MERRY CHRISTMAS!

An Other Kinsey House, 655 Monroe St.

This house built circa 1890 by George and Phoebe Kinsey was probably built as a income property when first constructed at the northwest corner of 6th and Madison (now the site of Gray's Garden center for many years). The house was moved around the corner to it's present location sometime in the 1920's to clear the corner for a service station. The house was badly neglected for many years. finally being condemned in the early 1970's before it was bought by a young architect and his wife. The house surprising intact was updated where needed and restored where possible. The old carriage house was moved up against the original house adding much needed room for a downstairs bedroom and bathroom. While well maintained for a period in the late 90's early 2000's it is now getting a little rough around the edges again but still basically intact after 120 years.

George and Phoebe Skinner Kinsey House

This charming Eastlake house once stood on the Northwest corner of 10th and Pearl, diagonally across the intersection from the original site of the Gothic styled Peters-Liston-Wintermeyer house, and across Pearl from the Lucky house. Built by George Kinsey who as a carpenter built many early Eugene homes, it stood until 1953 when it was torn torn for a parking lot. The site it now a multi-level parking garage and retail shops. While the Kinsey's owned many properties in Eugene as investments this house was their home for many years.

Original Skinner Cabin

This drawing and description of the Skinner cabin was made about 1950 by Phoebe Skinner Kinsey, the youngest Skinner daughter. The original cabin was built in 1846 about where 2nd and Lincoln Streets now meet at the west end of Skinners Butte. The cabin was not only the Skinner home but also served as a trading post, hotel and the first Post Office in the area.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Mary Skinner Packard House

In 1867, three years after the death of her first husband Eugene Skinner, Mary Cook Skinner married Captain N.L. Packard. Right after their marriage they started construction on this house which was completed the next year. Mary Skinner Packard lived in the house at 260 West 6th until her death in 1881 at age 65. The house and its original carriage barn in the back yard still stand, though greatly remodeled and altered as they have served as a rental property for more than 60 years. The most notable change in the house is the enclosure of the large front porch and the replacement of many of the original windows. Also lost were the once extensive grounds that once surrounded the house which were lost to the several lane additions to 6th Avenue.

Second Eugene Skinner Home

After the Eugene Skinner family out grew their log cabin on the West slope of the Butte they built this snug little home closer in the town site on the southeast corner of 6th and Charnelton. It is believed that this is the house where Skinner died in 1864. Later his widow remarried to Captain Packer and moved into a much larger house two doors down which still stands.

St. John Skinner Homestead circa 1955

St. John Skinner, son of Eugene and Mary Skinner built this home on the northern most section of his parents donation land claim, between what is now 1st Avenue and the Willamette River at the end of Madison St. The house was razed in 1955 for the construction of the Eugene Vocational School.

First Presbyterian Church

Just west on 8th from the Lombard House was the First Presbyterian Church. Built in 1883 it stood on the Northeast corner of 8th and Lawrence until it was razed for the construction of the W.O.W. Hall in 1931.

Lombard House

This prim, towered Queen Anne style house was originally built at 227 West 8th, now the approximate site of the St. Vincent De Paul housing complex. Mr. Lombard was a farmer and also a plasterer, working in many early Eugene homes. I can find no information as to the fate of the house, but it has been gone for many years. The commercial building that stood there for many years was a 1920's era structure.

National Guard Armory

Here is a view of the old National Guard Armory which stood on the northeast corner of 7th and Oak, now the site of Umpqua Bank. torn down around 1975 after much protest from early preservationist, nothing replaced the building until the early 90's and the corner served as a parking lot in the intervening years.

Shumway Metal Works 7th and Oak

This is an interesting shot of the intersection of 7th and Oak St. Probably taken about 1955, just prior to the demolition of the entire northwest corner, it shows the Shumway Metal Works with the old National Guard Armory across Oak St. How unusual that a manufacturing business and such dilapidated old buildings would survive in the heart of downtown until the mid 1950's. This corner has been the site of the Hilton Hotel and Convention Center for almost 30 years and was a parking lot in the interim. That large Oak partially hidden by the building with the false front survived until 2009.

Francis Marion Wilkins Home

This house has always held a special place in my heart. For many years I was a regular and fervent attendee of any and all Estate sales. Over the years I was lucky enough to stumble upon a sale for the the Estate of Gladys Wilkins McCready who with her sisters wrote the first definitive history of Eugene. From this sale, though late, I was able to purchase a framed copy of Gladys McCready's marriage announcement and a fantastic framed sequence of four of her baby photos, each delicately hand tinted and framed. Several years later I worked for a Antiques dealer in town who also conducted Estate sales. One of the few out of town sales we did was just outside Cottage Grove. In the attic we found a wonderful three piece Victorian Eastlake bedroom set made of ash. When we moved the mirrored dresser in preparation for the sale we discovered "F.M. Wilkins" stenciled on the back of the mirror case. Further investigation showed that the set had probably been manufactured in Portland, then shipped to Eugene (the bed and dresser both still retain wonderful salmon colored labels depicting a steam engine with EXPRESS FROM PORTLAND printed on then). To cut to the chase, with the exception of perhaps a dozen nights away from home I have slept in this bed every night for the last 13 years.

F.M. "Frank" Wilkins was the son of very early Lane County pioneers, Mitchell and Permelia Allen Wilkins, who settled just north of Coburg. He was a Eugene pharmacist and Mayor from 1905-1907. His brother Amos was the owner of the Johnson house on the corner of 5th and Lawrence (see my February 23 post). The F.M. Wilkins house was built about 1879 in the Italianate style which was so predominantly popular in Eugene at the time. It stood out from the others in its unusual window placement, cantilevered balconies and octagonal shaped rooms. A very vertical structure, a later remodeling added a large porch which helped to soften this effect. The house which stood on the northeast corner of Broadway and Charnelton at "Four Corners" was locally famous for its elaborate landscaping. There was a massive California redwood which stool on the grounds along with other exotic plantings. F.M. Wilkins passed away in the mid 30's, well into his 90's. The house survived until 1949 when it was leveled by the proverbial wrecking ball for construction of the Bon Marche building which now houses calling centers for Harry and David and Enterprise Car Rental.

Brown House

This little Victorian charmer was built circa 1890 by W. Warner Brown who was Assistant Cashier for the Eugene Loan and Savings Bank. The house stood at 436 Washington Street until about 1962 when it was razed for construction of the Washington-Jefferson Street Bridge. The site is now part of the vast park under the twin bridges.

St. Mary's Porochial School

Just north of St. Mary's (seen at the far right in photo) was the circa 1880 St. Mary's parochial school building. With a 1907 addition this building served until 1920 when it was moved to 11th and Lincoln. Soon after a new two story retail building was erected on the site which housed Montgomery Wards until it moved to the new Valley River Mall in the early 1970's. This building still stands, though heavily remolded, as the downtown Lane Community College Campus.

St. Mary's Catholic Church

This is the old St. Mary's which stood on the northeast corner of 11th and Willamette across from the old First Christian Church. Built circa 1870 it served until the 1920's with the construction of the current St. Mary's on 11th and Charnelton. In the far right of the photo can be seen a part of the Issac Gray house which stood across 11th Ave, from St. Mary's After this sanctuary was removed a gas station was erected on the site which stood until 1959 when the current one story office building was built on the site.

McDonald Theater Building

Just north of the Y.M.C.A building on Willamette was the still extant McDonald Theater building. This early 1920's view show a Harold Lloyd film featured at the Theater and a Drugstore next door. Farther down there seems to be a small market. Earlier this site was home to the 1886 Humphey Memorial Episcopal Methodist Church, Which stood until it was replaced in 1914 buy the brick sanctuary a block south on Willamette St. The Theater space remains as a concert venue and retail shops still occupy the rest of the space in the nicely preserved building.

Y.M.C.A. Building on Willamette St.

In Friday's post the Eugene Y.M.C.A. building can be seen in the photo at the far right. It was built circa 1910 and pre-dated the Weatherbee-Powell bulding. The earliest photo shows the old First Christian Church which stood on the northwest corner of 11th and Willamette before the new church building was built on Oak St. in 1911. At the far left is the Eugene City Hall.

Weatherbee-Powers Furniture Company, 11th and Willamette

This building on the northwest corner of 11th and Willamette once housed the Weatherbee-Powers Furniture Company and later a succession of clothing stores. It was destroyed in the early 1960's for a parking lot and is now the site of the downtown L.T.D. station. Before the Weatherbee-Powers building was built the corner for many years was the site of the First Christian Church until it was raised after the new building was built on Oak St.

1200 Block Willamette St. Circa 1914

Here is a view looking north on Willamette toward the intersection of West 11th. The large church on the right side of the street is the Episcopal Methodist Church of 1914. The site had been a parking lot for many years. The lot just to the right is where the old Lyon's Furniture building now stands which has housed the Oregon Antique Mall for over 25 years. This photo offers a slightly better view of the old Victorian house mentioned in Tuesdays post that was later remolded into retail space and recently housed Puttin on the Ritz vintage clothing.

Issac and Dorthea Gray House

In the photo in yesterdays post, to the left of the Carnegie Library, east on 11th Ave is the Issac and Dorthea Gray house. Mr. Gray operated Gray and Sons Grocers on 9th and Oak St. for many years. The house, a two story Italianate with two sets of two story bay windows was razed sometime in the 1940's and replaced with a commercial structure.

11th Avenue and Willamette St. circa 1915

This is an interesting view looking southwest of the intersection of 11th and Willamette streets. Probably taken from the tower of the old First Christian Church it shows from the right the old St. Mary's Catholic Church, next on Willamette is the old Carnegie Library and then the 1912 Episcopal Methodist Church with the then "new" First Christian Church behind it. The tower of Eugene City Hall is on the far left of the photo. The dark outline of a structure between the Library and the Methodist Church is an old Victorian house which was later enlarged toward Willamette and turned into retail space and apartments. It for many years housed a series of Antiques store and most recently housed Puttin on the Ritz, a vintage clothing shop. The building is most certainly a total loss after a major fire June 18th.

650 East 13th Avenue

This little bungalow, shown soon after its completion was built on the Southwest corner of 13th and Hilyard circa 1910. The site has been occupied for the last 20 years buy a parking structure and a series of restaurants.

Mystery House

Does anyone recognize the house on the left? It still stands, though the first floor is greatly altered, along with the grounds. The location will be reveled tomorrow!

Happy Easter!

Alexander and Margaret Mathews House

Like the J.J. Walton Sr. house on High street, I believe the one story wing to the left on the Mathews house was probably the first phase of the structure and that the large and more elaborate block to the right was added later along with the front porch. I have no information on the Mathews or when the house, which stood on the southwest corner of 4th and Jefferson was torn down. By the simple style of the one story portion I would guess it from about 1860 and the larger wing with the bracketed eve and polygonal bay window to about 1880. The site has been an apartment complex since the early 7o's.

The Chrisman Block, Broadway and Willamette

Gabriel Chrisman built this commercial block in 1891 on the southwest corner of Broadway and Willamette streets. It housed Mr. Chrisman's law office and Morris Music House among other business's. This gorgeous building only lasted until 1913 when it was demolished to clear the site for the McMorran and Washburne Department Store. The building was later enlarged to house J.C. Penny, until Penny's moved to the New Valley River Mall in 1969. The building was later renamed the Centre Court building and housed mostly office space until it was deemed unsafe in the late 1990's. The building remained empty until its recent restoration.

The Gabriel Chrisman House

This large and imposing Italianate was built circa 1880 by Gabriel Chrisman, an attorney, Eugene Mayor and County Judge. The house in its original state (top two photos) was among if not my favorite early Eugene dwelling. A very large house for Eugene standards, composing about 12 rooms and much resembling the Hovey House in over all layout, the Chrissman house had more elaborate window trim and two polygonal bay windows. Sometime around 1905 the Chrisman's updated the pure Italianate structure into a more fashionable Colonial Revival (some would argue not very successfully), with a large wrap around porch and two covered second floor porches all with colonial columns. Just the exact time the house, which stood on the southwest corner of 10th and Charnelton was razed it not sure, but it probably came down soon after St.Mary's Catholic Church was constructed as its original site is now a parking lot for the church.

The Cherry Tree, 6th and Charnelton, circa 1900

This shot, looking west at the intersection of 6th and Charnelton shows a massive Cherry tree reported at the time the photo was taken to have been 50 years old. It also illustrates how beautiful early Eugene really was. Nothing in this photo survives today. The near corner is now the site of Caddis Fly Shop, and the far corner once a Muffler and Brake shop is now a fast food stand called The Hunger Station. Alas, that magnificent cherry tree would now be sitting in the far left lane of traffic on 6th Street.

The Cherry House, 740 High Street

I can find no information on this little cottage that once belonged to the Cherry family and stood at 740 High St., today the site of the east entrance to City Hall. The house was probably constructed about 1870 as the porch supports strongly resemble those of the Peters and Dunn houses that were built in the late 1860's. While the exterior was a little on the plain side the interior made up for it with typical Victorian exuberance. The walls and curtains have been decorated with pine bows and leaves for some unknown celebration. All in all it's a very pleasant room.

Surviving Italianate 1211 High

Though the porch and siding have been altered, this house on the northeast corner of 12th and High is basically intact. Interestingly, this circa 1880 Italianate appears to have been built as a large addition to a much earlier Greek Revival house which can be seen on the right, probably serving as the kitchen wing. This house served as offices for an attorney in the late 1980's and the parlor to the left was kept furnish with some beautiful Victorian furnishings.

West University Survivor

I have always made a point to glance at this little Italianate survivor each time I drive down High St. if anything to just make sure it is still there. With all the changes in the neighborhood who knows what its immediate fate could be. There is little information available on this circa 1885 house. It is probably original to this site at 1633 High and the exterior remains in fairly original condition. There have been some changes to the porch and polygonal Bay window and also the roof is covered in very inappropriate cedar shakes, but all this could be easily restored. After years as a rental I cringe to think what the interior looks like. When new this was a higher end home. The exterior trim and window casings were of a higher quality and design than that used in many of its contemporaries.

Clifton and Addie Cleaver House

This little doll house was the first home of Clifton and Adelaide (Addie) Medley Cleaver after their marriage. Clifton was part owner of Henderson-Cleaver Drugstore and also Cleaver's Shoe Store with his brother Elmer. When not engaged in business Clifton had time to serve as the Mayor of Eugene for one term. This house stood on the northeast corner of 7th and Olive street. Now the site of the parking garage for the Hult Center.

Hodes Saloon

Here is Clement Hodes Saloon, which stood on the west side of Willamette on the northwest corner of the alley between 8th and 9th Avenues. View shows Clement Hodes standing in the doorway. Signs painted on windows advertise fine wines, liquors, cigars and 5-cent beer. The interior was a little on the dismal side but did appear to have electric fans suspended from the ceilings. This would have been a big draw to those looking for a cold beer on a hot summer day in Eugene.

The Houses of Clement Hodes

The top photo shows the first home of Clement Hodes which stood at the southeast corner of 8th and Lawrence. The house was an early structure, built in the Greek revival style, resembling the Christian House on east 12th. Clement Hodes owned a Saloon and Billard Parlor on Willamette St. It must have been a successful business as circa 1890 the original house was moved (location unknown) and this fine two story Italianate took its place. It appears the house stood until about 1930 when it was replaced with the apartment house that still stand on the site.