At the heart of every big city lies a downtown that pulsates with energy, a bustling hub where commerce thrives, ideas are exchanged, and the community gathers together in celebration. No two are alike, as each downtown portrays a truly unique representation of the city it serves. Our beautiful Wenatchee is no different, with a vibrant downtown that’s the city’s beating heart. Yet, it also goes above and beyond to offer something truly special: a historic downtown that’s not just the center of its life but also a testament to its rich past.
Earning the prestigious honor of being added to the National Record of Historic Places in 2008, the Downtown Wenatchee Historic District boasts a collection of remarkable buildings, each one a cornerstone of the community, serving as a beloved gathering spot for generations past, present, and future.
Old Stone Warehouse Building
29 North Columbia Street
On the southeast corner of First and Columbia streets sits a weathered masonry building with a storied history. Known as the Old Stone Warehouse Building, it began life as the John Lillis Stone Warehouse after the Wenatchee Development Company platted and sold the land to John Lillis in 1902. After building and opening the warehouse in the fall of 1906, Lillis owned and operated it for two decades before being acquired by Wenatchee Valley Foods in 1926.
Over the ensuing decades, the building would change hands a number of times, creating a colorful portfolio for the warehouse’s career interests it would serve in the community. Eventually the City of Wenatchee would buy the property and other land and buildings around the site of the present Convention Center in 1976. These days, the building has undergone a total renovation and rejuvenation, operating as a lively local pub known as the Rail Station & Ale House.
Coca-Cola Building
16 North Columbia Street
Looking outside at the Streamline Modern style of the home of the NCW Libraries Administrative Offices, one might never guess that the building was actually constructed in 1939. The reinforced concrete was originally a garage/storage building for Wenatchee Bottling Works. In 1942, the building’s boiler and bottling room were completed, and by 1945, they had obtained a Coca-Cola license, which the bottler then produced well into the 1970s.
Wenatchee Hotel Building
105 South Wenatchee Avenue
In 1909, it was reported in the Wenatchee World that a three-story hotel would be built on the southeast corner of Orondo and Wenatchee Avenue, which would become the Wenatchee Hotel Building. The cost for Scaman, Olive, and Quigg to construct the new hotel would be approximately $110,000, ensuring that the hotel could compete with the likes of some of the very best in Seattle, Tacoma, and Spokane. It consisted of 67 guest rooms with outside views, each featuring a telephone, heavy bass bed, and quality springs with mattresses. There was even a roof garden on the second floor and a fully furnished, beautifully decorated lobby to greet guests.
The J.W. Hatley family would take over managing the hotel in 1927 and continue until May of 1944, when Milner Hotels took charge. The chain operated the hotel until October of 1955, following management under Cyrus Bracklin until 1965, when other plans for the building were made that included some drastic changes, the most notable being that the second and third floors were removed. The first floor was then remodeled to provide facilities for several small business establishments, like India House Authentic Cuisine today.
Morris Building
23 South Wenatchee Avenue
These days, the Morris Building is recognized as a beautifully maintained turn-of-the-century office space where tenants enjoy a creative workspace in the heart of the community, but back in the day, it was simply known as the local hardware store. Erected in 1894, it was the fourth brick building built at the relocated townsite for Wenatchee.
Known then as the Baker & Hiatt Building, the building had a hall on the second floor that was used as a theatre where traveling shows frequently played. Not long after its opening, it made Wenatchee history when the first motion picture was viewed here in 1896; the film revolved around the plot of a train robbery. It would be briefly known as the Rarey Building after being purchased later by William “Taz” Rarey, who initially managed the building’s general store. A little while later, hardware magnate Alfred L. Morris and his uncle Alfred Z. Wells, or “A.Z,” moved to town and purchased the only hardware store just a few blocks down. This would be the first “Morris Building” for Wells & Morris Hardware, thriving until 1914, when the two men dissolved the partnership, with Morris keeping the hardware store. In 1920, he purchased the building at 23 South Wenatchee and constructed the three-story Morris Building that still stands today.
Liberty Theatre
1 South Mission Street
With the success of shows played at the Mission Building, by 1918, it was decided that it was high time for Wenatchee to have its own first-class theatre. W. S. Gehr, president and manager of the Orondo Shipping Company, met with A. A. Algase of the Northwest Theatre Company in Seattle. Business was conducted, and an agreement was made: if Gehr built an excellent theatre in Wenatchee, then Algase would lease it for ten years on reasonable terms.
Along with the construction of the theatre, five modern stores on today’s Palouse Street were built at the same time and readily rented to local business firms looking to get in on the economic boost the theatre was sure to bring. It opened on December 21, 1919, with admission prices only costing 25 cents for children and 50 cents for adults. Needless to say, it was a good investment into the city’s heart as it still entertains the masses today as Liberty Cinema.
Encompassing 34 acres, this is just five of the 57 contributing buildings that make up the Downtown Wenatchee Historic District. Each one is an architectural gem acting as a tangible link to the city’s past and a direct line to the heartbeat of the community. And it can all be found downtown.
