SAH MDR “Mini” Conference
October 10-12, 2025
Tacoma, Washington

The Marion Dean Ross/Pacific Northwest Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians will be holding our third annual "mini" conference October 9-12, 2025 in Tacoma. This year we are again planning our event to be contiguous with Washington's PLACES conference, which will be October 8-10 in nearby in Gig Harbor.

As a direct response to the mounting political and financial threats to our cultural institutions, we have selected the theme: "Resist, Reclaim, Restore: Preserving an Inclusive Heritage" for our 2025 mini-conference. We are committed to supporting a deeper understanding of inclusive and underrepresented narratives in architectural history, ensuring our field retains and continues the progress it has made toward being more dynamic, relevant, and accessible to all. 

Register today to join us for our third annual "mini" conference in Tacoma! We are pleased to be able to offer a discounted rate for students, as well as an option to combine your conference registration with an SAH MDR membership renewal. Conference registration will close on Monday, October 6.

Register Today

Conference Schedule

Thursday, October 9

5:00pm

  • Hosted welcome happy hour: Rock the Dock

    • 535 Dock St #118, Tacoma, WA 98402

Friday, October 10

8:45 am - Meet for carpooling; tour will begin promptly at 9:00 am

  • Tour: Historic Black Sites in Tacoma’s Hilltop Neighborhood - Monette Hearn, Ellen Mirro

    • For carpooling, meet at: Evergreen State College Tacoma - 1210 6th Ave, Tacoma, WA 98405

12:30 pm - Meet for carpooling; we will be catching the 1:40pm ferry to Vashon

  • Tour: Japanese American Mukai Farm and Garden on Vashon Island - Jade Agua, Reuben McKnight, Paul Stephenson

    • For carpooling, meet at: Evergreen State College Tacoma - 1210 6th Ave, Tacoma, WA 98405

    • Mukai Farm and Garden - 18017 107th Ave SW, Vashon, WA 98070 (ferry ride required)

5:30 pm

  • No-host brewery hang: E9 Brewing Co. & Taproom

    • 2506 Fawcett Ave, Tacoma, WA 98402 (barrel room)

Saturday, October 11

Evergreen State College Tacoma - 1210 6th Ave, Tacoma, WA 98405

8:30 am - Welcome (coffee/snacks available starting at 8:15am)

  • Paper: What’s in a Name? Archie Phinney Hall and the Politics of Remembrance - Shelley Dael Walker-Harmon

  • Paper: The Counter-Archive: Stories from Outside the Architectural Record - Michael Uttley

  • Panel discussion: Queer, Native, and South Asian histories and how we can use traditional and non traditional tools to expand the historic record - Manish Chalana, Ernestina Fuenmayor, Jessica Bonner, Susan Ferentinos, Kristen Minor, Dylan M. Stevenson

12:00 pm - Lunch on your own

1:30 pm - Welcome back

  • Paper: The Intellectual House as Quasi-Object Architecture: Diasporic Cultural Architecture and its Materiality for Cultural Reparation - Babita Joy

  • Paper: The Tacoma Tideflats: Distance and Environmental Psychology - Andrew Weymouth

  • Special presentation: The Place to Tell the Story of the Puyallup People - Brandon Reynon and Amber Taylor, Puyallup Tribe Historic Preservation Department

4:30 pm

  • No-host brewery hang: Odd Otter Brewing Company

    • 716 Pacific Ave, Tacoma, WA 98402

Sunday, October 12

Washington State History Museum - 1911 Pacific Ave, Tacoma, WA 98402 (board room)

8:30 am - Welcome (coffee/snacks available starting at 8:15am)

  • Presentation and workshop: Reframing the Narrative: Language and Interpretation in Preservation - Morgan Quirk

  • SAH MDR/PNW chapter meeting

12:30 pm - Adjourn

Please note: Mini-conference scheduling and plans are subject to change!

Special thanks to our generous sponsors!

 
 
 
 
 

Hotel Options

We do not have a singular conference hotel or room block, but we are happy to provide some hotel ideas for those who will be traveling. The bulk of activities will be in Tacoma’s Hilltop neighborhood and downtown.

Mid Option (Best Deal): Hotel Murano

Budget Option: Extended Stay

Ultra-Economy Option: GuestHoust Inn Fife

Luxury Option: Marriott Downtown

  • 1538 Commerce Street, Tacoma, WA, 98402 (Distance: 1.3 miles)

  • 4 stars

  • $260 - $320 per night

  • marriott.com or hotels.com

Scholarships Available

This year we are thrilled to be able to offer mini-conference scholarships which will include complementary registration as well as up to $500 in travel support. Applications are especially welcome from students, emerging professionals, and attendees from historically underrepresented communities, but we are happy to receive an application from anyone needing financial assistance for any reason.

Scholarship recipients will be required to write and submit a brief reflection on their experience at the mini-conference (accompanying photos encouraged!) which will be published in the SAH MDR e-news.

Scholarship applications were due at 11:59pm, Friday, August 1, 2025. We will continue to leave the form open, but priority will be given to applications which met the deadline.

Apply for a Scholarship