Architecture
Although this early residential gable front residence has been extensively altered it has retained some aspects of its vintage form. It is also the oldest extant building in Yelm, and was Yelm's first hotel. Originally located west of the railroad tracks where the city hall is today, the former hotel was originally connected to Robert Longmire's General
Merchandise Store and the Yelm Prairie railroad platform. The building was also known as the Rod Coates Hotel, named for a member of one of Yelm's earliest families. Reportedly Rod Coates moved the hotel to its current location.
While this vintage, gable front vernacular residence has been extensively altered it still retains some of its original style. Note the steeply pitched gable roof, shortened eaves and gable overhangs, and rustic and clapboard siding. Alterations include side and rear additions. The current front façade was originally the rear. Initially the house was located on the site of the current city hall. When the building was moved to its current location the front façade was turned towards the rear of the lot. Other alterations include the removal of a second floor middle pivot window and balcony, the removal of a first floor bay window, and the addition of a first floor porch. The current front façade's porch columns and railing have been removed, and there has been the construction of a side addition, a new front door, and a metal porch roof.