Historic Property Report Resource Name: Washington State Library Property ID: 26054 Location Address: 415 15th Avenue SE, Olympia, WA Tax No/Parcel No: 09850005000 Plat/Block/Lot: Sylvester DC PT Geographic Areas: Thurston County, OLYMPIA Quadrangle, T18R02W Information Number of stories: N/A Construction Dates: Construction Type Year Circa Built Date 1958 Built Date 1959 Historic Use: Category Subcategory Education Education - Library Government Government - Government Office Education Education - Library Government Government - Government Office Historic Context: Category Politics/Government/Law Architecture Saturday, May 22, 2021 Page 1 of 17 Historic Property Report Resource Name: Washington State Library Property ID: 26054 Architect/Engineer: Category Name or Company Builder Kuney-Johnson Company Architect Thiry, Paul Engineer Notkin, James Architect Thiry, Paul; Holmdahl, Otto E. Registers: Register Type Listed Date Removed Date Period of Level of Criteria Significance Significance National Register 8/3/2015 1958 - 1959 State A, C Washington Heritage Register 8/3/2015 1958 - 1959 State A, C Thematics: Local Registers and Districts Name Date Listed Notes Project History Project Number, Organization, Resource Inventory SHPO Determination SHPO Determined By, Project Name Determined Date 2011-03-00043, , Nifty From the 3/8/2004 Not Determined Last 50 2015-10-00257, , Capitol Campus 4/14/2014 Determined Eligible Michael Houser, 9/24/2001 Survey 2016-01-00452, DES, Capitol Lake 2/20/2020 Survey/Inventory - Deschutes Estuary Long-Term Management Project 2020-11-07281, DES, Legislative Campus Modernization (LCM) Predesign - Newhouse, Press Houses, Pritchard Library; Capitol Campus Saturday, May 22, 2021 Page 2 of 17 Historic Property Report Resource Name: Washington State Library Property ID: 26054 Photos North facade Interior view of Northwest Room, looking south; Callahan Northeast corner mural visible above the built-in shelving DuPen fountain on the front (north) facade Southeast corner Saturday, May 22, 2021 Page 3 of 17 Historic Property Report Resource Name: Washington State Library Property ID: 26054 Fitzgerald mosaic on first floor, at top of basement stairs east façade south façade west façade Register nomination form Original HPI form(s) Saturday, May 22, 2021 Page 4 of 17 Historic Property Report Resource Name: Washington State Library Property ID: 26054 Inventory Details - 1/1/1900 Common name: Joel M. Pritchard Building Date recorded: 1/1/1900 Field Recorder: Field Site number: SHPO Determination Styles: Period Style Details Modern Movement New Formalism Saturday, May 22, 2021 Page 5 of 17 Historic Property Report Resource Name: Washington State Library Property ID: 26054 Inventory Details - 3/8/2004 Common name: Joel M. Pritchard Building Date recorded: 3/8/2004 Field Recorder: M. Houser Field Site number: SHPO Determination Detail Information Characteristics: Category Item Cladding Stone Roof Material Asphalt/Composition - Built Up Foundation Concrete - Poured Roof Type Flat with Parapet Structural System Metal - Steel Form Type Commercial - Central Block with Wings Plan T-Shape Styles: Period Style Details Modern Movement New Formalism Surveyor Opinion Property appears to meet criteria for the National Register of Historic Places: Yes Property is located in a potential historic district (National and/or local): Yes Bibliography: Featured in Pacific Architect & Bullder - Sep 1959 Saturday, May 22, 2021 Page 6 of 17 Historic Property Report Resource Name: Washington State Library Property ID: 26054 Inventory Details - 4/14/2014 Common name: Joel M. Pritchard Building Date recorded: 4/14/2014 Field Recorder: Susan Johnson, Artifacts Consulting, Inc. Field Site number: SHPO Determination DOE as part of FEMA review Detail Information Characteristics: Category Item Plan T-Shape Cladding Stone - Ashlar/Cut Roof Type Flat with Eaves Structural System Masonry - Precast Concrete Foundation Concrete - Poured Styles: Period Style Details Modern Movement Modern Modern Movement New Formalism Surveyor Opinion Property appears to meet criteria for the National Register of Historic Places: Yes Property is located in a potential historic district (National and/or local): Yes Property potentially contributes to a historic district (National and/or local): Yes Significance narrative: Built in 1959, the Pritchard Building (originally the Washington State Library) was the last monumental building to be added to the West Capitol Campus. Architect Paul Thiry proportioned the massing to reflect the form and scale of the Classically designed Capitol group, although the Pritchard Building differs in architectural sensibilities with a decidedly Modern identity. The location, monumentality and shared design elements with the Capitol group emphasized the essential role of the Washington State Library within the state government. Furthermore, in the building͛s orientation to the Legislative Building and its use of Wilkeson sandstone as an exterior cladding, the Pritchard Building assumes a sense of shared purpose and belonging in the Capitol group. The State Library Commission͛s (SLC) interest in Thiry was the functional efficiency of his plan and his interest in working on libraries and with their staffs. Thiry met frequently with the State Library͛s staff, to get their input on the floor plan and other design aspects. Throughout the process, Paul Thiry and Maryan Reynolds (State Librarian at that time) worked closely together (Reynolds often called Thiry three to four times a day with ideas and questions) in deciding on embellishments, interior arrangement and furnishing choices. Thiry described his conception of the design as taking what he and the State Library staff knew regarding their present and future requirements, and reconciling that Saturday, May 22, 2021 Page 7 of 17 Historic Property Report Resource Name: Washington State Library Property ID: 26054 knowledge with contemporary library design practices. For example, the first floor is largely open and visible from the first floor mezzanine, a configuration originally intended to enable maximum operational flexibility with a minimum of staff to monitor activities. Thiry chose Wilkeson sandstone instead of Indiana limestone, although it was then three times more expensive, in order to match the earlier Capitol buildings, as well as for the stone's durability, good quality, and because it was a Washington product. Numerous lesser details, specifically the building͛s base, the regular spacing of window bays, and the recessed panels below the windows, evoke the Classicism of adjacent Capitol buildings without directly using their detailing. Textures employed on the exterior walls are plain, comprised of the grainy texture of the Wilkeson sandstone contrasting with the glass surfaces of the broad windows. The windows provided functional transparency. At the time of construction, this represented a significant development in library design meant to encourage library use. The large window openings also provide a panoramic view out over Deschutes Estuary. The sensitivity for and inclusion of views is an important regional variant within Modernism in the Pacific Northwest. The Washington Room (west end of basement) received more design attention, both in terms of the space and the furnishings, than any other room in the building. Originally staffed by a specialist in Northwest History, the Washington Room functioned as a depository for materials pertaining to the Pacific Northwest. The shelving originally displayed books from the State Library͛s collection of Pacific Northwest materials, including volumes purchased in 1853-1855 by Territorial Governor Isaac Stevens. Rare documents were kept within a secure area in the stacks. The major contemporary artworks commissioned for the Pritchard Building were an integral part of the architectural design, intended to enhance the building and accent the human element. This extensive inclusion of artwork was possible largely due to the economical design of the building. The Capitol Committee approved embellishments for up to 2-1/2 percent of the total construction costs, and gave Paul Thiry and Maryan Reynolds full authority to choose the artists and the type of art. Commissioned specifically for individual locations within the building, all of the site-specific works inside the building were emblematic of midcentury regional modern aesthetics and were executed by major figures in the American art world working at the peaks of their careers. Artwork commissioned for the building included: (exterior) bronze sundial, bronze sculpture; (first floor) marble wall mosaic, untitled mural on canvas, marble side and coffee tables, (basement) Washington Room murals, color transparencies. Physical description: The Pritchard Building is located between 15th and 16th Avenues Southwest. Situated immediately south of the Legislative Building, framed between the O'Brien and Cherberg buildings, Pritchard completes the south end of the original Wilder and White Capitol group master plan (1928). Character defining spaces and features include: ͻMassing, consisting of low front volume and tall rear stack ͻWilkeson sandstone cladding ͻWindow bays along the front volume ͻArtwork commissioned as part of the original building construction ͻWashington Room (west end of the basement) ͻWaffle slab stack design The elevated building site slopes gradually downward from the southeast to the north. This allows the building a prominent position, matching the scale of adjacent