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2002 Home Tour

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2239 NE 19th Ave.
An Expansive Craftsman 4-Square Home

When it was built in 1909, this home represented the latest word in comfortable family living, its large Craftsman Style windows and spacious rooms offering the light and air that were missing in older Victorian styles.  Today, it houses a family with young children, providing kid-friendly spaces as well as gracious traditional living and dining areas.

The home was built for Joseph P. Menefee, a real estate developer who built a number of homes in Irvington on a speculative basis.  Believed to have been designed by noted pioneering Portland architect Emil Schacht, who helped introduce Craftsman Style architecture to the city, this was home to Menefee and his wife Louisa until they moved to a country home in 1922.  Later, this residence was home to an employee of the U.S. Forestry Service, who planted 65 trees on the property.  Although most of these trees are now gone, the evergreens along the north side and the hawthorns along Thompson Street are thought to be remnants of the forest that must have surrounded the house.

Entering from the spacious front porch, the house displays a floor plan that is an unusual hybrid of Craftsman 4-Square design and Colonial Revival concepts.  The spacious central entry hall is the epitome of Colonial Revival style; however, instead of a grand central staircase, the architect provided a modest staircase off to one side -- the ever-practical Emil Schacht preferred this approach, as it consumed less floor space, leaving more floor area for bedrooms.

The front entrance is through an octagonal bay and is flanked on the inside by columns.  Beautiful beveled and stained glass windows are scattered through the house.  Particularly lovely are the Mackintosh-inspired roses in the den off the front hall.  Although most likely not original to the house, the elaborate quarter-sawn oak mantles surrounding the living room and master bedroom fireplaces add dramatic focal points to these rooms.

Upstairs, the children's room reflects the kids' tastes in colors and decor.  And on the third floor is the large open play room, personalized with guidance from the children.

One of the Irvington homes that never fell on hard times, this home has enjoyed continuous upgrading and restoration over its 94 years by its attentive owners -- carried on further by the current owners in the last 3.  Mechanical upgrades, improved kitchen lighting, and the addition of the delightful new deck and gazebo on the south side of the house, insure that as the home approaches its centennial year, it will continue to serve as a comfortable family haven.