Peeking into the parlors of Silverton’s past

By Linda Whitmore

Owners of old houses often wonder about the lives of the people who tread the stairs before them. Passers-by might be curious about how current residents live in a vintage home.

On Saturday, July 19, Silverton Country Historical Society’s “Within These Walls” home tour offers a peek into the parlors and porches of homes and businesses built before 1940 – and a couple of well-done recreations of vintage houses.

There are 11 sites on the tour, each with its own story. One of these, at 810 N. Water St., was once the home of Rholin and Pauline Cooley, founders of Cooley’s Iris Gardens. For this story Georgie Johnson and Judy Nunn, granddaughters of the Cooleys, prepared a history of the house they often visited.

“Some of the facts we have about the Rholin and Pauline Cooley house are from memory, handed down story-style, while others are taken from documents of the 1920s,” the women wrote, “There may be a few missing pieces, and dates might be off a year or so in some places, but for the most part, it is correct.”

Their grandparents bought the bungalow in 1924, a couple of years after it was built by Hugh Range.

“Downstairs there were three bedrooms and one full bath, a living room, a dining room and the kitchen,” but about 1950 “after our mother (Miriam Cooley Ernst) had married and moved out and was starting a family of her own, the Cooleys did a major remodel,” they said.

Their mother’s bedroom was taken out, the front door moved and a staircase added to give access to the second floor. Upstairs a new bathroom was built.

The kitchen also was overhauled – with the addition of a breakfast nook, up-to-date enameled steel cabinets and a state-of-the-art gas range.

“To this day, we have not tasted a turkey any finer than those that were cooked in that oven,” the women said.

Thanksgiving and Christmas were favorite times with the whole family gathering “Norman Rockwell style,” Johnson and Nunn said. “There weren’t enough seats at the dining room table, about 14, so the breakfast nook got the little kids and one supervisory adult who reluctantly volunteered.”

The granddaughters wrote of their fond memories of the roaring fireplace, drafty staircase and unusual bathtub, of feeding the ducks in Silver Creek across the street, of playing card games with great-aunt Olive.

People entering old houses often say, “If these walls could talk…” Those taking part in the “Within These Walls” home tour will get a little taste of what everyday life was like way back when, and what it’s like to live in a vintage house now.

Other sites on the home tour are:
The George and Mary Hurst house, a 1911 foursquare on Coolidge Street, owned by Randal and Kris Thomas, themed “An Entertainer’s Dream.”

The Curtis and Ida Bristol House, a 1890s Gothic Victorian on West Main Street, recently purchased by Scott and Christine Guenther, “A Diamond in the Rough.”

The Elwood and Alice Small House, a circa 1912 bungalow on West Main Street, owned by Jim and Kim Kacalek.

A circa 1900 Vernacular Gothic Revival home, whose origin is being researched, now owned by Ray and Kathy Hunter.

The Louis Ames House, a 1908 foursquare at 428 S. Water St., now housing Silverton Country Museum, and the 1908 train depot that houses Silverton Chamber of Commerce.

The Don and Diane Lund house, a neo-Tudor on Pioneer Drive, a new house for sale.

The Murton and Lillian Deguire House, a 1910 Colonial Revival on B Street off Mill Street, owned by Jamie and Valerie Martinsen, “A Restoration in Progress.”

The Mark and Rennell Johnston house, a neo-Queen Anne Victorian on Shelokum off East Main, also for sale.

And the Palace Theater, an art deco movie house, where old-time movies will be shown on the hour.