A 157-Year-Old Tacoma School Is Starting Over

When students walk into Lowell Elementary on Wednesday, they won’t simply be entering a new school. They’ll be opening the latest chapter in a Tacoma institution that predates the city itself.

Lowell’s story began in 1869 as a one-room log schoolhouse near what is now North 28th and Starr streets. Originally known as the First Ward School, it was renamed in 1890 for poet James Russell Lowell. Buildings have come and gone as enrollment grew, an earthquake caused damage and aging structures needed replacement. The new Lowell is the school’s sixth incarnation.

Its newest home is a three-story, 60,000-square-foot building designed for roughly 500 students. The $33 million project was funded through the $535 million school-construction bond Tacoma voters approved in 2020.

The school is also breaking new ground for the district. It is Tacoma Public Schools’ first educational building to use cross-laminated timber extensively—a strong engineered-wood system left exposed throughout much of the school. Approximately 48,500 square feet were constructed with the material, giving classrooms and common areas a warmer, more natural appearance.

The design draws heavily from the Pacific Northwest. As students move between floors, interior themes transition from ocean to mountain to sky. A large playground mural incorporates mountains, Puget Sound and local wildlife, while exterior railing panels designed by Tacoma high-school students feature Lowell’s leopard mascot.

Despite all that is new, pieces of the previous school remain. Reclaimed wood, signs and artwork have been incorporated into the building, including “Fish Mobile,” a mosaic created by Lowell students during the 2004–05 school year. It now greets a new generation near the main office.

After more than 150 years, Lowell Elementary is once again starting over—without leaving its history behind.

Learn more about the project from Tacoma Public Schools here.