The chair pictured below is known as the "Wishing Chair." Supposedly, a single woman who sits in the chair will be married within the year. The Chinese Room is named so because of the elaborately decorated wood and porcelain ceiling, as well as the carved Blackwood furniture, both of which were gifts to the owner of the building from the Empress of China. The metal bars that keep people from falling off the building are somewhat visually disruptive, and views north are limited by other skyscrapers in downtown. It's pretty swanky.Īs far as views go, those from the observation deck of Smith Tower (known as the Chinese Room) are decent. While the observation deck is rich in both history and detail, I personally found the lobby to be move visually interesting.
Apparently, the glass dome at the top of the building can be stood in, giving the viewer an extremely unique view of Seattle. The caretaker's residence on the top floor was eventually remodeled, and the water tank removed to make a single luxury apartment. At 522 feet tall (42 floors), Smith Tower was the 4th tallest building in the world at the time of its completion. The building is currently owned by Walton Street Capital and managed by Wright Runstad & Company.The historic Smith Tower was completed in 1914. The Tower is a short 7-minute walk from downtown. Most buses heading south on 1st, 2nd, or 3rd avenues will stop at James Street or Yesler Way. No fare is required if you board and exit a bus within the downtown area. The Smith Tower is just eight blocks south of the Pike Place Market in the "Ride Free" zone. Core samples down to 122 feet below 2nd Avenue reveal fallen trees, some as large as 3 feet in diameter, which have never been exposed to seawater. The ground under the Smith Tower was never part of the tidal mud flats that underlie much of Pioneer Square. The Smith Tower has survived three earthquakes of a magnitude of 6.0 or greater: 2001, 1965, and 1949. It is the only residence in the building and contains a massive Dale Chihuly chandelier. Smith for the typewriter he sent her in the early 1900s. Its still filled with intricate carvings sent from the Empress of China as a way of thanking L.C. Then the entire space was remade into a penthouse apartment. As evocative as it is exotic, the Chinese Room in the Smith Tower is one of the more famous spaces in the city, with sweeping views of the sound, the Space needle and Mt. The water tank was disassembled by welders who cut it into pieces small enough to fit into the elevator. Above was a multi-story, 10,000-gallon, cast iron water tank. The 37th floor originally contained a caretaker's apartment. The very top of the building is crowned by an eight-foot wide glass dome which is illuminated by blue light, except for the month of December, when it is changed to green. This resulted in much new space, and what was formerly a small maintenance man's apartment became a three-story penthouse, the only residence in the building. The legend came true for Smith's daughter, who married in the Chinese Room itself.Īfter the restoration in the early nineties, workers removed a thousand-gallon water tank in the very top of the tower. It is said that a single woman who sits in the chair will marry within a year. The furniture and the hand carved ceiling were gifts from theEmpressofChina. The Chinese Room is on the 35th floor of the tower, the same level as the observatory. The doors are latticed, so a rider can see into each hallway and through the glass walls in front of each office. TheOtis Elevator Companyprovided the elevators, which have uniquely designed brass surfaces. The building is the last on the West Coast to have live elevator operators. It has been washed only once since its construction, in 1976, because it remains remarkably clean without regular washing.
SMITH TOWER CHINESE ROOM SKIN
Its outer skin is made of granite on the first and second floors, and terra cotta on the rest. The Smith Tower is a great example ofneoclassical architecture. The building is a designated landmark in the greater Seattle area. It remained the tallest building on the West Coast until the Space Needleovertook it in 1962. Containing 42 floors, it was the tallest office building west of the Mississippi River until theKansas City Power & Light Buildingwas built in 1931. Completed in 1914, the tower is named after its builder, firearm and typewriter magnateLyman Cornelius Smith. The Smith Tower is located in Pioneer Square and noted as the oldest skyscraper in Seattle, Washington.
0 kommentar(er)
