To encourage the preservation and restoration of historic structures within the town of Skykomish, recognizing that they are valuable assets, both economically and aesthetically, to the town and its citizens.

To increase awareness and appreciation for the historic heritage of Skykomish, and its role in the westward expansion of the Great Northern Railroad.

Maloney General Store: Prominent wood-frame commercial structure fronting the Great Northern tracks on Railroad Avenue. Built in 1893 by the founder of Skykomish, John Maloney. Served as the community's general store and post office for more than 50 years. Various additions and alterations over the years.

Skykomish School: Three-story concrete building in the Art Moderne style, funded by the WPA. Designed by architect William Mallis in 1936, still serving its original function as a public school for grades K through 12 and a community center. Interior features original spaces, finishes, built-in cabinetry, blackboards, and clocks.

Teachers' Cottage: Built by the school district circa 1910 to house its female teachers. Craftsman style detailing, with multi-paned window sash and cross-gabled roof faintly Tudor in flavor. Interior retains original staircase, built-in cabinetry, woodwork, and light fixtures.

Great Northern Depot: The symbolic heart of Skykomish, built in 1894 as a passenger depot on the south side of the tracks. Relocated in 1922, reoriented and expanded with addition of large freight room at east end. Gabled, wood-frame structure with lapped siding and projecting bay window for station operator facing tracks. Interior features original ticket window and office, and some original finishes.

Skykomish Lodge #259/Masonic Hall: Home of the oldest and only surviving active fraternal organization in Skykomish. Sturdy frame, gable-roofed building completed in 1924 by local Masons, reflecting the combined skills of railroad employees, mill workers, and businessmen. Still serving as a community focal point.

Exterior alteration to existing buildings:

New building construction.

Relocation, into or out of the district.

Demolition.

Exterior alteration, including:

Interior alteration of designated interior spaces.

Relocation.

Demolition.

Commercial Character. The first commercial developments in Skykomish sprang up between Fourth and Sixth Streets on Railroad Avenue. These were oriented to the south, facing the railroad's main line, a siding, and the local depot. Historic photographs of the community tend to focus on views of Railroad Avenue, thus providing many important clues to the early visual character of the small downtown. Typical views through the 1920s depict muddy unpaved streets with raised plank sidewalks, modest wood-framed false-fronted shops, awnings or shed-roofed porches overhanging the boardwalks, and a streetscape dominated by the imposing four-story, hipped-roof Skykomish Hotel and the boomtown facade of John Maloney's General Merchandise.

In the later years of World War I through the 1920s, a booming economy in Skykomish resulted in the growth of the business district and, to some extent, its spill-over to the early alignment of the Cascade Highway south of the railroad tracks. Auto-related commerce on the Cascade Highway in 1925 included an "office and auto supplies" store almost opposite the Masonic Hall, a 16-car garage with a repair shop behind it just east of that, and across Maloney Creek, a gas and oil station with a detached auto parts shop.

Following the re-alignment of the Stevens Pass Highway to the north of the river in 1939, commercial activity catering to passing motorists shifted across the Skykomish River Bridge. Most of the surviving business buildings there today are auto-oriented and appear to post-date 1955. South of the river and the railroad tracks, almost all signs of former roadside business have disappeared from the Old Cascade Highway.

By contrast, the original Railroad Avenue business district still conveys much of its early 20th-century character, despite two major fires. Local commercial design traditions can be readily seen in surviving early buildings, including the John Maloney Store, the Skykomish Hotel, McEvoy's "Olympia" Tavern (now the Whistling Post), and several others. Typical features include wood-frame construction, hipped or gabled roofs, false-front facades, horizontal wood siding, wooden double-hung sash at the upper stories, and shop-front display windows with large multiple panes at street level.

Commercial buildings along Railroad Avenue have maintained the traditional zero setback from the street. Sidewalks are sheltered by shed roof overhangs or balustraded balconies with chamfered wood posts. Typically, auto parking occurs along the street and no off-street parking is provided. All of these attributes enhance the pedestrian-friendly quality of the commercial district where cars have not been allowed to dominate.

Residential Character. Residential blocks developed along with the town's platted additions, beginning with neighborhoods east of downtown and west of the school. Later residential districts rose up south across the tracks in both directions along the Cascade Highway. The housing stock of Skykomish was always modest, consisting mostly of single-story, wood-framed dwellings with hipped or gabled roofs, milled horizontal siding, and simple front porches with decorative Victorian or Craftsman-style trim. Building materials were readily available locally. Only one fancy house is mentioned in early descriptions, that of George Farr, Skykomish Lumber Mill manager, under construction in 1905 for a cost of $2,000.

Despite the influence of the mill and the railroad in town, most homes were privately built and owned. There were, however, some important exceptions. One distinctive neighborhood of railroad housing grew up along both sides of the tracks just to the west of downtown. All of these dwellings faced the tracks with streets at their back doors. A number of these houses still survive, including a substantial two-story home provided by the railroad for the section foreman. In 1918, Bloedel-Donovan erected a series of company-owned bungalows along the Cascade Highway through town. These were at first leased to employees, and later made available for purchase. Five of these look-alike dwellings remain standing today, some in relatively unaltered condition.

The residential character of Skykomish today reflects its railroad and mill-town roots. Domestic design traditions which have carried through to the present include wood-frame construction, gabled or pyramidal roofs, lapped or novelty siding, simple raised front porches – either full-width or entry – with hipped, gabled or shed roofs, wooden porch posts and balustraded railings, double-hung wooden window sash with vertical proportions, centrally-placed paneled front doors with windows, and wooden bracket details at rooflines.

Houses in Skykomish have maintained the traditional orientation to the street or to the railroad tracks, and are typically set back across a simply landscaped front lawn. Fencing and perimeter lot landscaping occurs, but is not common. Cars are parked either along the street or in detached wood-frame garages well set back behind houses. While not all neighborhoods have sidewalks, pedestrian circulation is simple and safe.

Institutional Character. Public and institutional buildings in Skykomish were built in amongst the commercial and residential neighborhoods. The school and its manual training building, the depot, the Town Hall, the Masonic Hall, the Community Church, and the USDA Forest Service complex were all in place by 1940. Whether by location, scale, or design, all of these properties served as visual focal points in the community. Form varied as widely as function. All except the concrete Skykomish School in its streamlined Art Moderne style were simple, utilitarian buildings of wood-frame construction. Most exhibited some elements of Craftsman style detailing prevalent in the 1910s through 1930s.

Another highly visible area of the town well into the 1940s was the rail yard. A 1915 photograph shows a small wood-frame depot, four main tracks, and a siding past the water tower and oil shed. Pedestrian access across the tracks from the depot to Railroad Avenue was little more than a planked and graveled pathway. In 1922, the depot was moved to its present-day location and expanded with the addition of a freight room. New tracks were laid, and the old roundhouse replaced with a 16-stall facility. A giant new turntable was constructed, as well as new water tanks, oil tank, and a pump house.

Soon afterward, the Great Northern made preparations at the Skykomish yard for electrification of the line from Skykomish to Wenatchee. In late 1926, a large substation of concrete post and pier was erected south of the tracks near the earlier site of the depot. The substation featured massive areas of glazed industrial sash, a gabled roof with a monitor and, inside, equipment to convert electrical voltage and frequency for use by electric engines bound for Wenatchee. The substation was a familiar and symbolic Skykomish landmark until its removal in the 1990s.

Today, all of the historic rail yard structures with the exception of the depot have been removed by the Railroad. Other public buildings mentioned above, however, remain functional and relatively unchanged. Together they add texture and interest to the town's stock of historic buildings. The school and the depot both enjoy a landscaped setting. At a fairly early date, a small park was created by the Great Northern just west of the depot. Today this attractive green space is maintained by the Skykomish Lion's Club. Some landscaping was originally established along the front of the school on Sixth Street to soften the austerity of the building's style. The plant materials have since changed, and the landscape is now informal, as are the settings for the other public buildings in Skykomish.

Alteration of Historic Buildings (including maintenance, rehabilitation, and new additions).

Alteration of Nonhistoric Buildings (including exterior maintenance, remodeling, and new additions).

New Construction (new primary structures).

Alterations to Historic Residences (including maintenance, rehabilitation, and new additions).

Alterations to Nonhistoric Residences (including exterior maintenance, remodeling, and new additions).

New Construction (new primary residences).

Alteration of Historic Buildings (including exterior maintenance, rehabilitation, and new additions).

Alteration of Nonhistoric Buildings (including exterior maintenance, remodeling, and new additions).

New Construction (new primary structures).