Nifty from the Last 50

National & State Register
Survey & Inventory
Financial Assistance
Technical Guidance
Education/Training
Preservation Week

Historic Sites:
Nifty from the Last 50 Initiative

Nifty 50 Launched at the 2003 State Historic Preservation Awards, the “Nifty from the Last 50 Initiative” is the state’s first official effort to recognize and record Washington’s post WWII resources. The project was a joint effort by the Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation and DOCOMOMO_WeWa. While the Initiative was originally a focused two year effort, however DAHP is still accepting survey forms.

To date, over 290 modern properties have been recorded all over the state. They include such building as a group of playful ecclesiastical structures designed by the Spokane architectural firm of Funk, Murray and Johnson in the 1960s.

The survey has also uncovered a group of buildings designed for Seattle First National Bank. The collection of buildings are representative of an early version of corporate identity, Shemwell house using such cutting edge marketing philosophies such as “Product-Place-and Packaging”. Seattle architect J. Lister Holmes designed the first/model bank for Seattle First National. Other architects would then take this standard design and adjust it to the local conditions. And today versions of the bank can be found all over the state.

Over the last five years, several post WWII properties have been listed on the National Register. They include the 1950 Gaffney’s Lake Wilderness Lodge in Maple Valley and Kenneth & Enda Brooks House in Spokane completed in 1956. The Brooks House was the first post WWII property to be listed on the National Register in the city. Other nominations of buildings from the recent past are in progress of being completed. To download a copy of these nominations use our on-line database WISAARD.