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 Photograph © Wayne Lorentz  Photograph © Wayne Lorentz
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Smith TowerFormerly: | L.C. Smith Building | Historically significant, culturally relevant, and architecturally important. It is unusual for a skyscraper to have so many attributes that make it stand out from the rest, but nearly a century after Smith Tower defined a city and a culture, it is still revered as the venerable old man of Seattle's skyline. The Smith Tower has long been the subject of local folklore. It is said that after it opened, ships navigated Elliot Bay by looking for the tower. As a visitor, the thing you will notice is that it appears to sparkle as brilliantly today as it did when it opened nine decades ago. The brass surfaces in the elevator are polished to a fault, and the elevator operators (yes, real human elevator operators) wear uniforms as crisp and smart as any armed serviceman. Unlike today's modern buildings where the elevator opens into a beige hallway or corporate lobby, the elevators in the Smith Tower open onto common hallways where companies operate behind glass walls as if they were street front shops. The elevator doors are not sealed, so you can watch the levels pass and see how each floor is decorated in a different motif. The 35th floor is more than just an observation deck. it is home to the Chinese Room. Its hand-carved ceiling and furniture were a gift from the Empress of China. There used to be a lot more to it, but most of the furniture has been poached over the years by various building owners. One thing that remains is the "Wishing Chair." It is said that women who sit in this chair and hope to be married will tie the knot within a year. Quick Facts
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Ann Matterand Gimbel - Thursday, July 9th, 2009 @ 7:49pm |
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I have been writing up our family story and found one entry that states my Grandfather, Ole S. Matterand, who came from Norway by himself as a 17 year old in 1864, was a offered the land on which the Smith Tower now stands for $25.00. This was after the Seattle fire (1889 or 1890). My Grandfather shied away from buying it because of the fire. My Grandfather lived in Stanwood WA, which, in 1877 had about the same population with less saloons and more churches than Seattle. Another story claims that he could sail his sloop out with the tide from Stanwood and be in Seattle in an hour! I'd like to believe both stories. He was 6'6" tall and usually able to perform what he said he would. Signed, Wanting to believe .
