Smith Tower - Seattle's First Skyscraper

Photo: Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)

A stop on Seattle Pike Place and Downtown, a free self-guided tour.

Look up at the slim white tower at Second Avenue and Yesler Way. When Smith Tower opened on July 4, 1914, its 38 stories made it the tallest building west of the Mississippi River, a title it kept until 1931.

It's named for Lyman Cornelius Smith, a New York businessman who made his fortune in typewriters and firearms. The gleaming skin is glazed white terra cotta, which shrugs off Seattle's rain and keeps the tower bright more than a century later.

Step into the lobby to see the brass-and-copper elevators. For over a hundred years they were run by human operators, one of the last such setups on the West Coast, until automation began in 2017. Up on the 35th floor, the old Chinese Room is now a bar and observation deck with an open-air walkway around the outside. It charges admission, so check the website for current hours.

Up there sits a carved Wishing Chair with a dragon and a phoenix. Legend says that if you sit in it single, you'll be married within a year. Try it at your own risk.

Getting here: Walk one block east on Yesler Way to Second Avenue. The tower stands on the northeast corner.

Did you know?: Smith Tower was the tallest building on the West Coast for almost half a century, from 1914 until the Space Needle - the last stop on this walk - topped it in 1962.

Photo op: From the corner of First Avenue and Yesler Way, look up Yesler to catch the whole tower, pyramid top and all, framed by older brick buildings.

More on Wikipedia: Smith Tower · Lyman Cornelius Smith

Smith Tower - Seattle's First Skyscraper

Stops on this tour