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What is the oldest structure in Seattle?


May is National Historic Preservation Month. That might get some of you wondering …


What is the oldest existing structure in Seattle?

This question has a history, and Leonard Garfield, executive director of Seattle’s Museum of History and Industry, has the answer in our 20th installment of Ask MOHAI (got a question for next time? Send it here):

This very old house


Nobody knows for sure which structure in Seattle is the oldest, but history sleuths have long conferred that honor on the Ward House at 520 E Denny Way on Capitol Hill.

Ward House at E. Denny Way and Belmont Ave. E. is considered the oldest existing structure in Seattle. (2007 photo by Joe Mabel, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under GFDL.)

Built in 1882 during Seattle’s first big boom, the house is a rare example of the urbane Victorian style known as Italianate. Originally located on Boren Avenue between Union and Pike, the Ward House was threatened in the mid-1980s with demolition due to its location in the shadow of the new Washington State Convention and Trade Center. Happily, Historic Seattle had already saved the structure a decade earlier, and sold it to Seattle attorney David Leen, who moved it up the hill to its current location on the corner of East Denny and Belmont Avenue East, where it underwent a complete restoration in 1986. Today the Ward House is among the best preserved examples of high life in 19th century Seattle.

But an even older house still stands in greatly modified form in West Seattle — the original home of Seattle pioneer and promoter David “Doc” Maynard. Built in the 1860s, Doc Maynard’s house near Alki Point is an example of an earlier Victorian style known as Gothic Revival, and while its architectural character is almost unrecognizable today, the simple, straight forward structure reminds us of the sturdy character that made Maynard and his colleagues the true progenitors of the Seattle Spirit.

Leonard Garfield

Speaking of historic preservation, MOHAI is one of 25 organizations throughout the Puget Sound vying for the biggest $1 million in grant funds to support local historic preservation. MOHAI’s future home, the Naval Reserve Armory, is on the list. Cast your vote for your favorite candidate here.

Learn more about Seattle’s Museum of History and Industry at If you’re a history nut, check out its quiz nights Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays around Seattle. And don’t forget, the first Thursday of every month is free.

More Ask MOHAI:

What did the census reveal the year Seattle became a small city?
Has Seattle ever had a female mayor?
A history of charity: How Seattle Children’s Home got its start

What was the Puget Sound area’s most famous kidnapping?
When did the UW win its first Olympic gold medal?
What was Seattle’s most disruptive construction project?
Who started Seattle’s Christmas Ship Festival — and why?
WTO: What other civil unrest has marked Seattle’s history?
What was the first legal drinking age in Washington?
What was the first book ever checked out of a Seattle public library?
Looking back: How Seattle handled another flu outbreak
What’s the oldest public art in Seattle?
Why is it called “grunge”?
Who was Seattle’s most popular mayor?
Why is a Seattle community garden called a ‘P-Patch?’
Why are there so many motels on Aurora Avenue?
What’s the weirdest thing that’s happened to the Space Needle?
How long has Seattle supported gay rights?
Why are cars allowed to drive on Pike Place?

Categories: Ask MOHAI, Local News
Monica Guzman