clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Sutter’s Castle lists at $3.5M on Vashon’s waterfront

A classic Victorian that others could use as a model

By Tom Trimbath
Via Windermere

Sutter’s Castle, a classic 1900 Victorian home on Vashon Island, is on the market for $3.5 million. With that provenance and that price, get ready for old-style elegance and gentility.

Modern homes have formal rooms sometimes, but they can lack formality. Here, be surrounded with wainscoting, ornamental domes in the ceiling, and room for a grand piano, all illuminated with period fixtures.

It’s a country estate, just right for a country kitchen. Decorative tile counters and back splash wrap around ample work spaces. One counter segment is wood, perhaps butcher block, a much better option for slicing and dicing. The cabinets blend the formal and the pragmatic, plenty of space for storage, and glass displays for finer pieces.

The three-level house has 3,899 square feet inside. The five bedrooms and two and a quarter bathrooms may be fancier than some of the formal rooms. Each room is made distinctive with choices of wallpaper and curtains. A marble sink, claw foot tub, and more wainscoting create the example that others aim for in their remodels.

A library with an ornate wood stove is equipped with shelves around the room, and plenty of places to escape into a book.

Climb a bit higher and find that there are actually four levels thanks to a turret that looks over Quartermaster Harbor.

Before heading outside, pass through the solarium with its stained glass and tile floors.

Definitely step out and explore the nearly ten acre lot. Mature gardens are filled with perennials, a nice, low-maintenance touch. Wander over to the bluff and find a gazebo and sitting area perched over the view of the water. Climb down the stairs to 870 feet of waterfront and tidelands, a rare expanse compared to most properties.

It can be a large task trying to maintain a property that combines that level of quality and that much house and land. That may explain one of the handiest features of the place: a 1,350-square-foot caretaker’s cottage.