The small, two story Hillyard Laundry Building was originally known as the
Hillyard Hand Laundry, established by a trio of Japanese immigrants, one of whom operated the laundry from 1906 into the 1990s. In 1950 the laundry changed names, becoming
Hillyard Laundry and Dry-cleaning. It may have been at this time that the neon sign above the entrance was erected. Though the sign looks very clean and new, the paint under the neon has faded and rust is beginning to creep in, revealing some age.
When
James Jerome Hill, generally known as J.J., brought his
Great Northern Railway to Spokane, the decision was made to set up the railway shops, service center and roundhouse adjacent to what became the town of Hillyard, named, naturally enough, after J.J. himself, literally,
Hill's Yard.
In the early twentieth century the prosperity brought about by the presence of the Great Northern yards gave rise to much new construction, primarily of much more substantial brick and stone buildings, forming the Hillyard business section we see today. Prosperity continued until the closing of the yards in the early 1980s, a culmination of the mergers of the Great Northern into the Burlington Northern Railroad and eventually the BNSF Railway, resulting on the relocation of the railroad yards to Yardley. The loss of their only industry to speak of created instant economic woes for Hillyard, which continue to this day, with its continuing to be the poorest neighborhood in the state of Washington.
HILLYARD LAUNDRY BUILDING
Address - E. 3108 Olympic Avenue
Built date - 1906
Style - Commercial Block
Architect/Builder - Charles Carr, owner/builder
Classification - Historic Contributing
The Hillyard Laundry Building is a two-story formed concrete block structure with a plain parapet. Original storefront configuration is intact with a recessed center entrance, a pair of multi-paned wood-paneled front doors, four-over-four double-hung wood-sash windows, and multi-paned transoms. A c. 1950 sign proclaiming "HILLYARD LAUNDRY and DRYCLEANING" is attached to the north façade above the front entrance.
Owned and operated by Japanese immigrants Y. Tanaka, R. Nakashima, and H. Sato, the Hillyard Hand Laundry operated from the building from 1906 to 1950. After 1950, the name of the building was changed to Hillyard Laundry and Dry-cleaning.
From the NRHP Nomination Form