YWCA Building (Bellingham, Washington)

The YWCA Building is a historic Young Women's Christian Association building Bellingham, Washington that was completed in 1915. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977 and continues to be used by the Bellingham YWCA.

History
In 1899, the first YWCA presence in Bellingham formed as a club at the New Whatcom Normal School, what is now Western Washington University. A formal chapter was formed in 1907 which focused on helping women from overseas and rural areas find employment at a time when many new arrivals were tricked or coerced into prostitution. Charles X. and Frances Larrabee donated the land and underwrote construction of the building which was finished in 1915.

Today, the organization provides low cost apartments with a shared kitchen, bathroom and laundry in conjunction with support programs to help women. There is a retail Y's Buys thrift shop at 1224 North State St, Bellingham, WA. The organization also runs a "low barrier" emergency shelter at the First Presbyterian Church where clients are not required to participate in their programs.

Architecture
Seattle architect Carl Frelinghuysen Gould was hired to design the three-and-a-half-story palazzo overlooking Bellingham Bay. The structure is usually described as Colonial Revival, but is eclectic with elements of Georgian Revival, Queen Anne, and Italian Renaissance Revival architecture. The entrance has a portico with Doric columns and the roof has eyebrow dormers. The brick is in a Flemish bond pattern except for the friezes above the entrance which use herringbone bond.