AHEAD OF THE CURVE: The Legacy of Dorothy Stimson Bullitt
Follow in the distinguished footsteps of a woman who single-handedly built an innovative media empire. Dorothy Bullitt purchased the now-named Bullitt mansion in 1948, years after the death of her Kentucky-born husband, A. Scott Bullitt (1877-1932), student of Woodrow Wilson and friend of Franklin D Roosevelt.
At a time when women were barred from the business world, the newly widowed Dorothy Bullitt taught herself to manage the downtown Seattle buildings she inherited from her father, CD Stimson, a lumber magnate originally from Michigan who had made a fortune in the Klondike Gold Rush. In 1947 she acquired a small radio station that became KING FM, Seattle's beloved classical music station. In 1949, the farsighted Bullitt bought a TV station she renamed KING TV, KING Broadcasting grew to include 6 TV stations in 4 states and radio stations in San Francisco, Portland and Seattle. Bullitt continued to live in the mansion until her death in 1989, when it passed to her beneficiary the Junior League.
Her philanthropy supported the Junior League, Children's Orthopedic Hospital, the Seattle Symphony and many other organizations. She established the Bullitt Foundation in 1952, with the mission of safeguarding the environment of the Pacific Northwest. Between 1991 and 2024 the Foundation made green grants totaling over $200 million. In 2009, the Foundation set out to construct the world's greenest, ner-zero office building. Designed by Robert Hull (1945-2014), the Bullitt Center, at 1501 E Madison St, opened in 2013; it serves as an example of and inspiration for environmental construction in the Cascadia region.
