HistoryLink Tours

201 20th Avenue S

Pratt Park was established as part of several urban renewal projects in the Central Area that were completed in the late 1960s and 1970s. The park is situated among several community-serving buildings, including Bryant Manor, an affordable housing complex, and Kawabe House, a retirement community. Pratt Fine Arts Center – an arts education nonprofit for all ages – occupies the southeastern end of the park.

In 1976, the park was officially named for Edwin T. Pratt, a dedicated civil rights leader in Seattle. Pratt became the executive director of the Seattle Urban League in 1961. He fought tirelessly for fair housing for Black residents and worked to integrate Seattle public schools. Pratt was assassinated at his home in Shoreline, a suburb just north of Seattle, in 1969.

Walk north on 20th Avenue, crossing E Yesler Way, and continue toward E Spruce Street. Note the Tolliver Temple Church of God, which has served as a historic home of the Sephardic Jewish community in Seattle.