John Graham Jr. received international recognition for his large scale shopping complexes. Combining architectural skill with business acumen, Graham helped shape Seattle’s commercial environment after World War II. Born in Seattle to architect John Graham Sr., Graham Jr. enrolled in the University of Washington’s architecture program in 1926. Transferring to Yale in 1928, Graham graduted with a degree in fine arts four years later and initially pursued a career in merchandising rather than architecture. When John Graham Sr. retired in 1946, Graham Jr. took over his father’s architecture firm. When the post-World War II economy spurred suburban growth and expansive commercial development in King County, Graham, groomed in retail management, recognized the potential for innovative design strategies. With an initial collaboration with department store owner Rex Allison, Graham conceived the model for the suburban shopping center. That model was first realized with Northgate Shopping Center, whose key elements included a large scale complex with a combined concentration of shops, abundant parking and easy highway access. When Graham decided to enclose the entire complex, the modern mall was born. Founded in 1902 by James Cash Penney and William Henry McManus, JCPenny was chosen as the official name of original dry goods stores in 1913 when Penney accepted a majority ownership of the chain. Drawing show’ s an alternate name for the department store, propably an appellation used by the architect and not representative of the original signage.
Architectural drawing of J.C. Penney’s Department Store at Northgate Mall (Seattle, Washington). March 1964. Acrylic on board by John Graham & Company. Image courtesy U.W. University Libraries Digital Collection.
It’s incredibly difficult for me to look at this architectural style and see anything but “boring” and “dated” about it. I’m really trying, but I simply can’t! I don’t understand the aesthetic/appeal. It’s the curse of my generation (I was born in 1969) that I’ve seen too many of these buildings as crumbling, grimy, and ultimately abandoned in my lifetime.
I’ve had that same trouble, Shannon. I think in order to appreciate mid-century architecture you have to remember the cultural mindset of that time. People still remembered terrible American poverty and the world’s most devastating war ever, and in the early sixties they were extremely optimistic about the future — desperately optimistic, given that the threat of nuclear destruction haunted their dreams — and all those sleek lines and minimal planes gave people a sense that they were living in a space-age world far removed from the horror of WWII and the Great Depression, and helped them forget how close they were to becoming radioactive dust on a solar wind. Also, the age of craftsmen and tradesmen was coming to an end in favor of mass production, which favored less ornate (“boring”) styles. Note: I could be wrong about most of the above, especially all of it
My thought on seeing this is “kill it before it multiplies!”
And it’s less the building (which is atrocious) than all of that surface parking.
I remember that JC Penney logo from when I was a kid. Kind of funny nowadays to think that the company actually went by the less formal moniker of “Pennys” for a while.
I’m actually quite fond of some 60′s modern architecture, so long as it doesn’t replace something older. I’ve always loved the look of the former Bon Marches at Tacoma Mall & Southcenter. It must be the red brick.
Was the Auto Center ever operational? I didn’t really know this mall until the ’80s. Buy some pants while getting the wheels aligned!
While taste in modernist architecture is certainly personal, it should be kept in mind that some of the original modernist style was very innovative and quite beautiful. It was only after it was adopted by the mainstream that it became bland. It was embraced by people because it was cheap to manufacture. It was also thought to be simple and easy to throw together a design (Also a cost cutting advantage). Real innovation and beauty rarely went into these later designs.
Yes, the auto center was functional and not just a design. I vaguely remember it, but some proof is in a aerial shot on the Tacoma Public Library site:
http://search.tacomapubliclibrary.org/images/dt6n.asp?un=19&pg=1&krequest=Penney&stemming=On&phonic=&fuzzy=&maxfiles=5000
It’s fun to see, as I grew up nearby & remember when it looked like this. I turned 7 years old in 1964, so vaguely remember the mall before the roof was added & it was remodeled.
I recall hearing adults talking about the newly remodeled mall; one of the things they appreciated was that it was possible to go from store to store without having to go outside in the rain. It also had more nice places to sit down & relax or grab a bite to eat.
Until I was almost six my family lived the the 10000 block of Interlake Avenue North, atop the ridge to the west of Northgate. So I watched the construction of the mall as a four- or five-year old and was there at the beginning. My dad was actually offered the job as Northgate’s first maintenance foreman but turned it down because it didn’t pay as much as the job he had. Lots of people wouldn’t shop at Northgate when it opened, because the stores were smaller than the ones downtown and just didn’t have the selection.
There’s a blue guardrail in the SE corner of the mall parking lot (Near where Malmo used to be if anyone remembers that!) that as a kid I thought was the gate referred to in the name.
Remember when there used to be a hospital?
I saw many a movie at the Northgate theater too.
I love the modern international style! So much better than today’s blandly evocative-of-an-era-that-never-existed nonsense. I used to love the sleek, understated look of the downtown Frederick & Nelson and I.Magnin stores, but they were ruined by Nordstrom and Old Navy. And don’t get me started on how ugly University Village is, especially compared to its former self.
I stayed at the Northgate Hospital back in 1975… my mom considered it the best hospital around.
Northgate is unique in that it stayed nearly the same from its opening in 1950 until the 1970′s, when it became enclosed. Even then, the changes were mostly cosmetic, not substantial.
The basic lay-out was the same until the mid-2000′s when the hospital and theater were destroyed. A parking garage added south of Penneys, and that is about it.
Northgate will need to continue to evolve or it will die. Some good improvements include some outdoor-reached retail on the west side, but the basic mall interior is quickly becoming outdated and at some point a whole new concept will be needed. The economy will slow this process, but by 2025, I expect Northgate to be totally rebuilt with an outdoor sensibility, apartments, new retail, etc. They can’t afford to not do this.
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