HistoryLink Tours

Enterprising Henry Dearborn moved to Seattle in 1880 and was one of the first to become convinced that it was a gateway city. He was a promoter of the Northern Pacific Railway and was one of Seattle’s first real estate developers, establishing the firm of H.H. Dearborn in 1887. He invested heavily in tidelands on the city’s southern waterfront, which earned him the title of “tideland King.” It is said that he and his brothers (also in real estate) suggested the angle at which the Seattle piers were built.

While the carriage house was completed in 1904, it was not until 1906-1907 that architect Henry Dozier designed the house itself, a well-proportioned stucco clad exterior sculpted to form bays and embellished with classical elements, including dentil courses, beveled glass, and scrolled wood brackets, with cast metal palmettes at its roof corners and parapet.

Three of the four bedrooms and one bathroom on the second floor have double-leaf French doors with glazed panels and transoms of Prairie School inspired art glass. The thematic motifs are stylized tulips in gold and green that appear in several variations throughout the house. The building had been used for medical offices from 1953 until its purchase by Historic Seattle in 1997. It now houses the offices of this non-profit membership historic preservation organization. The Dearborn House is a Seattle Landmark and listed in the National Register of Historic Places.