Much of the history of modern Seattle can be traced back to the expansion of the town through the Klondike Gold Rush. Years later many veterans of this gold rush would return to Seattle with a golden twinkle in their eye and walruses in their memories. Then in 1908 the wealthy gold diggers would form the first Arctic Club on 3rd Avenue and Jefferson Street. After a short few years they would come to commission their own building a few blocks down on the corner of Cherry and 3rd Ave. The building would be designed by A. Warren Gould in 1916. Here they would put walruses right on the facade!

c.a. 1917 photo of the Arctic Building on 3rd ave and Cherry st.

The building would remain a center for the club until the late 1970s where it would soon become a historic building of Seattle and be registered for the National Register of Historic Places. As of now it stands as an interesting trademark of the “golden” past of Seattle as well as a fancy hotel with cool bar. The building itself has had its own interesting past as a center for the Arctic Club as well as others, but also was the site of the suicide of U.S. Congressman Marion Zioncheck in 1936. The building is also said to be one of the go to haunted locations in Seattle.

The building has nine floors with a beautiful dome room in the back corner, which is commonly used for weddings. The elegance and posh intend for this building continue today while the walruses continue to watch Seattle around it.

The walrus