blethen (1845-1915) lived across the street.

The house followed the Dutch Colonial style of the eighteenth century Atlantic coast. It had a slate roof and was covered with brick and stucco. Every bedroom had a fireplace and there was a large library, a tile-floored conservatory, and a large sun room. On the third floor was a gymnasium.

In 1956, the Parsons children leased the garden to the city and in 1960, deeded ownership. Their gift provided that "no structure other than ... a chapel" shall be built in the park (Sherwood). Behind the gardens was a carriage house, which was replaced by a town house in 1968.

The house was designated a Seattle Landmark on September 2, 1980, because of its prominence at the location and because it was a distinctive feature in the neighborhood. In 1994, Architect Brandt Hollinger supervised additions to the house, a new garage, and a brick perimeter wall.

Sources:
Seattle Department of Neighborhoods, Landmarks Preservation Board, 700 Third Avenue, 4th Floor, Seattle, Washington; Lawrence Kreisman, Made to Last: Historic Preservation in Seattle and King County, (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1999), 55; Don Sherwood, "Parsons Memorial Garden," Interpretive Essays on the History of Seattle Parks, Handwritten bound manuscript dated 1977, Seattle Room, Seattle Public Library.

By David Wilma, April 16, 2001

This file made possible by:
The SCHOONER Project:
The Hon. Jan Drago
Seattle City Council
Seattle Department of Neighborhoods

Parsons House, 2001
Photo by David Wilma

Reginald Parsons (1873-1955)
Courtesy C. H. Hanford, Seattle and Environs