Bump Block and Carlyle Hotel

This towering brick structure was one of the first buildings built after the Great Fire of 1889. The Bump was built in 1890 and is a seven-story commercial style infused with more classical features. The historic building evolved over several decades but hit hard times during the national economic collapse of 1903. Spokane businessman John Hieber purchased the property from the bank five years after it went into foreclosure and expanded the hotel during the year to meet Spokane's growing demand for single rooms. . If you walk to the west side of the building, you can see a blurred line that separates the 1890 building from the 1909 addition.

The Carlyle was an early self-regulatory organization in Spokane. An SRO or single room occupancy is a low-cost, multi-tenant building that accommodates one to two people per room. SRO tenants, usually workers, use communal bathrooms and kitchens. Because the building is so cramped, the Carlyle has no central light well or ventilation system. However, this shortcoming can be compensated by the use of external windows in the internal rooms, a luxury currently available to SROs. These particular storefronts have been occupied almost continuously since 1929 by various grocery markets, restaurants and taverns. Carlyle Personal Care Center, a provider of housing services to seniors, currently occupies the building.

The building was designed by a team of famous local architects. Roland L. Land and John K. Dow designed the original structure. Hermann Preuss and Julius Zittel designed this addition. Rand was born in Massachusetts in 1851. In 1888, he moved to Spokane, where he designed luxury homes and several commercial and educational buildings. John K. Dow came from Minnesota. In 1889, he came to Spokane to take advantage of the unfortunate opportunity presented by fire. Dow is the artist behind many of the city's influential buildings. Julius Zittel was born in Germany and came to the United States when he was 13 years old. Zittel collaborated with fellow German immigrant Herman Preusse and together they designed many notable buildings in Spokane.