The 2023 Irvington Historic District Home Tour presents six unique houses to experience virtually through three-dimensional walk-throughs, videos and photographs of architectural and design details.
A $25 donation (irvingtonpdx.com/home-tour) grants unlimited access to the online tour through March 5. Proceeds from the annual fundraiser help schools, senior programs, nonprofits and community improvements in Northeast Portland’s Irvington National Historic District.
New this year is an in-person Home Tour After Party on March 11. A limited number of supporters donating $100 (irvingtonpdx.com/2023-after-party) will gather at a historic residence not on the virtual tour.
They will also have online access to the virtual tour and receive this year’s edition of a framable poster of a historic Irvington house.
Starting in 2020, the historic home tour was postponed or an online-only experience due to the pandemic. Event chairman Jon Eaton said planning for the 2023 tour started when COVID was still looming and organizers decided to create a virtual tour to avoid having to cancel an in-person tour.
“Since 1967, this tour has been introducing people to the beauty and value that historic preservation brings to the broader city overall,” said Eaton.
The tour offers an opportunity to learn about the historic homes’ first owners and original crafted materials chosen by the architect or builder. Participants can also find practical and pretty remodeling ideas, be inspired by basements and attics converted into living spaces, and study gardens and outdoor living spaces.
Here are some of the highlights of the homes on the virtual tour:
1884 Irving Spencer House: The Italianate-Eastlake style home, the oldest residence still standing in Irvington, was built for Lizzie Irving Spencer, the daughter of Captain William Irving and Elizabeth Irving, who founded the neighborhood.
Typical of the Victorian era, the house had ornamental brackets, ironwork and a railed platform on the roof. The adornments were removed and a Prairie style porch was added when the house was relocated for the construction of the 1913 Broadway Bridge.
Black porcelain doorknobs, Eastlake-style door hinges and other original hardware are still in place.
Don’t miss: Iron rings in the front curb were once used to tether carriage horses.
1911 Henry B. Miller House: Architect Ellis F. Lawrence, who co-founded the University of Oregon’s architecture school, designed the residence in the English Arts and Crafts style with Tudor exterior features of half-timbering and a bow window.
Inside, see the original fireplace tile and mantel in the living room, mahogany paneling in the dining room and an antique copper sink in the butler’s pantry.
A larger bedroom suite upstairs was created from the former billiards room; its woodwork and built-in bookcases remain.
Don’t miss: A breakfast area added to the renovated kitchen is enclosed on three sides by custom casement windows that match the original windows.
1911 Moe and Ida Weinstein House: The Craftsman home built by prolific contractor Robert Beat has a front porch that spans the entire front of the three-story house.
Beat built more than 100 homes in Irvington, and hundreds more throughout Portland’s east side, according to tour organizers.
The colorful, contemporary decor by Jessica Hansen of Tandem Design blends with original stained-glass windows, built-in cabinets and glass pocket doors.
Don’t miss: The white-walled kitchen with white cabinets has a contemporary, blue hexagon tile floor.
1912 Harry P. Palmer House: Architect David L. Williams designed the Arts and Crafts house with character-rich clinker brick dressing up the stucco exterior. Inside, mahogany covers the dining room walls and ceiling, and the octagonal-shaped breakfast room is lined in Circassian walnut.
Don’t miss: The dining room’s unpolished silver chandelier that weighs close to 75 pounds.
1924 Joseph and Henrietta Sherman House: Builder Fredrick B. Turner constructed the Colonial Revival house a century ago and the current owners have added a layer of industrial chic with metal light fixtures, cast-iron electrical switch plates and retro-futuristic, steampunk objects.
A Victorian-era settee with Versailles-inspired upholstery is fronted by a weathered steamer trunk used as a coffee table. Also in the living room: A fireplace with hand-crafted Batchelder tiles, Art Deco lamps and a silver-colored radiator resting on the hardwood floor.
Don’t miss: The kitchen has new cabinet faces and hardware, a project completed by the do-it-yourself owners.
1926 Robert and Mary Beat House: Builder Robert Beat constructed three lookalike Spanish Colonial style houses, but he chose this one, with a red-clay tile roof and wrought-iron stair and balcony railings, as his personal residence.
Antique-inspired Rejuvenation light fixtures fit in alongside original elements such as Batchelder fireplace tiles. The updated kitchen has green granite counters and cabinets made from Oregon white oak.
Don’t miss: The mudroom floor has bricks laid in a herringbone pattern and a beadboard ceiling.
— Janet Eastman | 503-294-4072
jeastman@oregonian.com | @janeteastman
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