The Pennsylvania Avenue-West Side Historic District is a neighborhood located in Chehalis, Washington and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) since 1991. The district is one of three NRHP neighborhoods in the city, including the Chehalis Downtown Historic District and the Hillside Historic District. With The city of Chehalis recognizes a much broader and expansive historic district, known under such monikers as the Historic West Side or the Westside neighborhood, with the inclusion of several other homes and streets.
The neighborhood began in the 1880s and was mostly built up by 1915. Early, prominent members of the Chehalis community platted, built, and resided in the historic district. Residences were constructed in a variety of architectural styles with American Foursquare, Craftsman, and Late-Victorian the most numerous or notable of homes. The area is known for its ornamental street lamps, first installed in 1929.
The district was once home to the West Side School, which was destroyed in an earthquake in 1949, and is home to Westside Park. The O. K. Palmer House, an NRHP-listed home, is located within the Pennsylvania Avenue-West Side Historic District.
History The Pennsylvania Avenue-West Side Historic District was originally owned by several prominent members of the Chehalis Land & Timber Company (CL&T), including the Coffman and Donahoe families, Daniel Millett of Millett Field, Chehalis civil servant William Muir Urquhart, and William West, namesake of W. F. West High School. West, along with the CL&T, platted the area between 1888 and 1906 and the NRHP neighborhood was considered mostly complete by 1915.
By the 1900s, the district was already regarded by residents as the "fashionable avenue par excellence" of the city. The neighborhood was of such architectural and social importance to the community that the Chehalis Bee-Nugget newspaper in 1915 printed a book-length commemorative photograph issue to showcase the district. A 1920s program by the city's Better Home Premises committee, which awarded residences for beautiful lawns, mentioned the Pennsylvania-West Side area's abundant lots and specifically noted several homes in the district. The first official grand prize went to the Schuss Home on Pennsylvania Avenue.
The first recognized hospital in Chehalis was built by Dr. Guy W. Kennicott in 1903 at Prindle and State in the expanded city definition of the district. During the early morning hours on August 9, 1952, a fire broke out at the shake-and-shingle Perma Products plant north of the district boundaries on Pennsylvania Avenue, destroying the manufacturing plant. The $750,000 loss began after an electrical spark ignited a tank of naphtha, causing an immediate explosion. The blaze did not spread and there was no reported loss of life.
The heavily-used intersection of West and Pennsylvania marks the district but did not contain any type of traffic stop until the installation of a four-way stop in 1954. Continuing safety concerns led to the addition of street markings and larger stop signs in 1974. A traffic calming roundabout was added to the junction in 2007. Constructed also as a means to highlight the historic area, the space contained a welcome sign to the neighborhood that was funded by efforts of the Westside Chehalis Neighborhood Association. The sign was destroyed in a hit-and-run incident in December 2023 but a metal replacement marker was added in September 2024.
Infrastructure history Infrastructure improvements in the district included the first sewer installation, a stoneware pipe system, in 1900. Additional sewer lines were added beginning in 1973.
Pennsylvania Avenue was a plank road at the time and was replanked in 1901. In 1907, the Chehalis Citizen's Club led efforts to grade and lay down a crushed rock roadway in parts of the district. Plans in 1913 to pave the Westside included the additions of a center parking strip to Pennsylvania Avenue. Despite protests from district homeowners over costs and size of the new roads, the streets in the district were completely paved, either by asphalt or concrete, by 1914. West Street was repaved with a concrete base and curbing in 1925.
Early sidewalks were considered to be in poor shape by 1901, leading to several repairs ordered by the city or undertaken by residents in the district. By city ordinance, bicyclists at the time could be fined between $1 and $25 if caught riding on the sidewalks in the district at too high a speed or if West Side School was in session. A sidewalk connecting the district to the Northern Pacific Depot was undertaken in 1909. Sidewalk improvements were ordered again in 1922 and 1924.
Geography
The NRHP district is considered residential and is located due west of the Chehalis Downtown Historic District and east of Interstate 5. Encompassing three blocks on Pennsylvania Avenue, the district also incorporates the 600 block on NW St. Helens Avenue, two recognized homes on Gertrude Street, and one property each on Quincy Place and West Street. The neighborhood is bordered directly east of Westside Park and within the confines of the Pennsylvania-Westside District is the O. K. Palmer House, an NRHP-listed site. Into the 1920s, the district bordered a small lake located behind the West Side School; the body of water was proposed to be used as a town landfill in 1922.
The city of Chehalis has an expanded district boundary usually referred to as the Historic West Side or as the Westside district or neighborhood. The city defined district includes homes to the western border at the interstate and south to Prindle Street. The northern limit expands beyond Vine Street and meanders east to Rhode Island Place and up to State Avenue.
Features Most of the significant properties recognized by the NRHP are located on the west side of Pennsylvania Avenue and are distinguished by large, ornate homes built on spacious properties, some recognized for their detailed landscaping. The expansive residences and substantial property are markedly different than the surrounding neighborhood which are often smaller in scale. The contrast is most notable on Prindle Street, which borders the Pennsylvania-West Side neighborhood. Prindle contains mill worker cottages that housed early working-class families in the city.
The district is notable for its street lamps. An extensive network of lamp posts were added beginning in 1929. In 1969, after the lights suffered a wire issue leading to a neighborhood blackout of the lamp posts, the city reported the system to be "deteriorated beyond repair". Residents unanimously approved of keeping all 48 ornamental lights and several fixes were undertaken via a local improvement district, temporarily installing mercury-vapor lamps until repairs were completed. By the turn of the 21st century, most of the lamp posts were again inoperable and in need of refurbishing but renovations and maintenance to repair the lighting was begun via fundraising in 2002.
Homes within the NRHP district combine a variety of styles, including American Foursquare and Craftsman bungalow, with a majority being American Craftsman. Several homes of note were built under a transitional Late-Victorian style and two homes are classified as being 1920s Revivalism. The dominating, larger homes are often two or more stories, with story houses, usually of cottage and bungalow classifications, filling out the rest of the neighborhood. Most homes are built on brick or stone foundations and all dwellings are constructed with wood-framing and contain touches of the era. These include various types of siding such as clapboard, drop, and/or shingle and architectural features such as dominant roofs, brick and masonry chimneys, gables, front-entry and wrap-around porches, and extended eaves; bracketing and vergeboards are common. While many homes contain ornate touches of the early 20th century, including interior examples such as ornamented fireplaces, exposed purlins and rafters, original cabinetry, and wainscotting, simplicity exists in most homes, especially in regards to such areas as casements and porch columns and railings.
Significance The Pennsylvania Avenue-West Side Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on December 3, 1991 and the nomination included 31 homes and 20 garages in the district, though 5 additional buildings were excluded either due to alterations or age that did not meet NRHP requirements. One of the recognized homes had been converted into an apartment house but allowed as the building kept its original style. The houses selected for inclusion were noted for a variety of styles, such as American Craftsman and Bungalow, Victorian, and turn-of-the-century revival styles. Some outbuildings, such as garages, were included as the construction often mirrored the form, use of materials, and details of the main house.
Due to the mostly untouched nature of the neighborhood, the NRHP listing considered the homes in the district to retain "considerable integrity from the historic period" and contain visible, and original, historic architectural features, such as exterior details, layouts, roof lines, and window casements.
The area was also recognized as of historic significance due to the number of early 20th century businessmen, investors, and civil servants who helped to shape the early days of Chehalis. Such notable pioneers include John Dobson, a banker and mayor of the city, and Francis Donahoe, a real estate investor also credited with early platting in the district. A section of Pennsylvania Avenue in the 1900s contained a row of homes owned by members of the Coffman, Frost, Millett, and Urquhart families. Families of the early founders of the Pennsylvania neighborhood continued to live in the district for decades.
The district was listed with the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP) as a protected and historic area within the state. By 1996, the Pennsylvania-Westside neighborhood was one of only 20 to 30 such areas in the state, and the only one in Lewis County.
In 1999, residents of the district formed a non-profit group known as the Westside Chehalis Neighborhood Association, focusing on protecting historic Pennsylvania-West Side. The effort was spurred by an attempted rezoning in the district and a potentially intrusive widening project of Interstate 5. A 1987 environmental impact statement (EIS) regarding I-5 took into account Chehalis Westside properties near the interstate margins. The EIS found that homes, especially on Maryland Avenue which borders I-5, were architectural examples seen throughout the district. The structures and their history, however, were found to be lacking in several historical aspects, including ties to historical events and people, and were found to have insufficient "high artistic value" and connections to known architects.
Significant contributing properties
Unless otherwise noted, the details provided are based on the 1991 National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) nomination form and may not reflect updates or changes to the Pennsylvania Avenue-West Side Historic District in the interim. Additionally, during the NRHP nomination process, many homes were found to lack documentation for exact construction dates though research was able to narrow down to certain timeframes, using Sanborn maps and referencing city directories to verify ownership or occupancy. Listed dates of construction for several homes are approximate.
American Foursquare