Archives West Finding Aid

The Office of Urban Conservation was created in 1975 as part of the Department of Community Development (DCD). It was founded in an era of citizen protests against a proposed urban renewal program that would have demolished Pioneer Square and Pike Place Market. The office’s mandate was to coordinate Seattle’s historic preservation programs and administer the city’s landmark boards and historic districts. When DCD was abolished in 1992, the office became the Historic Preservation Program in the Department of Neighborhoods.

When it incorporated in 1890, the city of Ballard had 1,636 residents. It boasted of being “the shingle capital of the world,” and its timber and fishing jobs drew many new residents, including many immigrants from Scandinavia. By 1900, its population of 4,568 made it the seventh largest city in Washington, and the town continued to boom, growing to 17,000 by 1907. Growth was quickly overwhelming the city’s ability to provide services, particularly a safe water supply, and Ballard’s citizens were increasingly considering asking Seattle to annex their town. The plan was voted down in 1905, but 15 months later annexation won out, and the town officially became part of Seattle on May 29, 1907. On that day, Ballard citizens showed their mixed feelings about the change by draping their city hall with black crepe and flying the flag at half mast.

The Ballard Avenue Landmark District was created by the Seattle City Council in 1976. Ballard Avenue was the core of the area’s central business district for decades. When Market Street became the main arterial, Ballard Avenue’s development effectively came to a standstill, preserving its character as a small-town main street with buildings from the 1890s to 1940s, along with the occasional hitching post. The Office of Urban Conservation, and later the Historic Preservation Program, provided staffing to the Ballard Avenue Landmark District Board.