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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (May 10, 2011)
8 community may10 2011 Living On a Lake in the Country: A Victorian in Mist, Oregon By Gayle Rich-Boxman This beautiful Victorian home in Mist, Oregon, is a delight to behold. Getting to know the history of this gorgeous property through the eyes of the owners, Orin and Louise Green, allows all of us to better grasp the pioneering spirit of this part of the country back in the late 1800s. The photos were shot on a perfect-blue-sky day last fall. Built in 1870, the current owners have painstakingly preserved much of the history of the home both in pictorials as well as oral and written stories that have passed down. In order to keep some of this intact for the next owners, the Greens have created a time capsule in a column of the living room. Some of what it contains is below: • Pictures and information on the builder, Lars Magnussen • Copies of baptismal certificates of two of Magnussen’s daughters (four children altogether, 3 daughters and one son) • Names of prior owners that they knew about The Greens were ripping down a wall in one of the upstairs bedrooms, and they found an old wallet. It has a picture of a boy about 8-9 years old along with a driver’s license that expired 6/15/1943 with the name Leonard Ira Harris, whom they are assuming was one of the owners, and it has one Indianhead-Buffalo nickel, a dime and five pennies. The Greens are certain of these three owners; the Magnussen family, the Garlock family and the Serby family, but there were others; they just don’t have accurate information on the rest. Larry Garlock with Clatskanie Insurance was born in the bedroom where they later found the wallet. He told Louise this himself! Here is more of what Louise Green, one of the sellers, shared with me about this wistful (Mistful?) property. The old Magnussen place was built from local fir and some cedar in the 1800s. Lars Magnussen came here as one of the first pioneers of the Nehalem Valley. He brought his bride here from Norway, and the Magnussens raised their four children here. Pictures of the family are located on the wall in the dining room. Mr. Magnussen made a small washhouse/canning room down beside Messner Creek [located at the back end of the property]. Legend has it Mrs. Magnussen’s mother in Norway had lost her life in a stream while washing clothes, so Mrs. Magnussen insisted that a stove be put in the washhouse with a pump to bring water from the creek before she would use the washhouse. Inside the house where the kitchen still is, Lars built the family a wooden bathtub that also had a wood cover so it could double as a table. Louise Green:“When we moved here in 1985, we had to replace all of the foundation (long cedar logs), which was ‘powdered’ wood. While under Boosters Buzz: Bidding ends June 15th. id e v pro rnet w n o I n te e W DSL COMPUTER & INTERNET SERVICES •Computer Servicing • Upgrades & Repairs • Office Supplies • Media Transfers • Ink and Toner Refills 503.429.TECH • New & Used Computers in stock • Cell Phone Service & Accessories • Color Copies & Printing Available • Notary Services • Internet - DSL, Wireless & Dial up 866 Bridge Street, Vernonia was a mystery to us just what the purpose was, so I asked around and found two stories. The first story seemed realistic: when Indians attacked, the family would go down in the hole through the living room floor and sought protection there as well as use of the cedar trough-like structure going to the outside to fire back at the Indians. The next story probably ‘holds more water’: It was said the Magnussens built a vegetable storage under the house and the trough provided air circulation. Maybe both? Gayle Rich-Boxman is a Broker with Vernonia Realty, specializing in Fishhawk Lake Recreation Club You can reach her direct at 503- 755-2905 or by email at richbox@ centurytel.net News About the Vernonia Boosters New Sports Fields Under Construction—The Vernonia Booster Club is working to develop new, temporary sports fields for baseball, softball and soccer to replace the fields lost at Spencer Park when construction started on the new school campus. The new field, called Titus Field, is located on Lone Pine Road, just south of Vernonia. Volunteers are installing a backstop and fencing; the wet spring weather has slowed progress so far. Anyone interested in helping donate time, labor or s t o We anything else can contact Brent ck no Dass at 503-429-9352. ba w tte The Junior Baseball rie s Organization (JBO) season is scheduled to begin mid-May. aga s the house, we discovered a hole in the ground about 5’ deep and 6-7’ square. It Thank You Supporters!-- The Boosters and especially JBO say thank you to all their business supporters this year. A special thank you to Bighorn Logging Corp.--their generous donation allowed all new uniforms to be purchased for every baseball team this year. Look for all the players to be wearing a patch recognizing Bighorn Logging this season. Join the Boosters!--The Vernonia Boosters support all sorts of activities for youth of all ages in our community. The next Booster meeting is May 11 at Washington Grade School. It only costs $10 to join and support youth sports in Vernonia. Soccer Camp— Vernonia Youth Soccer is planning a Challenger Soccer Camp at Washington Grade School on June 27-July 1. This British-style camp provides players of all ages and abilities with the rare opportunity to receive high-level soccer coaching from a team of international experts. Each day includes individual foot skills, technical drills, tactical practices, small-sided games, coached scrimmages, and a daily tournament. Equally important, the Challenger coaching staff provides kids with lessons in respect, responsibility, integrity, sportsmanship, and leadership. Camp programs include a free ball and shirt and a free British Soccer jersey for online registrations 45 days prior to camp! For more info go to the Vernonia Youth Soccer Facebook page. Booster Fundraiser—JVO Baseball will again be selling fireworks this year; make sure to stop by their booth and support local youth sports when you get ready for your 4 th of July celebrations. JVO Baseball is also currently selling Papa Murphy’s discount cards—get $25 off pizzas for just a $5 donation! Contact a baseball player to get yours.
