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FRIDAY, AUGUST 21, 2015
Vol. CXXIV, No. 162
OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE CITY OF TACOMA Devoted to the Courts, Real Estate, Finance, Industrial Activities, and Publication of Legal Notices
Published Published Since Since 1890 1890
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Mead House
A Proctor area home moves closer to landmark status By Todd Matthews, Editor A single-family home dating back more than 100 years and located near Tacoma's Proctor District may soon be added to the City of Tacoma's Register of Historic Places. The Mead House (also known as the Keyser House)—located at 2702 N. Puget Sound Ave.—was built in 1903 and originally owned by Ferdinand and Laura Mead, who lived at the residence between 1903 and 1920. It changed owners one more time before Bill and Paula Keyser, a working-class couple (Bill was a Tacoma firefighter for 22 years), purchased the home in 1956 and lived there for more than 40 years. The landmark nomination was made based upon the one-and-a-half-story, 1,700-square-foot home's architectural significance as a "fine example of the Colonial Revival — Bungalow style of architecture." Equally as interesting as the home's long history and architectural pedigree is the amount of salvaged and historically significant material that comprise the 112-year-old residence. "Apart from the architectural significance, the Mead House showcases a locally significant collection of architectural salvage pieces incorporated into the house and yard," wrote architectural historian Susan Johnson of Tacoma-based Artifacts Consulting in the landmark nomination she prepared on behalf of the current property owner, Lari Ryan. Ryan purchased the home with her husband Jim (now deceased) 10 years ago. Bill Keyser, a handyman and avid 'do-it-yourselfer,' incorporated many of the salvaged and historic relics into the home, such as: — A brick wall bordering a backyard garden includes terra cotta tiles and a figurehead of a helmeted firefighter—known as the 'Head of Mercury'—that were salvaged from the former Fire Station No. 6 in downtown Tacoma. The fire station—once located in what is today Fireman's Park—was built in 1890 and demolished in 1974. A 1949 photograph archived at Tacoma Public Library's Northwest Room shows former Tacoma Fire Chief Charles Eisenbacher posing next to the figure, which was salvaged following an earthquake that year. — Wrought iron fencing and ornate wood salvaged from the former Brooklyn Hotel, which was built in 1888 and later demolished. Similarly, elevator grilles were salvaged from the former Bonneville Hotel. — A bay window in the dining room—as well as two fire places located in the house—were salvaged from a mansion built in 1889 for the late lumber baron Henry
Hewitt, Jr. The Hewitt House, once located at 501 N. 4th St., was demolished in 1957. — A leaded glass "Tiffany" window was salvaged from a home built in 1890 for the late newspaper publisher Sidney "Sam" Perkins. The Perkins House, once located at 501 N. D St., was demolished in 1960. — Bricks in the garden wall were salvaged from a former Catholic girls' school in Lakewood that was built in 1923 and demolished in 1954 in order to build a shopping center. The home was featured in the Society pages of The Tacoma News Tribune and Sunday Ledger on June 27, 1965. The residence is described as Tacoma's "Treasure House," and Paula Keyser is pictured lounging near the bay window salvaged from the Hewitt House. "The examples in this nomination illustrate the unique character of the house and the visionary preservation of pieces of Tacoma history by the Keysers,"
ABOVE: The 112-year-old Mead House has been nominated to the City of Tacoma's Register of Historic Places. Perhaps equally as interesting as the home's long history and architectural pedigree is the amount of salvaged and historically significant material that comprise the century-old residence. TOP: Homeowner Lari Ryan sits near a bay window salvaged from the circa-1889 Hewitt House and repurposed in the dining room of the Mead House. LEFT: An earlier homeowner, Paula Keyser, posed in the same location in 1965 for a newspaper article about the historically significant home. noted Johnson in the landmark nomination. "Together, they made the house into something unique, a house where day-to-day life is surrounded by stories of Tacoma's past. The house displays layers of history, from the original 1903 construction to the Keysers' modifications that started when they moved into the house in 1956 and continued during their occupancy. "This middle-class, industrious couple worked together to CONTINUED save elements of Tacoma's hisON PAGE 2