The Pipe Rail Stairs get their name from the economical (and good looking) 1 ½” diameter pipe rails they use as the balusters and handrails.
This is the largest ‘group’ of stairs on Queen Anne Hill and in Seattle. The group can be further broken down into two smaller subsets based on their finials: Ball Type and Acorn.
While the ‘Acorn’ finial has an inherent historic quality, the ‘Ball Type’ finials matched the ingenious ball joints (between the vertical and sloped pipes). Close inspection of these joints shows that they were adjustable during installation – allowing for workers to make adjustments in the field.
Here are some examples of Pipe Rail from around the hill.
Nice pipe rail type stair with typical ball joints at the west side of Kerry Park (331). Not shown, the great view.
One of the ‘hidden stairs’ (313).
Nice acorn finial on this stair (123). Note attempted ‘grafting’ of another pipe onto the horizontal acorn - probably a later retrofit effort.
Nice example of a two piece cross member at stair 227.
Stair P5 was returned to the private realm because it only served a single residence. It’s got some gorgeous (albeit dangerous) vines snaking around.
Nice split ball termination at stair 340.
Detailed drawings of typical ‘ball joint’ and ‘acorn finial’ pipe rail type stairs. Drawing courtesy of Seattle Municipal Archives.
© 2010 Thomas Horton – Graphics & original qa.stairs.com content. Photos by Thomas Horton 2007