Luzon Building
former building in Tacoma, Washington, USA
The Luzon Building was a historic six-story building at 1302 Pacific Avenue in downtown Tacoma, Washington designed by Chicago architects Daniel Burnham and John Root.
The Luzon was built in 1890–1891 as the Pacific National Bank, which had a first floor entrance on Pacific Avenue and a second floor entrance on Commerce Street. Both floors contained businesses such as W.L. Davis & Sons Co. Furniture and Chaddy & Son Tailors in addition to the bank; the upper four stories were living space.
The building was named "Luzon" in 1901, after the largest island in the Philippines, where on July 1 of that year William Howard Taft inaugurated establishment of American civil government of the Philippines.
The building was demolished on September 26, 2009, despite efforts by local preservationists.
The public source identifies “Luzon Building” as former building in Tacoma, Washington, USA. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Luzon, Building and former.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Luzon Building”, the useful work is to connect “former building in Tacoma, Washington, USA” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 6, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q6706626. Authority coordinates are 47.251, -122.438. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1302, 1890, 1891 and 1901.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Luzon Building”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Luzon Building primary sources, Luzon Building archive and Luzon research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Luzon Building”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Luzon Building” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.