The White-Savage Apartments on 521 N. 13th Street were named after their funders, Mr. White, and Mr. Savage, two prestigious business men. Its construction was complete in 1910. There were only 3 of these apartments built, in Boise, San Diego, and Detroit. The Boise location is the only one left standing. One the few original apartment buildings left in Boise, it’s still being used for its original domestic purpose.(Anonymous Resident) It’s officially registered in the Fort St. Historic district, and is also on the National Register of Historic Places. (IHS 97)
The White-Savage Apartments are three stories, with light colored pressed brick. There are two balancing three-tiered porches, with thin fluted Doric columns, on either side of the entry. (IHS 97) The base of the columns contains a half ellipses Scotia molding. These porches and columns are part of the Georgian, and Renaissance Revival style. On the right side, a similar bay of porches is seen, as well as semi-enclosed porches recessed in the right corner of the building. The roof is flat, with decorative brick work and iron ornamentation, which is a marking of craftsman style. The entrances and windows have segmental brick arch work, indicative of Romanesque architecture. (“residential Styles” 08 ) There are glass half-ovals over the door. The windows also have rectangular, external windowsills made of stone. The decorative designs over the doors, symmetry of building, and columns indicate a neoclassical style. Similar to many buildings built in the early 1900s, the parking was kept out of street view and in an alley behind the building. (StanWiens) The roof was flat, and the left side of the building is plain with rectangular windows, both these are signs of an Art Deco influence. (“residential Styles” 08) There are two arches on either side of every entrance, with a lamp hanging at the end. Originally, the building had slanted sleeping porches in the back because air-conditioning was not an amenity back then. They were slanted so that, when a delivery man brought ice, the ice would melt and run off the side. Sleeping porches are a unifying element of many historic residential areas in Boise. Recently, they were removed and renovated to house more tenants.(Anonymous Resident) This side of the building is less decorative and much more functional, with plain rectangular windows and slightly lighter brick. This side of the building also has 2 new wood frame structures, primarily used as garden sheds. This building brought a diversity of styles to the Fort. St. Historic District, and because there were only 3 made, this combination of styles is rare and precious. The building is no one dominant style, but rather a medley of many. The building is still functional, although it has not passed its last building exam. (IHS 97)