John Stamets received his B.A. in Photography from Yale University, where he studied with documentary photographer Walker Evans. Stamets is a Lecturer in Photography in the School of Architecture at the University of Washington. He specializes in photographing historic buildings using the HABS/HAER standards.
The Old Riverview Farms Dairy Barn was designed and built by its owner, farmer Fred Nelsen, in 1902. Nelson and his brothers emigrated from Denmark to the United States in the 1880s. The English style barn, with prominent side gable and central wagon alley, was typical of the earliest multi-purpose barns in the Puget Sound region. Additions were made to the barn several times throughout its service life, and it was used as a dairy barn until 1975. The Northwest Buildings Survey (NWBS) commissioned John Stamets to make the photographs in this collection as part of a report prepared for Family Fun Centers, a business that was considering developing the property. The City of Tukwila and the Washington State Office of Architecture & Historical Preservation (OAHP) required this report (NWBS No. WA-001) because of the historic nature of the building and the pending demolition of the barn for development. Two weeks after the completion of the report, the barn was entirely destroyed by an arson fire on August 31, 1997.
This collection contains a Northwest Buildings Survey report based on the methods of the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) standards. Twelve black-and-white 4 x 5-inch photographs mounted on 8.5 x 11-inch paperboard, as well as the NWBS report, make up NWBS survey No. WA-001. The images include interior and exterior views of various aspects and angles of the barn. All photographs were made by John Stamets in August of 1997.
Collection is open to the public.
Special Collections does not hold the copyright to the photographs but has unlimited, nonexclusive rights to the use of the images.
Donor: John Stamets and Kate Krafft, 1998.
Processed by Donna Cook, 2003.
Photograph Collection 346: Historic American Buildings Survey No. WA-197 (Fox Theatre); photographs by John Stamets.
Photograph Collection 442: Historic American Buildings Survey No. WA-201 (Longacres Park); photographs by John Stamets.
Photograph Collection 618: Medical Arts Building; photographs by John Stamets according to Historic American Buildings Survey standards.
Photograph Collection 623: Historic American Buildings Survey No. WA-213 (Henry Art Gallery); photographs by John Stamets.
Photograph Collection 627: Historic American Engineering Record No. WA-24 (Skagit River and Newhalem Creek Hydroelectric Projects); photographs by Jet Lowe.