Bellingham Then & Now: A Stroll Down State St.

North State St is a popular and bustling one-way arterial of the central business district of downtown Bellingham. Let’s take a quick socially-distanced jaunt down its sidewalks, and keep an eye out for some old buildings that should look familiar. 

We’re starting at the corner of N State St and E Holly, standing outside the Whatcom Family YMCA. It’s an old building itself, formerly a hotel until the YMCA took over the building in 1942. We haven’t covered it yet in this series but it’s on the list! 

The Hotel Laube What’s that on the left? The Hotel Laube; it was built the same year Bellingham was incorporated as a town, during a time of economic uncertainty as the area recovered from the Depression of 1893, and also when the center of business shifted from Fairhaven’s business district to what we now know as downtown Bellingham. 

The Herald Building As we continue our stroll, passing The Shakedown on the left and Makeworth Market on the right, we get a better view of the building that dominates the southwest skyline. The Herald Building has been used as a landmark for ships and planes for nearly a century, and was designed by Alfred Lee. 

But don’t pass it too quickly. Check out that amazing door frame with its elaborate decoration. Then look up - see those detailed parapets along the top edge of the building?  This Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the early 1900s, actually stems from hundreds of years ago and is related to the architecture of Notre Dame Cathedral.

Morse Hardware Our stroll takes us one more block south on State Street, past Cafe Rumbal on the left and BAAY on the right, and there’s another commercial facade we recognize. Morse Hardware was originally the largest wholesaler north of Seattle. The business’ story is a testament to the grit and resilience it takes to survive decades of both booms and busts, wars and depressions, and the neverending shifts of a changing world. 

This is the end of our State Street tour for today, and since I’m a sucker for finding meaning behind just about everything, these buildings are no exception. Their stories show an economic landscape that changes, show us that things that are old are reinvented, and also show the kind of toughness we all can develop to weather the tough times that surround us. 

Photos by Cooper Hansley.  Blog copy by Tiffany Holden.