Currently Available to Purchase
The furniture you see on this page is currently for sale. Please feel free to ask for additional pictures.
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Each piece is unique and is one of a kind in color and character and cannot be reproduced like modern made furniture. We can make something close, but each piece has its own character and charm.
Heartpine Farm Table
Table is constructed using Heartpine. This table measures 4.5' x 38". This table has two extensions that make the table 7.5' when the extensions are in place. Table has been constructed using mortise and tennon joints. Table contains no screws or nails in the construction. Table does not come apart. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish. Table has 4 chairs that contain no screws or nails. PLEASE note-these chairs have a patent so they cannot be copied or reproduced.
Wood is called Heartpine and has been placed on the extension list. Wood was placed on the endangered/extinct list in the 1920's. This tree only grew approximately 1" every 30 years and was an original source for turpentine. This tree played a huge role in the industrial revolution.
Wood came from an old hospital that was believed to have been erected in the early 1900's but others report that the structure was built in the early 1890's. This structure was used as a hospital until the 1950's. Oddly enough, this "hospital" never had a name or an address. I have found some reference to "A" hospital but research is still being conducted. It may have once been called the Phenix Community Hospital. The Hospital was located in what was then call Girard, Alabama. The town's name was changed on several occasions and was known as the original "sin City". A movie called "The Phenix City Story" was written and produced in the early 1960's. Hospital was turned into a boarding house for the homeless and caught on fire in August of 2015. Efforts to save it were unsuccessful and was deemed for demolition July 2015. Structure was reported to be haunted.
PHENIX CITY–A public television documentary tells about the transformation of an Alabama city so wicked that Gen. George S. Patton threatened to roll his tanks across the river from Ft. Benning and destroy it.
“Up From the Ashes: The Rebirth of Phenix City” shows how the National Guard crushed a crime syndicate here in 1954, radically changing the course of this historic river town.
Located in Russell County, Phenix City is on the Chattahoochee River, opposite Columbus, Ga. Most of the area’s jobs have always been in Georgia at the mills and at Ft. Benning. Since Phenix City lacked the revenue that jobs bring in, the city fathers took an unusual step.
“They voted to authorize gambling to come in, illegally, of course, and they collected revenue in the form of licenses of illegal gambling operations,” explains former governor John Patterson. “This was a conscious decision that the city fathers made.”
During WWII, many of the 100,000 soldiers who were stationed at Ft. Benning visited the clubs, gambling halls, and houses of prostitution in Phenix City. They often got into trouble with the owners of these establishments.
“They would completely take advantage of these soldiers,” says Margaret Anne Barnes, author of “The Tragedy and Triumph of Phenix City, Alabama.” “They would get them drunk or get them to gamble and take all of a man’s money, and if he objected about being ill-treated, then he was beat up and sometimes killed.”
But some of Phenix City’s citizens, led by local merchant Hugh Bentley, were ashamed of the city’s tarnished reputation and organized to bring an end to the crime. Bentley’s house was bombed, which made him only more determined to root out the criminals. When Bentley ally Albert Patterson ran for attorney general on an anti-crime platform, the syndicate tried fixing the election and buying votes. Patterson, a Phenix City attorney, won the election but was gunned down on the street before he could clean up the town.
Albert Patterson and Hugh Bentley led efforts to clean up the town. Bentley's house was bombed and Patterson was murdered.
“The end result of my father’s murder is that the people of Alabama had had enough,” says John Patterson, who followed in his father’s footsteps and became attorney general and governor. “They insisted something be done about it. So they sent the National Guard in, put it under martial law, and busted up the gambling joints, burned all the equipment, and prosecuted about six or seven hundred people, and, in the course of the next year, cleaned it up.”
Chief Deputy Sheriff Albert Fuller was convicted in the murder of Albert Patterson.
“This is the only place and the only time in the history of this nation that martial law has been declared other than for a riot or a natural catastrophe,” says Hilda Coulter, a Phenix City florist who worked with Bentley and Patterson.
Heartpine:
Thanks to Southern Longleaf pine, the United States was once the world leader in Naval supplies; tar, pitch and turpentine, until the mid 20th century. The bark was scraped with a *bark hack* to cause the tree to bleed oleoresin which was used to make turpentine. The injury to the tree caused it to produce denser growth and additional resin creating both harder and very beautiful wood. Over-logged and slow growing, the great Longleaf pine forests of the US have never returned . Longleaf pine has not been available commercially since 1924.
Heart Pine, also known as Southern Longleaf yellow pine, old growth pine or Heartpine served as a major factor in the building of much of colonial America. Colonists who set foot on this vast land found nearly 100,000 square miles of forests covering southwestern Virginia to central Florida, along the gulf coast as far west as Texas. These dense forests contained enormous trees that grew as tall as 175 feet and as wide as 125 inches. Most trees averaged 125 feet tall and 40 inches wide at maturity. The wood from these trees built a great number of structures throughout America and the world, many of which still stand today. Homes, plantations, mills, warehouses, factories and public buildings were constructed out of longleaf pine. In fact, the settlers of Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas built 75 percent of their houses and public buildings out of longleaf pine.
The astounding versatility of this wood was apparent, being incorporated into everyday items such as farm implements, furniture and cabinets, to construction, flooring and siding.; The exceptional structural quality of the longleaf pine was utilized in bridges, wharves, trestles, posts, joists and piles. The wood was used to build ships for first the English Navy, followed by the American Navy. Longleaf pine was also a major source for naval stores. The massive ship, the USS Constitution, also known as "Old Ironsides", was constructed using heart pine timber and white oak and its decks are of heart pine planks. This ship, built in 1794, is the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy.
Longleaf pine continued its historical impact with the ruling of King George II, who in the 1700's mandated that all straight pines exceeding 24 inches in diameter would be considered property of the crown. He then ordered his surveyors to brand the pines with his mark of a broad arrow. In response to this proclamation, the colonists tarred and feathered the surveyors. This act is considered by many to have been a precursor to the Boston Tea Party.
As the Industrial Revolution surged ahead, the development of machinery and locomotives geared toward logging, and equipment such as steam skidders and band saws quickened the pace and greatly increased the volume of logs that was processed. By the mid-1920's, most of the available virgin forest was logged.
Sadly today, only about 5 percent of the original virgin forest remains. Longleaf pine was not replanted to a great extent, due to the lengthy period of time, 150 to 400 years, to maturity. The only sources of old growth heart pine available for use today are reclaimed wood from old buildings, or recovered wood from river bottoms
Please contact for price
Farm Table
4.5' x 38"
with extensions 7.5' x 38"
Table has 4 ladderback chairs
Please note that these chairs have a patent and cannot be reproduced
Wood is called Heartpine and has been placed on the extension list. Wood was placed on the endangered/extinct list in the 1920's. This tree only grew approximately 1" every 30 years and was an original source for turpentine. This tree played a huge role in the industrial revolution.
Wood came from an old hospital that was believed to have been erected in the early 1900's but others report that the structure was built in the early 1890's. This structure was used as a hospital until the 1950's. Oddly enough, this "hospital" never had a name or an address. I have found some reference to "A" hospital but research is still being conducted. It may have once been called the Phenix Community Hospital. The Hospital was located in what was then call Girard, Alabama. The town's name was changed on several occasions and was known as the original "sin City". A movie called "The Phenix City Story" was written and produced in the early 1960's. Hospital was turned into a boarding house for the homeless and caught on fire in August of 2015. Efforts to save it were unsuccessful and was deemed for demolition July 2015. Structure was reported to be haunted.
PHENIX CITY–A public television documentary tells about the transformation of an Alabama city so wicked that Gen. George S. Patton threatened to roll his tanks across the river from Ft. Benning and destroy it.
“Up From the Ashes: The Rebirth of Phenix City” shows how the National Guard crushed a crime syndicate here in 1954, radically changing the course of this historic river town.
Located in Russell County, Phenix City is on the Chattahoochee River, opposite Columbus, Ga. Most of the area’s jobs have always been in Georgia at the mills and at Ft. Benning. Since Phenix City lacked the revenue that jobs bring in, the city fathers took an unusual step.
“They voted to authorize gambling to come in, illegally, of course, and they collected revenue in the form of licenses of illegal gambling operations,” explains former governor John Patterson. “This was a conscious decision that the city fathers made.”
During WWII, many of the 100,000 soldiers who were stationed at Ft. Benning visited the clubs, gambling halls, and houses of prostitution in Phenix City. They often got into trouble with the owners of these establishments.
“They would completely take advantage of these soldiers,” says Margaret Anne Barnes, author of “The Tragedy and Triumph of Phenix City, Alabama.” “They would get them drunk or get them to gamble and take all of a man’s money, and if he objected about being ill-treated, then he was beat up and sometimes killed.”
But some of Phenix City’s citizens, led by local merchant Hugh Bentley, were ashamed of the city’s tarnished reputation and organized to bring an end to the crime. Bentley’s house was bombed, which made him only more determined to root out the criminals. When Bentley ally Albert Patterson ran for attorney general on an anti-crime platform, the syndicate tried fixing the election and buying votes. Patterson, a Phenix City attorney, won the election but was gunned down on the street before he could clean up the town.
Albert Patterson and Hugh Bentley led efforts to clean up the town. Bentley's house was bombed and Patterson was murdered.
“The end result of my father’s murder is that the people of Alabama had had enough,” says John Patterson, who followed in his father’s footsteps and became attorney general and governor. “They insisted something be done about it. So they sent the National Guard in, put it under martial law, and busted up the gambling joints, burned all the equipment, and prosecuted about six or seven hundred people, and, in the course of the next year, cleaned it up.”
Chief Deputy Sheriff Albert Fuller was convicted in the murder of Albert Patterson.
“This is the only place and the only time in the history of this nation that martial law has been declared other than for a riot or a natural catastrophe,” says Hilda Coulter, a Phenix City florist who worked with Bentley and Patterson.
Heartpine:
Thanks to Southern Longleaf pine, the United States was once the world leader in Naval supplies; tar, pitch and turpentine, until the mid 20th century. The bark was scraped with a *bark hack* to cause the tree to bleed oleoresin which was used to make turpentine. The injury to the tree caused it to produce denser growth and additional resin creating both harder and very beautiful wood. Over-logged and slow growing, the great Longleaf pine forests of the US have never returned . Longleaf pine has not been available commercially since 1924.
Heart Pine, also known as Southern Longleaf yellow pine, old growth pine or Heartpine served as a major factor in the building of much of colonial America. Colonists who set foot on this vast land found nearly 100,000 square miles of forests covering southwestern Virginia to central Florida, along the gulf coast as far west as Texas. These dense forests contained enormous trees that grew as tall as 175 feet and as wide as 125 inches. Most trees averaged 125 feet tall and 40 inches wide at maturity. The wood from these trees built a great number of structures throughout America and the world, many of which still stand today. Homes, plantations, mills, warehouses, factories and public buildings were constructed out of longleaf pine. In fact, the settlers of Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas built 75 percent of their houses and public buildings out of longleaf pine.
The astounding versatility of this wood was apparent, being incorporated into everyday items such as farm implements, furniture and cabinets, to construction, flooring and siding.; The exceptional structural quality of the longleaf pine was utilized in bridges, wharves, trestles, posts, joists and piles. The wood was used to build ships for first the English Navy, followed by the American Navy. Longleaf pine was also a major source for naval stores. The massive ship, the USS Constitution, also known as "Old Ironsides", was constructed using heart pine timber and white oak and its decks are of heart pine planks. This ship, built in 1794, is the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy.
Longleaf pine continued its historical impact with the ruling of King George II, who in the 1700's mandated that all straight pines exceeding 24 inches in diameter would be considered property of the crown. He then ordered his surveyors to brand the pines with his mark of a broad arrow. In response to this proclamation, the colonists tarred and feathered the surveyors. This act is considered by many to have been a precursor to the Boston Tea Party.
As the Industrial Revolution surged ahead, the development of machinery and locomotives geared toward logging, and equipment such as steam skidders and band saws quickened the pace and greatly increased the volume of logs that was processed. By the mid-1920's, most of the available virgin forest was logged.
Sadly today, only about 5 percent of the original virgin forest remains. Longleaf pine was not replanted to a great extent, due to the lengthy period of time, 150 to 400 years, to maturity. The only sources of old growth heart pine available for use today are reclaimed wood from old buildings, or recovered wood from river bottoms
Please contact for price
Farm Table
4.5' x 38"
with extensions 7.5' x 38"
Table has 4 ladderback chairs
Please note that these chairs have a patent and cannot be reproduced
Black Walnut Saddle Stools
Wood is Black Walnut. Wood came from Pennsylvania. There are no screws or nails in the construction. Top is spline-jointed and hand planed. Legs are mortised and pegged. Stools do not come apart and is natural in color (no stain). We use our own product for the final finish that makes the stools waterproof (not for outside use) and heat resistant to 150 degrees, Stools only need a damp cloth. Stools have been signed, numbered and dated.
Saddle Stools (4)
12" x 16" x 24"
$ 550.00 ea
Saddle Stools (4)
12" x 16" x 24"
$ 550.00 ea
Black Walnut Farm Table
Wood is Black Walnut. Wood came from Pennsylvania. There are no screws or nails in the construction. Top is spline-jointed and hand planed. Legs are mortised and pegged. Table does not come apart. Table is natural in color (no stain). We use our own product for the final finish that makes the table waterproof (not for outside use) and heat resistant to 150 degrees, Table only needs a damp cloth. Table has been signed, numbered and dated.
Farm Table
6' x 42"
$ 1995.00
Farm Table
6' x 42"
$ 1995.00
Old Growth Douglas Fir Farm Table
Wood is old growth Douglas Fir. Wood came from an old flax warehouse built in 1850 that was located in Cornelius, OR. There are no screws or nails in the construction. Top is spline-jointed and hand planed. Legs are mortised and pegged. Table does not come apart. Table is natural in color (no stain). We use our own product for the final finish that makes the table waterproof (not for outside use) and heat resistant to 150 degrees, Table only needs a damp cloth. Table has been signed, numbered and dated.
Farm Table
6' x 40"
$ 1295.00
Farm Table
6' x 40"
$ 1295.00
Black Cherry Farm Table w/ company boards and Turned legs
Table was constructed using solid black cherry- no veneers or Para wood was used. The top has been spline-jointed and runs the entire length of each board. The top has been hand-scraped due to all the figure in the wood. The legs are mortised and pegged and do not come apart. This table has two company boards that will make the table go from an everyday 6' size to 9' long. Table has beautiful hand turned legs. The Table has a waterproof and heat-resistant finish so it will not leave rings. Table has been signed, numbered and dated. Table is currently going through a color change and will turn a beautiful brick red.
Black cherry (Prunus serotina), also known as wild black cherry, rum cherry and mountain black cherry, is found throughout most of the eastern United States. Most at home in the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and in New York State, it can be found growing on a wide variety of sites: all those except for ones that display extreme wet or dry conditions. Common in the Catskills, black cherry can be seen growing at altitudes up to 3,200 feet and scattered throughout the valleys. Like other species, black cherry tells us something about the history of that forest. Being shade intolerant, it prefers to grow in open sunlight, and its presence tells us of a past disturbance that opened up or cleared the forest of the over-story allowing more sunlight to hit the forest floor. Because disturbances might include windstorm, logging or fire, this cherry is often found growing in areas that were once open pasture, or high up on ridges that are exposed to high winds.
Forest historians are not the only ones who value this species. Native Americans would boil the inner bark to make a concoction to treat colds, headaches, bronchitis, chest pains and the common cough. In fact, cherry extract is still used in commercial cough syrups. The pioneers would mix the cherries with brandy or rum in order to make cherry bounce, which provides a clue to the tree’s lesser-known common name, rum cherry.
It wasn’t until the turn of the century that black cherry wood became desirable by woodworkers and consumers alike. Once considered a poor substitute for mahogany, it is now the most valuable wood products species in North America. Because it draws such a high price, many landowners, foresters and wood products companies spend millions of dollars trying to perpetuate the species.
Farm Table
6' x 42" Thin top
9' x 42" with company boards in place
$ 3295.00
Bench (optional)
$ 550.00
Chairs (Optional)
$345.00 ea
sold
Black cherry (Prunus serotina), also known as wild black cherry, rum cherry and mountain black cherry, is found throughout most of the eastern United States. Most at home in the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and in New York State, it can be found growing on a wide variety of sites: all those except for ones that display extreme wet or dry conditions. Common in the Catskills, black cherry can be seen growing at altitudes up to 3,200 feet and scattered throughout the valleys. Like other species, black cherry tells us something about the history of that forest. Being shade intolerant, it prefers to grow in open sunlight, and its presence tells us of a past disturbance that opened up or cleared the forest of the over-story allowing more sunlight to hit the forest floor. Because disturbances might include windstorm, logging or fire, this cherry is often found growing in areas that were once open pasture, or high up on ridges that are exposed to high winds.
Forest historians are not the only ones who value this species. Native Americans would boil the inner bark to make a concoction to treat colds, headaches, bronchitis, chest pains and the common cough. In fact, cherry extract is still used in commercial cough syrups. The pioneers would mix the cherries with brandy or rum in order to make cherry bounce, which provides a clue to the tree’s lesser-known common name, rum cherry.
It wasn’t until the turn of the century that black cherry wood became desirable by woodworkers and consumers alike. Once considered a poor substitute for mahogany, it is now the most valuable wood products species in North America. Because it draws such a high price, many landowners, foresters and wood products companies spend millions of dollars trying to perpetuate the species.
Farm Table
6' x 42" Thin top
9' x 42" with company boards in place
$ 3295.00
Bench (optional)
$ 550.00
Chairs (Optional)
$345.00 ea
sold
Heart pine Coffee Table
(wood classified as extinct)
The stone “castle” Dallas City High School is coming down. With it comes a host of history and memories of a special place for this small, Hancock County community. The cornerstone of the school, including a time capsule, was planted at a community ceremony on Oct. 31, 1895. The building was finished in 1896.
Last month, on Sept. 19, the time capsule was removed and given to Dallas City Mayor Kevin Six, in preparation for the building to be demolished.
Included in the capsule was an invitation to the cornerstone ceremony, a pocket watch, news clippings, coins, and a business card for a dance band “Modern Woodman Band.”
Over 127 years it was sealed within that cornerstone, water had seeped into the copper time capsule, leaving other items that were not distinguishable.
“I have taken them to Western Illinois University Department of History (archives and special collections) to see if they can do anything to help restore them,” said Six.
Six was a 1970 graduate of Dallas City High School and recalls attending at “the castle.”
“It wasn’t spooky at all when we were there,” Six said. “The rooms were exceptionally big. But if you didn’t like climbing stairs, you were in trouble. All three floors were used for the high school. I’d guess 80 percent of the adults in town are graduates of the high school. I’m kind of sad to see it go, but it is falling down. It is the thing to do.”
More memories
Doug Endres attended kindergarten at “the castle” until the new elementary school was opened in January 1978. He returned in 1986 and graduated in 1990.
After being in the new elementary school, the high school was like going back in time “with painted concrete block walls, creaking wooden floors and windows that shrieked when opened from rust and age,” said Endres.
“There was a real sense that time had passed, and you were one in a long line of students that had walked those halls. It felt like a place where things had happened.”
“Even back when I was a student, we knew about the financial problems the district was facing. Closing seemed inevitable,” added Endres. “I am sad the castle and the larger gym are being taken down. People who went to school or worked there have memories of the people they met and the experiences they had. Those do not change even without a building. Whatever is built on that block in the future will not have the charm of the castle. That is the real loss.”
Anne Thompson did not attend the old high school, but she’s lived a block way for 40 years.
“You can’t help but love it,” Thompson said. “The same architect that designed the school designed the Burg mansion. They always lined up parades there in front of the school. It is such an important part of the town, I just want it to go down in a positive light.”
As well as memories, parts of the old castle will be preserved in other ways for the California-based owner. Joe Kindhart has been pulling floor planks and large pieces of lumber from the building. Then a stone mason, Mike Hoge from Tennessee, will be disassembling the building in a way to preserve and reuse as much of the limestone as possible.
History of the high school
Dallas City historian Glen Smith describes why the school was built.
“Dallas City had several different schools. The problem was that the county line went through the town,” Smith said. There was a high school in the Henderson County part of Dallas City, and another in Hancock County.
It was finally agreed to create one school district and build one school for the town.
The first stone cut for the Dallas City High School was laid on Oct. 31, 1895. The stone mason for the school was August Stenstrom, a Burlington, Iowa, contractor. Stone came from Lungs Quarry and other local quarries.
The laying of the cornerstone was an important occasion for Dallas City. The city newspaper reported an estimated 2,000 or more people attending the event.
“This fact alone shows that our people and their friends from the country are deeply interested in this new enterprise,” wrote the editor. “It demonstrates the fact that all the people are in favor of better educational facilities.”
The celebration began with The Woodmen Band leading a delegation of school children from their former school buildings to the location of the new school, where a large American flag marked the building site.
The county superintendent of schools, J.A. Califf, spoke and officially dedicated the new building by laying the corner stone.
The high school for all students of Dallas City was in the second and third floors The first floor of the building was The Dallas City Business College. This college “afforded the latest and best methods in practical business forms and customs. Students learn by doing,” according to the college brochure.
From his information, Smith noted: “Originally Dallas City was basically German. If you wanted a job anywhere in town, you needed to read and write German. An old stone building was used as a school and the German Methodist Church in Henderson County. Then there was a large, red brick building as a high school in Hancock County.”
A grade school was added next to the high school in 1950. In 1955, bonds were approved to add a gym, music room, industrial arts and ag room.
As the building neared the 100 years mark, its condition became difficult to maintain. In 2000, talks began for a converged high school among the Dallas City, Carthage, Nauvoo and LaHarpe school districts. It failed. Then Dallas City school district residents voted down a bond issue for $900,000 to build a high school addition at the new elementary school. After that vote, the high school was deactivated. The Dallas City’s high school students began attending Nauvoo-Colusa High School in the fall of 2001.
A second converged high school proposal, this time among Dallas City, Carthage and LaHarpe, passed in 2006, and Dallas City high school students became part of the Illini West High School in the fall of 2007.
For a time the former Dallas City High School was used as a community center, until its condition caused it to be closed permanently.
Heart pine
Wood is heart pine. The beautiful and durable Heart Pine, also known as Southern Longleaf yellow pine, old growth pine or pitch pine, given the name because of the high content of heart wood, Heart Pine is different from other pines because of the tight growth ring pattern and its unique red - amber color. Colonists who set foot on this vast land found nearly 100,000 square miles of forests covering from Virginia to central Florida, and along the gulf coast as far west as Louisiana and Texas. These dense forests contained enormous trees that grew as tall as 175 feet and as wide as 125 inches. Most trees averaged 125 feet tall and 40 inches wide at maturity.
Where there was once approximately 90 million acres, less than 10,000 acres of old-growth heart pine remain today. Put another way, what was once 41 percent of the entire landmass of the Deep South now covers less than 2 percent of its original range. The hardwood trees had been growing for centuries, producing only an inch of growth in diameter every thirty years. It takes up to 500 years for heart pine to mature.
The wood from these trees built a great number of structures throughout America and the world, many of which still stand today. Homes, plantations, mills, warehouses, factories and public buildings were constructed out of longleaf pine. In fact, the settlers of Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas built 75 percent of houses and public buildings out of longleaf pine. The astounding versatility of this wood was apparent, being incorporated into everyday items such as farm implements, furniture and cabinets, to construction, flooring and siding. The exceptional structural quality of the longleaf pine was utilized in bridges, wharves, trestles, posts, joists and piles. The wood was used to build ships for the first English Navy, followed by the American Navy. Longleaf pine was also a major source for naval stores. The massive historical ship, the U.S.S. Constitution, also known as "Old Ironsides," has a keel made of a single heart pine timber, and its decks are of heart pine planks. This ship, built in 1794, is the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy.
Longleaf pine continued its historical impact with the ruling of King George II, who mandated that all straight pines exceeding 24 inches in diameter would be considered property of the crown. He then ordered his surveyors to brand the pines with his mark of a broad arrow. In response to this proclamation, the colonists tarred and feathered the surveyors. This act is considered by many to have been a precursor to the Boston Tea Party.
Heart pine played a key role in the growth and development of the United States as an economic power. As industrial America began to flex its muscles later in the 19th century, heart pine was transported in tall ships made of heart pine up the Eastern seaboard and over to Europe. The Herculean wood provided flooring, joists and paneling for homes and factories, as well as timbers for bridges, warehouses, and railroad cars. Also appreciated for its beauty, it was utilized in Victorian hotels and palaces. Anytime you visit an old building, look around. You are likely to recognize heart pine still hard at work and in excellent condition.
Today, original-growth heart pine is as rare as sunken treasure, with less than 10,000 protected acres of original-growth Longleaf Pine forests remaining. Antique heart pine and heart cypress timbers are revered for their rich history as much as their beauty and durability. Sadly, clear-cutting of the vast southern forests in the late 1800s wiped out virtually the entire range of original-growth heart pine and heart cypress trees. The only place to find the last vestiges of this antique wood is reclamation from old buildings or where it was left behind - under water in the southern rivers used by many timber operations in the 1800s to raft their logs to nearby sawmills.
Heart pine coffee table w/dovetailed drawer
(wood classified as extinct)
4' x 2'
$ 1595.00
(sold)
Last month, on Sept. 19, the time capsule was removed and given to Dallas City Mayor Kevin Six, in preparation for the building to be demolished.
Included in the capsule was an invitation to the cornerstone ceremony, a pocket watch, news clippings, coins, and a business card for a dance band “Modern Woodman Band.”
Over 127 years it was sealed within that cornerstone, water had seeped into the copper time capsule, leaving other items that were not distinguishable.
“I have taken them to Western Illinois University Department of History (archives and special collections) to see if they can do anything to help restore them,” said Six.
Six was a 1970 graduate of Dallas City High School and recalls attending at “the castle.”
“It wasn’t spooky at all when we were there,” Six said. “The rooms were exceptionally big. But if you didn’t like climbing stairs, you were in trouble. All three floors were used for the high school. I’d guess 80 percent of the adults in town are graduates of the high school. I’m kind of sad to see it go, but it is falling down. It is the thing to do.”
More memories
Doug Endres attended kindergarten at “the castle” until the new elementary school was opened in January 1978. He returned in 1986 and graduated in 1990.
After being in the new elementary school, the high school was like going back in time “with painted concrete block walls, creaking wooden floors and windows that shrieked when opened from rust and age,” said Endres.
“There was a real sense that time had passed, and you were one in a long line of students that had walked those halls. It felt like a place where things had happened.”
“Even back when I was a student, we knew about the financial problems the district was facing. Closing seemed inevitable,” added Endres. “I am sad the castle and the larger gym are being taken down. People who went to school or worked there have memories of the people they met and the experiences they had. Those do not change even without a building. Whatever is built on that block in the future will not have the charm of the castle. That is the real loss.”
Anne Thompson did not attend the old high school, but she’s lived a block way for 40 years.
“You can’t help but love it,” Thompson said. “The same architect that designed the school designed the Burg mansion. They always lined up parades there in front of the school. It is such an important part of the town, I just want it to go down in a positive light.”
As well as memories, parts of the old castle will be preserved in other ways for the California-based owner. Joe Kindhart has been pulling floor planks and large pieces of lumber from the building. Then a stone mason, Mike Hoge from Tennessee, will be disassembling the building in a way to preserve and reuse as much of the limestone as possible.
History of the high school
Dallas City historian Glen Smith describes why the school was built.
“Dallas City had several different schools. The problem was that the county line went through the town,” Smith said. There was a high school in the Henderson County part of Dallas City, and another in Hancock County.
It was finally agreed to create one school district and build one school for the town.
The first stone cut for the Dallas City High School was laid on Oct. 31, 1895. The stone mason for the school was August Stenstrom, a Burlington, Iowa, contractor. Stone came from Lungs Quarry and other local quarries.
The laying of the cornerstone was an important occasion for Dallas City. The city newspaper reported an estimated 2,000 or more people attending the event.
“This fact alone shows that our people and their friends from the country are deeply interested in this new enterprise,” wrote the editor. “It demonstrates the fact that all the people are in favor of better educational facilities.”
The celebration began with The Woodmen Band leading a delegation of school children from their former school buildings to the location of the new school, where a large American flag marked the building site.
The county superintendent of schools, J.A. Califf, spoke and officially dedicated the new building by laying the corner stone.
The high school for all students of Dallas City was in the second and third floors The first floor of the building was The Dallas City Business College. This college “afforded the latest and best methods in practical business forms and customs. Students learn by doing,” according to the college brochure.
From his information, Smith noted: “Originally Dallas City was basically German. If you wanted a job anywhere in town, you needed to read and write German. An old stone building was used as a school and the German Methodist Church in Henderson County. Then there was a large, red brick building as a high school in Hancock County.”
A grade school was added next to the high school in 1950. In 1955, bonds were approved to add a gym, music room, industrial arts and ag room.
As the building neared the 100 years mark, its condition became difficult to maintain. In 2000, talks began for a converged high school among the Dallas City, Carthage, Nauvoo and LaHarpe school districts. It failed. Then Dallas City school district residents voted down a bond issue for $900,000 to build a high school addition at the new elementary school. After that vote, the high school was deactivated. The Dallas City’s high school students began attending Nauvoo-Colusa High School in the fall of 2001.
A second converged high school proposal, this time among Dallas City, Carthage and LaHarpe, passed in 2006, and Dallas City high school students became part of the Illini West High School in the fall of 2007.
For a time the former Dallas City High School was used as a community center, until its condition caused it to be closed permanently.
Heart pine
Wood is heart pine. The beautiful and durable Heart Pine, also known as Southern Longleaf yellow pine, old growth pine or pitch pine, given the name because of the high content of heart wood, Heart Pine is different from other pines because of the tight growth ring pattern and its unique red - amber color. Colonists who set foot on this vast land found nearly 100,000 square miles of forests covering from Virginia to central Florida, and along the gulf coast as far west as Louisiana and Texas. These dense forests contained enormous trees that grew as tall as 175 feet and as wide as 125 inches. Most trees averaged 125 feet tall and 40 inches wide at maturity.
Where there was once approximately 90 million acres, less than 10,000 acres of old-growth heart pine remain today. Put another way, what was once 41 percent of the entire landmass of the Deep South now covers less than 2 percent of its original range. The hardwood trees had been growing for centuries, producing only an inch of growth in diameter every thirty years. It takes up to 500 years for heart pine to mature.
The wood from these trees built a great number of structures throughout America and the world, many of which still stand today. Homes, plantations, mills, warehouses, factories and public buildings were constructed out of longleaf pine. In fact, the settlers of Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas built 75 percent of houses and public buildings out of longleaf pine. The astounding versatility of this wood was apparent, being incorporated into everyday items such as farm implements, furniture and cabinets, to construction, flooring and siding. The exceptional structural quality of the longleaf pine was utilized in bridges, wharves, trestles, posts, joists and piles. The wood was used to build ships for the first English Navy, followed by the American Navy. Longleaf pine was also a major source for naval stores. The massive historical ship, the U.S.S. Constitution, also known as "Old Ironsides," has a keel made of a single heart pine timber, and its decks are of heart pine planks. This ship, built in 1794, is the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy.
Longleaf pine continued its historical impact with the ruling of King George II, who mandated that all straight pines exceeding 24 inches in diameter would be considered property of the crown. He then ordered his surveyors to brand the pines with his mark of a broad arrow. In response to this proclamation, the colonists tarred and feathered the surveyors. This act is considered by many to have been a precursor to the Boston Tea Party.
Heart pine played a key role in the growth and development of the United States as an economic power. As industrial America began to flex its muscles later in the 19th century, heart pine was transported in tall ships made of heart pine up the Eastern seaboard and over to Europe. The Herculean wood provided flooring, joists and paneling for homes and factories, as well as timbers for bridges, warehouses, and railroad cars. Also appreciated for its beauty, it was utilized in Victorian hotels and palaces. Anytime you visit an old building, look around. You are likely to recognize heart pine still hard at work and in excellent condition.
Today, original-growth heart pine is as rare as sunken treasure, with less than 10,000 protected acres of original-growth Longleaf Pine forests remaining. Antique heart pine and heart cypress timbers are revered for their rich history as much as their beauty and durability. Sadly, clear-cutting of the vast southern forests in the late 1800s wiped out virtually the entire range of original-growth heart pine and heart cypress trees. The only place to find the last vestiges of this antique wood is reclamation from old buildings or where it was left behind - under water in the southern rivers used by many timber operations in the 1800s to raft their logs to nearby sawmills.
Heart pine coffee table w/dovetailed drawer
(wood classified as extinct)
4' x 2'
$ 1595.00
(sold)
Douglas Fir Farm Table
Peter Charles (P.C.) Freres Jr. was born Feb. 10, 1868 in Besch - Saarburg, Prussia. P.C. came to the United States when he was 7 years old, with his parents, Peter C. Freres Sr. and Angela (Mersch) Freres and their other 4 other children in 1875. P.C.'s grandfather was Mathias Freres, born about 1820 in Besch, Prussia, in the region of Saarland.
General Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States during this time (1869– 1877). The Freres family settled on a farm in Keokuk County near Sigourney, Iowa where two more sons were born. By 1892 there was an acute depression, business failures, unemployment and farm mortgage foreclosures across the land. Grover Cleveland was elected the first Democrat president (1893-1897) after the Civil War. The State of Oregon was only 34 years old at that time. Sylvester Pennoyer was Governor of Oregon (1894-1901) and Stayton had existed as a town for only 21 years. When Peter (P.C.) Jr. was 25 years old he married Emma Matilda Snakenberg on December 12, 1893. She was born and raised in the Sigourney area. The day after their marriage, they left Iowa for Oregon by train. They came as far as Portland then had to take a stagecoach on to Aumsville, Oregon. Over the muddiest places, where the stagecoach would become stuck, the passengers were obliged to become foot passengers. When they reached Aumsville they stayed with Mr. and Mrs. John Highberger, good friends who were also from the Sigourney area. After several months of different types of employment Peter and Emma decided to buy the western half (160 acres) of the Creed T. Biggers land donation claim, LDC #5813, T9S R1E for $2,925.00. This property was at Fern Ridge, in Marion County, about 6 miles east of Sublimity and Stayton. There was an old house on the property which they made do for a few years until around 1900 when they built a new house to accommodate their growing family. P.C. and Emma had four children, all born at home on the Fern Ridge farm near Stayton, Oregon:
Table is constructed using no screws or nails other than what is holding down the top. Top has been spline-jointed and hand-planed. Legs have been mortised and pegged. Table has been signed, numbered and dated. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish
7' x 42"
$ 1795.00
(Sold)
Douglas Fir Farm Table
Peter Charles (P.C.) Freres Jr. was born Feb. 10, 1868 in Besch - Saarburg, Prussia. P.C. came to the United States when he was 7 years old, with his parents, Peter C. Freres Sr. and Angela (Mersch) Freres and their other 4 other children in 1875. P.C.'s grandfather was Mathias Freres, born about 1820 in Besch, Prussia, in the region of Saarland.
General Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States during this time (1869– 1877). The Freres family settled on a farm in Keokuk County near Sigourney, Iowa where two more sons were born. By 1892 there was an acute depression, business failures, unemployment and farm mortgage foreclosures across the land. Grover Cleveland was elected the first Democrat president (1893-1897) after the Civil War. The State of Oregon was only 34 years old at that time. Sylvester Pennoyer was Governor of Oregon (1894-1901) and Stayton had existed as a town for only 21 years. When Peter (P.C.) Jr. was 25 years old he married Emma Matilda Snakenberg on December 12, 1893. She was born and raised in the Sigourney area. The day after their marriage, they left Iowa for Oregon by train. They came as far as Portland then had to take a stagecoach on to Aumsville, Oregon. Over the muddiest places, where the stagecoach would become stuck, the passengers were obliged to become foot passengers. When they reached Aumsville they stayed with Mr. and Mrs. John Highberger, good friends who were also from the Sigourney area. After several months of different types of employment Peter and Emma decided to buy the western half (160 acres) of the Creed T. Biggers land donation claim, LDC #5813, T9S R1E for $2,925.00. This property was at Fern Ridge, in Marion County, about 6 miles east of Sublimity and Stayton. There was an old house on the property which they made do for a few years until around 1900 when they built a new house to accommodate their growing family. P.C. and Emma had four children, all born at home on the Fern Ridge farm near Stayton, Oregon:
Table is constructed using no screws or nails other than what is holding down the top. Top has been spline-jointed and hand-planed. Legs have been mortised and pegged. Table has been signed, numbered and dated. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish
6' x 42"
$ 1395.00
(Sold)
American Chestnut Farm Table
Pit Sawn
Structure wood came from was built in 1650
Wood came from an old house built around 1702 but the house was built around a log cabin that was built in 1650. Currently research is being done on the structure. The home had been abandoned for over 20 years and is being demolished due to a new road being constructed. The original structure, which was a hand-hewn log cabin, was added to over the years. The wood for the table came from the log cabin side of the home When the cabin was built, we did not have saws and Lumber was cut using primitive methods and saws. The house was located in Warsham, Massachusetts. The original builder of the cabin and home was believed to be a ship captain.
The wood for the original structure, and a portion of some areas of the rest of structure was done by a pit saw it was originally a type of saw used in a saw pit and consisted of a narrow blade held rigid by a frame this evolved into a straight, stiff blade without a frame up to 14 foot long with a handle at each end. The upper handle was called the tiller and the lower one the box, so called from its appearance and because it could be removed when the saw was taken out of one Cut to be positioned in another. The saw was used close to the felling site to reduce large logs into beams and planks.
Sawyers either dug a large pit or constructed a sturdy platform, enabling a two-man crew to saw, one positioned below the log called a Pitman and the other one on top called a top man. The saw blade teeth were angled and sharpened as a rip saw so as to not only cut on the downward stroke but also on the upward stroke, this created a unique pattern to the wood similar to a x type pattern. On the return stroke, the burden of lifting the weight of the saw was shared equally by the two Sawers, thereby reducing fatigue and backache. The Pittman had to contend with sawdust in his mouth and eyes and the risk of being crushed by a falling log, although modern photographs showed the sawdust falling as would be expected away from the Pitman, the teeth being on the opposite edge of him.
The wood is American Chestnut. There was almost 4,000,000 acres of American Chestnut here in the United States. They were on the largest, tallest and fastest growing trees in the eastern forest. The wood was long lasting, straight grained and suitable for furniture, fencing and building. The nuts fed billions of birds and animals. It was almost a perfect tree that is until it was killed by a blight over a century ago that blight has been called the greatest ecological disaster to strike the worlds forest in all our history. A tree that has survived all adversaries for 40 million years had disappeared in 10 years, what was known as the queen of Eastern America, the American chestnut is now nearly extinct.
The American chestnut was an economic staple of the original homesteaders in the Appalachian Mountains. The wood was lightweight, weather resistant, very easy to chop and mill by hand. They used the trees, not only for their homes, but for fencing rails and nuts that they produced. They were known to grow up to 26 inches in diameter and if your farm had many American chestnut trees, you were considered to be a very wealthy farmer. It is believed in 1904 a gentleman from the zoo brought Asian Chestnut trees to decorate the zoo. It was in these trees that a blight called, Indopop parasitica was born. The fungus, which was unintentionally brought to America spread fast and in less than 10 years the American chestnut was all extinct. The roots bases below the disease are still alive, but the saplings that they produce do not live long. They will grow about 3 to 6 inches tall before they are overcome by the virus, and they die shortly afterwards. Researchers have spent the last 100 years trying to revive the species but to avail our American Chestnut are now gone.
Table has been constructed using no screws or nails. The top has been hand planed and spline jointed. These go the entire length of the board. The legs are mortised and pegged; our tables do not come apart. The finish requires no care just a damp cloth. It is waterproof and heat resistant to 180 degrees. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated and insurance documentation is provided,
Table
8' x 44"
$ 3995.00
The wood for the original structure, and a portion of some areas of the rest of structure was done by a pit saw it was originally a type of saw used in a saw pit and consisted of a narrow blade held rigid by a frame this evolved into a straight, stiff blade without a frame up to 14 foot long with a handle at each end. The upper handle was called the tiller and the lower one the box, so called from its appearance and because it could be removed when the saw was taken out of one Cut to be positioned in another. The saw was used close to the felling site to reduce large logs into beams and planks.
Sawyers either dug a large pit or constructed a sturdy platform, enabling a two-man crew to saw, one positioned below the log called a Pitman and the other one on top called a top man. The saw blade teeth were angled and sharpened as a rip saw so as to not only cut on the downward stroke but also on the upward stroke, this created a unique pattern to the wood similar to a x type pattern. On the return stroke, the burden of lifting the weight of the saw was shared equally by the two Sawers, thereby reducing fatigue and backache. The Pittman had to contend with sawdust in his mouth and eyes and the risk of being crushed by a falling log, although modern photographs showed the sawdust falling as would be expected away from the Pitman, the teeth being on the opposite edge of him.
The wood is American Chestnut. There was almost 4,000,000 acres of American Chestnut here in the United States. They were on the largest, tallest and fastest growing trees in the eastern forest. The wood was long lasting, straight grained and suitable for furniture, fencing and building. The nuts fed billions of birds and animals. It was almost a perfect tree that is until it was killed by a blight over a century ago that blight has been called the greatest ecological disaster to strike the worlds forest in all our history. A tree that has survived all adversaries for 40 million years had disappeared in 10 years, what was known as the queen of Eastern America, the American chestnut is now nearly extinct.
The American chestnut was an economic staple of the original homesteaders in the Appalachian Mountains. The wood was lightweight, weather resistant, very easy to chop and mill by hand. They used the trees, not only for their homes, but for fencing rails and nuts that they produced. They were known to grow up to 26 inches in diameter and if your farm had many American chestnut trees, you were considered to be a very wealthy farmer. It is believed in 1904 a gentleman from the zoo brought Asian Chestnut trees to decorate the zoo. It was in these trees that a blight called, Indopop parasitica was born. The fungus, which was unintentionally brought to America spread fast and in less than 10 years the American chestnut was all extinct. The roots bases below the disease are still alive, but the saplings that they produce do not live long. They will grow about 3 to 6 inches tall before they are overcome by the virus, and they die shortly afterwards. Researchers have spent the last 100 years trying to revive the species but to avail our American Chestnut are now gone.
Table has been constructed using no screws or nails. The top has been hand planed and spline jointed. These go the entire length of the board. The legs are mortised and pegged; our tables do not come apart. The finish requires no care just a damp cloth. It is waterproof and heat resistant to 180 degrees. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated and insurance documentation is provided,
Table
8' x 44"
$ 3995.00
American Chestnut Farm Table
Pit Sawn
Structure wood came from was built in 1650
Wood came from an old house built around 1702 but the house was built around a log cabin that was built in 1650. Currently research is being done on the structure. The home had been abandoned for over 20 years and is being demolished due to a new road being constructed. The original structure, which was a hand-hewn log cabin, was added to over the years. The wood for the table came from the log cabin side of the home When the cabin was built, we did not have saws and Lumber was cut using primitive methods and saws. The house was located in Warsham, Massachusetts. The original builder of the cabin and home was believed to be a ship captain.
The wood for the original structure, and a portion of some areas of the rest of structure was done by a pit saw it was originally a type of saw used in a saw pit and consisted of a narrow blade held rigid by a frame this evolved into a straight, stiff blade without a frame up to 14 foot long with a handle at each end. The upper handle was called the tiller and the lower one the box, so called from its appearance and because it could be removed when the saw was taken out of one Cut to be positioned in another. The saw was used close to the felling site to reduce large logs into beams and planks.
Sawyers either dug a large pit or constructed a sturdy platform, enabling a two-man crew to saw, one positioned below the log called a Pitman and the other one on top called a top man. The saw blade teeth were angled and sharpened as a rip saw so as to not only cut on the downward stroke but also on the upward stroke, this created a unique pattern to the wood similar to a x type pattern. On the return stroke, the burden of lifting the weight of the saw was shared equally by the two Sawers, thereby reducing fatigue and backache. The Pittman had to contend with sawdust in his mouth and eyes and the risk of being crushed by a falling log, although modern photographs showed the sawdust falling as would be expected away from the Pitman, the teeth being on the opposite edge of him.
The wood is American Chestnut. There was almost 4,000,000 acres of American Chestnut here in the United States. They were on the largest, tallest and fastest growing trees in the eastern forest. The wood was long lasting, straight grained and suitable for furniture, fencing and building. The nuts fed billions of birds and animals. It was almost a perfect tree that is until it was killed by a blight over a century ago that blight has been called the greatest ecological disaster to strike the worlds forest in all our history. A tree that has survived all adversaries for 40 million years had disappeared in 10 years, what was known as the queen of Eastern America, the American chestnut is now nearly extinct.
The American chestnut was an economic staple of the original homesteaders in the Appalachian Mountains. The wood was lightweight, weather resistant, very easy to chop and mill by hand. They used the trees, not only for their homes, but for fencing rails and nuts that they produced. They were known to grow up to 26 inches in diameter and if your farm had many American chestnut trees, you were considered to be a very wealthy farmer. It is believed in 1904 a gentleman from the zoo brought Asian Chestnut trees to decorate the zoo. It was in these trees that a blight called, Indopop parasitica was born. The fungus, which was unintentionally brought to America spread fast and in less than 10 years the American chestnut was all extinct. The roots bases below the disease are still alive, but the saplings that they produce do not live long. They will grow about 3 to 6 inches tall before they are overcome by the virus, and they die shortly afterwards. Researchers have spent the last 100 years trying to revive the species but to avail our American Chestnut are now gone.
Table has been constructed using no screws or nails. The top has been hand planed and spline jointed. These go the entire length of the board. The legs are mortised and pegged; our tables do not come apart. The finish requires no care just a damp cloth. It is waterproof and heat resistant to 180 degrees. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated and insurance documentation is provided,
Table
7' x 40"
$ 3595.00
Bench
14" x 66" x 24"
$ 1795.00
The wood for the original structure, and a portion of some areas of the rest of structure was done by a pit saw it was originally a type of saw used in a saw pit and consisted of a narrow blade held rigid by a frame this evolved into a straight, stiff blade without a frame up to 14 foot long with a handle at each end. The upper handle was called the tiller and the lower one the box, so called from its appearance and because it could be removed when the saw was taken out of one Cut to be positioned in another. The saw was used close to the felling site to reduce large logs into beams and planks.
Sawyers either dug a large pit or constructed a sturdy platform, enabling a two-man crew to saw, one positioned below the log called a Pitman and the other one on top called a top man. The saw blade teeth were angled and sharpened as a rip saw so as to not only cut on the downward stroke but also on the upward stroke, this created a unique pattern to the wood similar to a x type pattern. On the return stroke, the burden of lifting the weight of the saw was shared equally by the two Sawers, thereby reducing fatigue and backache. The Pittman had to contend with sawdust in his mouth and eyes and the risk of being crushed by a falling log, although modern photographs showed the sawdust falling as would be expected away from the Pitman, the teeth being on the opposite edge of him.
The wood is American Chestnut. There was almost 4,000,000 acres of American Chestnut here in the United States. They were on the largest, tallest and fastest growing trees in the eastern forest. The wood was long lasting, straight grained and suitable for furniture, fencing and building. The nuts fed billions of birds and animals. It was almost a perfect tree that is until it was killed by a blight over a century ago that blight has been called the greatest ecological disaster to strike the worlds forest in all our history. A tree that has survived all adversaries for 40 million years had disappeared in 10 years, what was known as the queen of Eastern America, the American chestnut is now nearly extinct.
The American chestnut was an economic staple of the original homesteaders in the Appalachian Mountains. The wood was lightweight, weather resistant, very easy to chop and mill by hand. They used the trees, not only for their homes, but for fencing rails and nuts that they produced. They were known to grow up to 26 inches in diameter and if your farm had many American chestnut trees, you were considered to be a very wealthy farmer. It is believed in 1904 a gentleman from the zoo brought Asian Chestnut trees to decorate the zoo. It was in these trees that a blight called, Indopop parasitica was born. The fungus, which was unintentionally brought to America spread fast and in less than 10 years the American chestnut was all extinct. The roots bases below the disease are still alive, but the saplings that they produce do not live long. They will grow about 3 to 6 inches tall before they are overcome by the virus, and they die shortly afterwards. Researchers have spent the last 100 years trying to revive the species but to avail our American Chestnut are now gone.
Table has been constructed using no screws or nails. The top has been hand planed and spline jointed. These go the entire length of the board. The legs are mortised and pegged; our tables do not come apart. The finish requires no care just a damp cloth. It is waterproof and heat resistant to 180 degrees. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated and insurance documentation is provided,
Table
7' x 40"
$ 3595.00
Bench
14" x 66" x 24"
$ 1795.00
Claro Walnut Desk
(Rare Wood-extreme endangered species)
Marbled-only occurs on 0.5 % of these trees
Claro Walnut is an American exotic tree that has been placed on the extreme endangered list. Native to the upper regions of California, the lumber it produces is known for its deep, rich colors and intense figure and is coveted by gun stock manufacturers and master craftsmen. The Story of Claro Walnut begins with a Gentleman named John Bidwell (August 5, 1819 – April 4, 1900). Bidwell was known throughout California and nationwide as an important pioneer, farmer, soldier, gold miner, statesman, politician, prohibitionist, and philanthropist. He is famous for leading one of the first emigrant parties, the Bartleson–Bidwell Party along the California Trail, and for founding Chico, California. He was a Major in the Mexican American War, Brigadier General in the California Malita, and a Republican congressman (1849-1851).
After settling in Chico and starting his farming career, Bidwell planted Circassian walnut trees (Juglans Regia). His family was of English heritage, so the seed stock came from Eastern Europe and the Old Russian Muslim Republics. These trees flourished in fertile soils in California.
These trees eventually cross-pollinated with the native northwestern black walnut (Juglans Hindsii). The new cross grew and flourished, and the new trees were named Claro Walnut, meaning clear walnut in Spanish. Being a big, beautiful, majestic tree, they were cultivated and planted along roadways and in home yards. Claro rootstock was eventually used commercially as a root graft for French and English walnut trees in walnut orchards around California. The graft combined the robust root of a big tree, with the smaller, easier to harvest tree, with a taster nut.
Claro walnut trees are no longer planted and are becoming increasingly fewer and fewer. They are usually only harvested because of old age and changing land use. What once was a beautiful backyard tree grows into an unmanageable old giant.
Table has been constructed using Claro Walnut. Claro Walnut is very hard and dense. The combination of strength, toughness and durability is not found in any other wood. The wood is traditionally used for high end furniture and many other applications. Table is constructed using old world joinery skills. The top has been hand scraped and spline jointed. The legs have been mortised and pegged. Table has a waterproof and heat-resistant finish. Table has a hand cut dovetailed drawer. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
5' x 30"
$ 2995.00
(extremely rare)
After settling in Chico and starting his farming career, Bidwell planted Circassian walnut trees (Juglans Regia). His family was of English heritage, so the seed stock came from Eastern Europe and the Old Russian Muslim Republics. These trees flourished in fertile soils in California.
These trees eventually cross-pollinated with the native northwestern black walnut (Juglans Hindsii). The new cross grew and flourished, and the new trees were named Claro Walnut, meaning clear walnut in Spanish. Being a big, beautiful, majestic tree, they were cultivated and planted along roadways and in home yards. Claro rootstock was eventually used commercially as a root graft for French and English walnut trees in walnut orchards around California. The graft combined the robust root of a big tree, with the smaller, easier to harvest tree, with a taster nut.
Claro walnut trees are no longer planted and are becoming increasingly fewer and fewer. They are usually only harvested because of old age and changing land use. What once was a beautiful backyard tree grows into an unmanageable old giant.
Table has been constructed using Claro Walnut. Claro Walnut is very hard and dense. The combination of strength, toughness and durability is not found in any other wood. The wood is traditionally used for high end furniture and many other applications. Table is constructed using old world joinery skills. The top has been hand scraped and spline jointed. The legs have been mortised and pegged. Table has a waterproof and heat-resistant finish. Table has a hand cut dovetailed drawer. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
5' x 30"
$ 2995.00
(extremely rare)
Claro Walnut
(Rare Wood-extreme endangered species)
Claro Walnut is an American exotic tree that has been placed on the extreme endangered list. Native to the upper regions of California, The lumber it produces is known for its deep, rich colors and intense figure and is coveted by gun stock manufacturers and master craftsmen. The Story of Claro Walnut begins with a Gentleman named John Bidwell (August 5, 1819 – April 4, 1900). Bidwell was known throughout California and nationwide as an important pioneer, farmer, soldier, gold miner, statesman, politician, prohibitionist, and philanthropist. He is famous for leading one of the first emigrant parties, the Bartleson–Bidwell Party along the California Trail, and for founding Chico, California. He was a Major in the Mexican-American War, Brigadier General in the California Malita, and a Republican congressman (1849-1851).
After settling in Chico and starting his farming career, Bidwell planted Circassian walnut trees (Juglans Regia). His family was of English heritage, so the seed stock came from Eastern Europe and the Old Russian Muslim Republics. These trees flourished in fertile soils in California.
These trees eventually cross-pollinated with the native northwestern black walnut (Juglans Hindsii). The new cross grew and flourished, and the new trees were named Claro Walnut, meaning clear walnut in Spanish. Being a big, beautiful, majestic tree, they were cultivated and planted along roadways and in home yards. Claro rootstock was eventually used commercially as a root graft for French and English walnut trees in walnut orchards around California. The graft combined the robust root of a big tree, with the smaller, easier to harvest tree, with a taster nut.
Claro walnut trees are no longer planted and are becoming increasingly fewer and fewer. They are usually only harvested because of old age and changing land use. What once was a beautiful backyard tree grows into an unmanageable old giant.
Table has been constructed using Claro Walnut. Claro Walnut is very hard and dense. The combination of strength, toughness and durability is not found in any other wood. The wood is traditionally used for high end furniture and many other applications. Table is constructed using old world joinery skills. The top has been hand scraped and spline jointed. The legs have been mortised and pegged. Table has a waterproof and heat-resistant finish. Table has a hand cut dovetailed drawer. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
6' x 36"
$ 1995.00
(sold)
After settling in Chico and starting his farming career, Bidwell planted Circassian walnut trees (Juglans Regia). His family was of English heritage, so the seed stock came from Eastern Europe and the Old Russian Muslim Republics. These trees flourished in fertile soils in California.
These trees eventually cross-pollinated with the native northwestern black walnut (Juglans Hindsii). The new cross grew and flourished, and the new trees were named Claro Walnut, meaning clear walnut in Spanish. Being a big, beautiful, majestic tree, they were cultivated and planted along roadways and in home yards. Claro rootstock was eventually used commercially as a root graft for French and English walnut trees in walnut orchards around California. The graft combined the robust root of a big tree, with the smaller, easier to harvest tree, with a taster nut.
Claro walnut trees are no longer planted and are becoming increasingly fewer and fewer. They are usually only harvested because of old age and changing land use. What once was a beautiful backyard tree grows into an unmanageable old giant.
Table has been constructed using Claro Walnut. Claro Walnut is very hard and dense. The combination of strength, toughness and durability is not found in any other wood. The wood is traditionally used for high end furniture and many other applications. Table is constructed using old world joinery skills. The top has been hand scraped and spline jointed. The legs have been mortised and pegged. Table has a waterproof and heat-resistant finish. Table has a hand cut dovetailed drawer. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
6' x 36"
$ 1995.00
(sold)
Claro Walnut
(Rare Wood)
Claro Walnut is an American exotic tree that has been placed on the extreme endangered list. Native to the upper regions of California, The lumber it produces is known for its deep, rich colors and intense figure and is coveted by gun stock manufacturers and master craftsmen. The Story of Claro Walnut begins with a Gentleman named John Bidwell (August 5, 1819 – April 4, 1900). Bidwell was known throughout California and nationwide as an important pioneer, farmer, soldier, gold miner, statesman, politician, prohibitionist, and philanthropist. He is famous for leading one of the first emigrant parties, the Bartleson–Bidwell Party along the California Trail, and for founding Chico, California. He was a Major in the Mexican-American War, Brigadier General in the California Malita, and a Republican congressman (1849-1851).
After settling in Chico and starting his farming career, Bidwell planted Circassian walnut trees (Juglans Regia). His family was of English heritage, so the seed stock came from Eastern Europe and the Old Russian Muslim Republics. These trees flourished in fertile soils in California.
These trees eventually cross-pollinated with the native northwestern black walnut (Juglans Hindsii). The new cross grew and flourished, and the new trees were named Claro Walnut, meaning clear walnut in Spanish. Being a big, beautiful, majestic tree, they were cultivated and planted along roadways and in home yards. Claro rootstock was eventually used commercially as a root graft for French and English walnut trees in walnut orchards around California. The graft combined the robust root of a big tree, with the smaller, easier to harvest tree, with a taster nut.
Claro walnut trees are no longer planted and are becoming increasingly fewer and fewer. They are usually only harvested because of old age and changing land use. What once was a beautiful backyard tree grows into an unmanageable old giant.
Table has been constructed using Claro Walnut. Claro Walnut is very hard and dense. The combination of strength, toughness and durability is not found in any other wood. The wood is traditionally used for high end furniture and many other applications. Table is constructed using old world joinery skills. The top has been hand scraped and spline jointed. The legs have been mortised and pegged. Table has a waterproof and heat-resistant finish. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
5' x 36"
$ 1595.00
(Sold)
Shagbark Hickory Table/ Desk
Table has been constructed using eastern hickory. Shagbark hickory is very hard and dense. The combination os strength, toughness and durability is not found in any other wood. The wood is traditionally used for baseball bats, hammers and many other applications. Table is constructed using old world joinery skills. The top has been hand scraped and spline-jointed. The legs have been mortised and pegged. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish. Table has a hand cut dovetailed drawer. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
60" x 36"
$ 1545.00
60" x 36"
$ 1545.00
Black Cherry Sofa Table
Table was constructed using solid black cherry- no veneers or Para wood was used. The top has been spline-jointed and runs the entire length of each board. The top has been hand-scraped due to all the figure in the wood. The legs are mortised and pegged and do not come apart. Table has a waterproof and heat-resistant finish so it will not leave rings. Table has been signed, numbered and dated. Table is currently going through a color change and will turn a beautiful brick red.
Black cherry (Prunus serotina), also known as wild black cherry, rum cherry and mountain black cherry, is found throughout most of the eastern United States. Most at home in the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and in New York State, it can be found growing on a wide variety of sites: all those except for ones that display extreme wet or dry conditions. Common in the Catskills, black cherry can be seen growing at altitudes up to 3,200 feet and scattered throughout the valleys. Like other species, black cherry tells us something about the history of that forest. Being shade intolerant, it prefers to grow in open sunlight, and its presence tells us of a past disturbance that opened up or cleared the forest of the over-story allowing more sunlight to hit the forest floor. Because disturbances might include windstorm, logging or fire, this cherry is often found growing in areas that were once open pasture, or high up on ridges that are exposed to high winds.
Forest historians are not the only ones who value this species. Native Americans would boil the inner bark to make a concoction to treat colds, headaches, bronchitis, chest pains and the common cough. In fact, cherry extract is still used in commercial cough syrups. The pioneers would mix the cherries with brandy or rum in order to make cherry bounce, which provides a clue to the tree’s lesser-known common name, rum cherry.
It wasn’t until the turn of the century that black cherry wood became desirable by woodworkers and consumers alike. Once considered a poor substitute for mahogany, it is now the most valuable wood products species in North America. Because it draws such a high price, many landowners, foresters and wood products companies spend millions of dollars trying to perpetuate the species.
Sofa Table
60" l x 18" d x 30" T
$ 1095.00
(sold)
Black cherry (Prunus serotina), also known as wild black cherry, rum cherry and mountain black cherry, is found throughout most of the eastern United States. Most at home in the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and in New York State, it can be found growing on a wide variety of sites: all those except for ones that display extreme wet or dry conditions. Common in the Catskills, black cherry can be seen growing at altitudes up to 3,200 feet and scattered throughout the valleys. Like other species, black cherry tells us something about the history of that forest. Being shade intolerant, it prefers to grow in open sunlight, and its presence tells us of a past disturbance that opened up or cleared the forest of the over-story allowing more sunlight to hit the forest floor. Because disturbances might include windstorm, logging or fire, this cherry is often found growing in areas that were once open pasture, or high up on ridges that are exposed to high winds.
Forest historians are not the only ones who value this species. Native Americans would boil the inner bark to make a concoction to treat colds, headaches, bronchitis, chest pains and the common cough. In fact, cherry extract is still used in commercial cough syrups. The pioneers would mix the cherries with brandy or rum in order to make cherry bounce, which provides a clue to the tree’s lesser-known common name, rum cherry.
It wasn’t until the turn of the century that black cherry wood became desirable by woodworkers and consumers alike. Once considered a poor substitute for mahogany, it is now the most valuable wood products species in North America. Because it draws such a high price, many landowners, foresters and wood products companies spend millions of dollars trying to perpetuate the species.
Sofa Table
60" l x 18" d x 30" T
$ 1095.00
(sold)
Sugar Pine Farm Table
Wood is Sugar Pine and came from an old hay barn. Table is constructed using no screws or nails. The table is constructed using mortise and tenon joints. The table has been hand planed. Top has been spline jointed. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated. The barn was constructed in the 1860's in the town of La Grande, OR. Table is yellow tone. Florescent lights changing the color.
Farm Table
9.5 x 42"
$ 2795.00
Farm Table
9.5 x 42"
$ 2795.00
Doug Fir Farm Table
Wood is Douglas Fir and came from an old Saloon. End table is constructed using no screws or nails. All four corners of the drawer are done with hand-cut dovetails. The drawer slides on a sliding dovetail. The table is constructed using mortise and tenon joints. Drawer bottom is solid Doug fir and not plywood. The table has been hand planed. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
Erickson’s Saloon, sometimes called the Working Man’s Club or The Erickson Saloon, was a Portland establishment whose grandeur and notable size—epitomized by the 684-foot self-proclaimed “longest bar in the world” on its central drinking floor—ensured a national reputation that gave its glory years during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries an almost mythological reputation. The saloon’s lasting fame is largely attributable to writer Stewart Holbrook, whose 1954 Esquire article, “Elbow Bending for Giants,” remains the primary source for most writing on the subject. Stories about the saloon have become part of Portland lore and attest to the significance of Erickson’s among the laboring class.
August Erickson immigrated from Finland in the early 1880s. Within a decade, he had established himself as a charitable publican, admired among loggers and laborers and known in those early years for his honesty in business and his commitment to hospitality. Erickson built the first of several eponymous saloons on the block of Second Street and West Burnside in the part of Portland known as the North End.
The 1894 flood was a defining event in establishing the reputation of Erickson’s Saloon. Erickson stocked a barge with liquor and “dancers” outside his submerged bar, and the story is that patrons floated in on everything from a sloop to a log, with some staying until their money ran out.
The saloon Erickson rebuilt after the flood was the setting for the so-called legendary years immortalized by Holbrook, a period roughly dating from the flood of 1894 to a 1913 fire. The structure, rebuilt on a half-block-sized piece of land, had three stories of excess. The cavernous main hall on the first floor was home to the “longest bar” and, according to writer Wayne Curtis, featured a “$5,000 pipe organ,” a free museum, a music stage, and imported oil paintings. The second floor catered to the wealthy elite and featured private card parlors, sedate bars, and a sumptuous Gentlemen’s Grill with tuxedo-clad waiters. The third floor was given over to roofless cubicles known as “cribs” that hosted sex workers and mistresses.
The main hall echoed with the music of a band, the stomping of dancers, and the laughter of the clientele, providing what was for some an irresistible draw. One patron, writing anonymously in 1925 for the Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen’s Four L Bulletin in a memoir titled “Erickson’s: A Logger’s Reverie,” recalled how “loggers and ranchers, railroad men and miners, fisherman and sailors, prospectors, cowboys, Stakey men and stiffs; high and low, adventurers all, they came from everywhere” to revel in the “boisterous and hearty, but often rude spontaneity of rough men [who] had free rein.”
A free “Dainty Lunch” boasted a roast quarter steer, thick-cut bread, steamed clams, strong cheeses, mustards, and pickled fish—a substantial draw for working men. The selection of alcohol included sophisticated cocktails, an exclusive beer brewed by Henry Weinhard at an affordable nickel a pint, and cheap hard liquor that cost a quarter for two shots.
Erickson’s was an economic engine. The saloon employed at least thirty bartenders at the long bar alone, with additional bartenders at the other bars and a number of bouncers, bootblacks, sex workers, fruit sellers, waiters, dancers, musicians, card dealers, and chefs. The bartenders were notable for their meticulous mustaches and hair, as well as their wit, conversational skills, and general good nature. The bouncers were large and ferocious when confronted with those who insisted on breaking the saloon’s few iron-clad rules, among them a prohibition against begging and discussing politics or religion. Sex trafficking was a major part of the business. “At best,” Erickson’s 1925 obituary in the Oregonian noted, “the place August Erickson kept was a brothel, and at its worst it was an inspiration to rage and crime.”
The main clientele at Erickson’s was local, supplemented by tourists who brought in what former bouncer Spider Johnson estimated to be “50 to 500” customers at a time. It was also a center for itinerant laborers and a repository for messages delivered with the assumption that the recipient would eventually end up there. The writer in the Four L Bulletin remembered that the “songs of a dozen tongues” competed with one another in the main hall. The saloon was known as the House of All Nations for its willingness to serve foreigners, Blacks, and other minorities.
Erickson, an alcoholic, became the subject of frequent legal charges and arrests for offenses, including dispute over ownership of the saloon and illegal gambling. By 1906, he had sold a portion of his ownership to Fred Fritz Jr., who owned Fritz’s Saloon and Theater across the street, and J. J. Russell, who ran the Cabaret Grill next door, but he continued to work at the saloon as a manager and mascot, while also opening the Clackamas Tavern on Clackamas Road. After a 1913 fire damaged the saloon, he sold the remainder of his ownership to Fritz and Russell. He spent the rest of his life in penury and died in 1925.
The rebuilding of Erickson’s Saloon coincided with the advent of Oregon’s Prohibition laws in 1915. The bar sold soft drinks and “near beer” and charged for its once-free Dainty Lunch. By the time Prohibition was repealed, the saloon was a shadow of itself. The Fritz family owned the property until the 1960s, and the bar changed ownership multiple times over the years. An establishment with the name of “Erickson’s” operated on Second and Burnside before finally closing as Erickson’s Tavern in 1981.
Innovative Housing redeveloped the site as low-income apartments in the 2000s, using elements of the building’s history that included sections of the bar, a urinal trough, and a line of blue paint marking the height of the 1894 flood. A sign on the building identifies it as “Erickson’s Saloon 1895.”
Farm Table
5' x 36"
$1,550.00
Thick Top
(Sold)
Doug Fir Farm Table
Table is constructed using Douglas Fir. Wood came from and old saloon. Table is constructed using no screws or nails other than what is holding the top down. Base is mortised and pegged and will not come apart. The top has been hand planed and spline jointed-this runs the entire length of each board. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish. Table has been signed, numbered and dated,
Erickson’s Saloon, sometimes called the Working Man’s Club or The Erickson Saloon, was a Portland establishment whose grandeur and notable size—epitomized by the 684-foot self-proclaimed “longest bar in the world” on its central drinking floor—ensured a national reputation that gave its glory years during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries an almost mythological reputation. The saloon’s lasting fame is largely attributable to writer Stewart Holbrook, whose 1954 Esquire article, “Elbow Bending for Giants,” remains the primary source for most writing on the subject. Stories about the saloon have become part of Portland lore and attest to the significance of Erickson’s among the laboring class.
August Erickson immigrated from Finland in the early 1880s. Within a decade, he had established himself as a charitable publican, admired among loggers and laborers and known in those early years for his honesty in business and his commitment to hospitality. Erickson built the first of several eponymous saloons on the block of Second Street and West Burnside in the part of Portland known as the North End.
The 1894 flood was a defining event in establishing the reputation of Erickson’s Saloon. Erickson stocked a barge with liquor and “dancers” outside his submerged bar, and the story is that patrons floated in on everything from a sloop to a log, with some staying until their money ran out.
The saloon Erickson rebuilt after the flood was the setting for the so-called legendary years immortalized by Holbrook, a period roughly dating from the flood of 1894 to a 1913 fire. The structure, rebuilt on a half-block-sized piece of land, had three stories of excess. The cavernous main hall on the first floor was home to the “longest bar” and, according to writer Wayne Curtis, featured a “$5,000 pipe organ,” a free museum, a music stage, and imported oil paintings. The second floor catered to the wealthy elite and featured private card parlors, sedate bars, and a sumptuous Gentlemen’s Grill with tuxedo-clad waiters. The third floor was given over to roofless cubicles known as “cribs” that hosted sex workers and mistresses.
The main hall echoed with the music of a band, the stomping of dancers, and the laughter of the clientele, providing what was for some an irresistible draw. One patron, writing anonymously in 1925 for the Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen’s Four L Bulletin in a memoir titled “Erickson’s: A Logger’s Reverie,” recalled how “loggers and ranchers, railroad men and miners, fisherman and sailors, prospectors, cowboys, Stakey men and stiffs; high and low, adventurers all, they came from everywhere” to revel in the “boisterous and hearty, but often rude spontaneity of rough men [who] had free rein.”
A free “Dainty Lunch” boasted a roast quarter steer, thick-cut bread, steamed clams, strong cheeses, mustards, and pickled fish—a substantial draw for working men. The selection of alcohol included sophisticated cocktails, an exclusive beer brewed by Henry Weinhard at an affordable nickel a pint, and cheap hard liquor that cost a quarter for two shots.
Erickson’s was an economic engine. The saloon employed at least thirty bartenders at the long bar alone, with additional bartenders at the other bars and a number of bouncers, bootblacks, sex workers, fruit sellers, waiters, dancers, musicians, card dealers, and chefs. The bartenders were notable for their meticulous mustaches and hair, as well as their wit, conversational skills, and general good nature. The bouncers were large and ferocious when confronted with those who insisted on breaking the saloon’s few iron-clad rules, among them a prohibition against begging and discussing politics or religion. Sex trafficking was a major part of the business. “At best,” Erickson’s 1925 obituary in the Oregonian noted, “the place August Erickson kept was a brothel, and at its worst it was an inspiration to rage and crime.”
The main clientele at Erickson’s was local, supplemented by tourists who brought in what former bouncer Spider Johnson estimated to be “50 to 500” customers at a time. It was also a center for itinerant laborers and a repository for messages delivered with the assumption that the recipient would eventually end up there. The writer in the Four L Bulletin remembered that the “songs of a dozen tongues” competed with one another in the main hall. The saloon was known as the House of All Nations for its willingness to serve foreigners, Blacks, and other minorities.
Erickson, an alcoholic, became the subject of frequent legal charges and arrests for offenses, including dispute over ownership of the saloon and illegal gambling. By 1906, he had sold a portion of his ownership to Fred Fritz Jr., who owned Fritz’s Saloon and Theater across the street, and J. J. Russell, who ran the Cabaret Grill next door, but he continued to work at the saloon as a manager and mascot, while also opening the Clackamas Tavern on Clackamas Road. After a 1913 fire damaged the saloon, he sold the remainder of his ownership to Fritz and Russell. He spent the rest of his life in penury and died in 1925.
The rebuilding of Erickson’s Saloon coincided with the advent of Oregon’s Prohibition laws in 1915. The bar sold soft drinks and “near beer” and charged for its once-free Dainty Lunch. By the time Prohibition was repealed, the saloon was a shadow of itself. The Fritz family owned the property until the 1960s, and the bar changed ownership multiple times over the years. An establishment with the name of “Erickson’s” operated on Second and Burnside before finally closing as Erickson’s Tavern in 1981.
Innovative Housing redeveloped the site as low-income apartments in the 2000s, using elements of the building’s history that included sections of the bar, a urinal trough, and a line of blue paint marking the height of the 1894 flood. A sign on the building identifies it as “Erickson’s Saloon 1895.”
Farm Table
7' x 42"
1595.00
(Sold)
Thin
Top
Bench Separate
$ 445.00 ea.
(Sold)
American Chestnut Table
Rustic American Chestnut table. Wood is rare- American Chestnut (extinction list). Last piece from this structure.
6' x 42” The top has been spline-jointed and hand planned. The saw marks you see are from a steam saw. The legs are mortised and pegged. Table has been hand planned. It has a waterproof finish and the only care that it requires is a damp cloth its entire life. Table is also heat resistant up to 180 degrees.
Wood is American Chestnut and it comes from an old bank barn that was constructed in the 1740's. This barn is registered under the Maryland Historical Society.
There were once almost 4 million American Chestnut trees in the United States. They were among the largest, tallest and fastest growing trees in the eastern forest. The wood was long-lasting, straight grained and suitable for furniture, fencing and building. The nuts fed billions of birds and animals. It was almost a perfect tree-that is, until it was killed by a blight a century ago. That blight has been called the greatest ecological disaster to strike the world's forests in all of history. A tree that had survived all adversaries for 40 million years had disappeared in 10 years. What was once known as the queen of Eastern America, the American Chestnut is now nearly extinct.
The American chestnut was an economic staple of the original homesteaders in the Appalachian mountains. The wood was light weight , weather resistant, very easy to chop and mill by hand. Colonists used the trees not only for their homes but for fencing, rails and the nuts that they produced. They were known to grow up to 26" in diameter and if your farm had many American Chestnut trees you were considered to be a very wealthy farmer.
It is believed that in 1904 a forester from the Bronx Zoo brought in Asian Chestnut trees to decorate the Zoo. It was in these trees that a blight called Endothia Parasitica was born. The fungus, which was unintentionally brought to America, spread fast. In less than 10 years the American Chestnut was all but extinct. The root bases below the disease are still alive but the saplings that they produce do not live long. Researchers have spent the last 100 years trying to revive the species but to no avail. Our American Chestnuts are now gone.
The structure was destroyed by a 36” snowstorm. It was owned by Peter Leatherman and was known as the Peter Leatherman Homestead. The first known documentation of this structure was the 1850's but other documentation that I have uncovered suggests 1801 by earlier descendants of the Leatherman family.
The Leatherman's were well known descendants of Middletown Maryland. Daniel Leatherman- great, great grandfather of John C Leatherman (Peter Leatherman's great great Grandfather) was the founder of the American branch of the Leatherman family. He was a native of Germany who immigrated to America and settled at Germantown, Pa. He was a member of the German Baptist Church. They were founders of the first church and helped build the church.
Daniel Leatherman (Peter's great grandfather) married and among his children was a son named Peter Leatherman I. Peter Leatherman- great grandfather of John C Leatherman (Grandfather to Peter )was a minister of the German Baptist Church. He was married to Annie Swigard and among their children was a son named Jacob. (Peters' dad) Peter Leatherman (great grandfather) died November 29 1845 and was laid to rest in the graveyard on the home farm. Mr. Leatherman's grandfather Jacob Leatherman (Peters dad) also a minister of the German Baptist Church was a school teacher and afterwards a farmer He was a successful agriculturist and owned a valuable farm in the upper part of the Middletown Valley. (This farm)
Jacob Leatherman was married to Susanna Harp- who was born October 25 1795. Their children are George - Mary born May 23 1828 - Peter born October 27 1831 - Elizabeth born August 26 1834 and Jacob II born June 22 1836. Mrs Leatherman died June 29 1836. On June 25 1837 Jacob Leatherman was married to Catherine Harp, a sister of his first wife They had no children.
Jacob Leatherman was born March 11 1787 and died November 19 1865. He was educated in the public schools of his native district and remained with his father until he was twenty one. Peter Leatherman began farming for himself on one of his farms near Petersville. After four years he removed to a farm near Harmony Md, also the property of his father where he spent the rest of his life. Mr Leatherman was a prosperous farmer and good citizen He owned four valuable farms and a large tract of timber land. Like his father and grandfather and great great grandfather, he was a minister of the German Baptist Church The Leatherman family was represented in the ministry of that denomination continuously for one hundred and fifty years. The Leatherman family was known for running very successful farms.
The Peter Leatherman Farmstead is a good example of the typical farmstead of the 1850’s which has been in continuous agricultural use to the present time , with a traditionally designed dwelling in the Georgian style, and two of the most continuing surviving domestic outbuildings of farms of the period, a summer kitchen and an early 20th century garage and barn. The agricultural group also contains the bank barn, wagon shed/corn crib, and concrete block dairy barn and milk house which are found on many farms established in the 19th century which were adapted to dairy operation in the early 20th century.
Peter Leatherman (1831-1905) was believed to have built the barn. Some records indicate that the farm was established in the early 1700’s by his father Jacob Leatherman. The farm was willed to the descendants of the Leatherman family for several generations.
During the late 19th century, Peter Leatherman owned four farms, of which this complex was the “home farm”. Until the early 1980’s the Leatherman farmstead was owned by its descendants. In all respects, the Leatherman farmstead exemplifies the historical development of many farms in the Middletown Valley, from single family farms in the mid-19th century, through dairy operation in the early 20th century, to residential subdivision in the late 20th century.
American Chestnut Table
6' x 42"
6' x 42” The top has been spline-jointed and hand planned. The saw marks you see are from a steam saw. The legs are mortised and pegged. Table has been hand planned. It has a waterproof finish and the only care that it requires is a damp cloth its entire life. Table is also heat resistant up to 180 degrees.
Wood is American Chestnut and it comes from an old bank barn that was constructed in the 1740's. This barn is registered under the Maryland Historical Society.
There were once almost 4 million American Chestnut trees in the United States. They were among the largest, tallest and fastest growing trees in the eastern forest. The wood was long-lasting, straight grained and suitable for furniture, fencing and building. The nuts fed billions of birds and animals. It was almost a perfect tree-that is, until it was killed by a blight a century ago. That blight has been called the greatest ecological disaster to strike the world's forests in all of history. A tree that had survived all adversaries for 40 million years had disappeared in 10 years. What was once known as the queen of Eastern America, the American Chestnut is now nearly extinct.
The American chestnut was an economic staple of the original homesteaders in the Appalachian mountains. The wood was light weight , weather resistant, very easy to chop and mill by hand. Colonists used the trees not only for their homes but for fencing, rails and the nuts that they produced. They were known to grow up to 26" in diameter and if your farm had many American Chestnut trees you were considered to be a very wealthy farmer.
It is believed that in 1904 a forester from the Bronx Zoo brought in Asian Chestnut trees to decorate the Zoo. It was in these trees that a blight called Endothia Parasitica was born. The fungus, which was unintentionally brought to America, spread fast. In less than 10 years the American Chestnut was all but extinct. The root bases below the disease are still alive but the saplings that they produce do not live long. Researchers have spent the last 100 years trying to revive the species but to no avail. Our American Chestnuts are now gone.
The structure was destroyed by a 36” snowstorm. It was owned by Peter Leatherman and was known as the Peter Leatherman Homestead. The first known documentation of this structure was the 1850's but other documentation that I have uncovered suggests 1801 by earlier descendants of the Leatherman family.
The Leatherman's were well known descendants of Middletown Maryland. Daniel Leatherman- great, great grandfather of John C Leatherman (Peter Leatherman's great great Grandfather) was the founder of the American branch of the Leatherman family. He was a native of Germany who immigrated to America and settled at Germantown, Pa. He was a member of the German Baptist Church. They were founders of the first church and helped build the church.
Daniel Leatherman (Peter's great grandfather) married and among his children was a son named Peter Leatherman I. Peter Leatherman- great grandfather of John C Leatherman (Grandfather to Peter )was a minister of the German Baptist Church. He was married to Annie Swigard and among their children was a son named Jacob. (Peters' dad) Peter Leatherman (great grandfather) died November 29 1845 and was laid to rest in the graveyard on the home farm. Mr. Leatherman's grandfather Jacob Leatherman (Peters dad) also a minister of the German Baptist Church was a school teacher and afterwards a farmer He was a successful agriculturist and owned a valuable farm in the upper part of the Middletown Valley. (This farm)
Jacob Leatherman was married to Susanna Harp- who was born October 25 1795. Their children are George - Mary born May 23 1828 - Peter born October 27 1831 - Elizabeth born August 26 1834 and Jacob II born June 22 1836. Mrs Leatherman died June 29 1836. On June 25 1837 Jacob Leatherman was married to Catherine Harp, a sister of his first wife They had no children.
Jacob Leatherman was born March 11 1787 and died November 19 1865. He was educated in the public schools of his native district and remained with his father until he was twenty one. Peter Leatherman began farming for himself on one of his farms near Petersville. After four years he removed to a farm near Harmony Md, also the property of his father where he spent the rest of his life. Mr Leatherman was a prosperous farmer and good citizen He owned four valuable farms and a large tract of timber land. Like his father and grandfather and great great grandfather, he was a minister of the German Baptist Church The Leatherman family was represented in the ministry of that denomination continuously for one hundred and fifty years. The Leatherman family was known for running very successful farms.
The Peter Leatherman Farmstead is a good example of the typical farmstead of the 1850’s which has been in continuous agricultural use to the present time , with a traditionally designed dwelling in the Georgian style, and two of the most continuing surviving domestic outbuildings of farms of the period, a summer kitchen and an early 20th century garage and barn. The agricultural group also contains the bank barn, wagon shed/corn crib, and concrete block dairy barn and milk house which are found on many farms established in the 19th century which were adapted to dairy operation in the early 20th century.
Peter Leatherman (1831-1905) was believed to have built the barn. Some records indicate that the farm was established in the early 1700’s by his father Jacob Leatherman. The farm was willed to the descendants of the Leatherman family for several generations.
During the late 19th century, Peter Leatherman owned four farms, of which this complex was the “home farm”. Until the early 1980’s the Leatherman farmstead was owned by its descendants. In all respects, the Leatherman farmstead exemplifies the historical development of many farms in the Middletown Valley, from single family farms in the mid-19th century, through dairy operation in the early 20th century, to residential subdivision in the late 20th century.
American Chestnut Table
6' x 42"
Black Cherry Farm table
Table was constructed using solid black cherry- no veneers or Para wood was used. The top has been spline-jointed and runs the entire length of each board. The top has been hand-scraped due to all the figure in the wood. The legs are mortised and pegged and do not come apart. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish so it will not leave rings. Table has been signed, numbered and dated. Table is currently going through a color change and will turn a beautiful brick red.
Black cherry (Prunus serotina), also known as wild black cherry, rum cherry and mountain black cherry, is found throughout most of the eastern United States. Most at home in the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and in New York State, it can be found growing on a wide variety of sites: all those except for ones that display extreme wet or dry conditions. Common in the Catskills, black cherry can be seen growing at altitudes up to 3,200 feet and scattered throughout the valleys. Like other species, black cherry tells us something about the history of that forest. Being shade intolerant, it prefers to grow in open sunlight, and its presence tells us of a past disturbance that opened up or cleared the forest of the over-story allowing more sunlight to hit the forest floor. Because disturbances might include windstorm, logging or fire, this cherry is often found growing in areas that were once open pasture, or high up on ridges that are exposed to high winds.
Forest historians are not the only ones who value this species. Native Americans would boil the inner bark to make a concoction to treat colds, headaches, bronchitis, chest pains and the common cough. In fact, cherry extract is still used in commercial cough syrups. The pioneers would mix the cherries with brandy or rum in order to make cherry bounce, which provides a clue to the tree’s lesser-known common name, rum cherry.
It wasn’t until the turn of the century that black cherry wood became desirable by woodworkers and consumers alike. Once considered a poor substitute for mahogany, it is now the most valuable wood products species in North America. Because it draws such a high price, many landowners, foresters and wood products companies spend millions of dollars trying to perpetuate the species.
Farm Table
6' x 42"
$ 1895.00
Thick Top
(Sold)
Chairs sold separately.
American Chestnut Farm Table
Table is constructed using no screws or nails. The top has been spline-jointed that runs the entire length of each board. The top has been hand-planed. The legs are mortised and pegged and do not come apart. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish so it will not leave rings. Table has been signed, numbered and dated. The saw marks are from a steam saw and not today's fake saw marks. Wood is American Chestnut and is on the extinction list.
Wood came from an old Livery that was built in the 1840's. Building was located in Havre De Grace Maryland. Family has a huge historical significance in history and was involved in the underground railroad. Slaves would cross the river into town and would connect with the Currrier family. They would hide them until nightfall in their home (which had secret passages) and take them down to the ferry in which another of the family owned several large boats.
Another one of the brothers was famous for being the ship captain that brought back John Surratt from Egypt on the Monitor to be tried for the Lincoln Assassination.
Jane Currier of the Currier House B&B graciously shared a handful of the thousands of pieces of papers, receipts and photographs that were found in the house during renovations.
Jane’s Aunt “Honey” lives* in Susquehanna Hills and remembers life at the livery stable. She recalls being told that around 1892 the livery stable was located on Pearl Street. She thinks it was about that time it was moved to Franklin & Union for a short while. Then it was moved to Franklin & Stokes Street where the building once stood.
Jane’s grandfather, O.R. Currier, operated the Havre de Grace Livery Stable until his death in 1939. The livery stabled 36 horses on a permanent basis. Fifteen horses were kept on the second floor with the office and tack room. The balance was kept on the first floor along with the large wagon that was used with the three Clydesdale horses.
Aunt “Honey” remembers that there were two funeral hearses: a gray for younger people pulled by gray horses and a black one for older people pulled by black horses. They also had sleighs and buggies.
Honey also recalls that the hay was kept on the third floor. Now picture this: a pulley system was used to get the hay to the third floor. A horse was tied to the pulley system and had to walk more than half a block away to be able to pull the hay high enough to get it in through the third-floor window.
The livery stable papers can really tell a great deal about the city’s history. Moving loads of raw materials and finished goods to the canals, the wharf and the trains kept O.R. Currier well aware of what was happening in town. Receipts for lumber being delivered would tell when and whose house or building was being constructed.
The large wagon and Clydesdale horses would move heavy loads of building materials and pick up shipments from the Pennsylvania Railroad and also the wharf at the foot of Otsego Street. Tons of sand were being purchased here for delivery to the railroad and ships at the wharf. Another unique fact was that there are many receipts from Texaco, presumably kerosene oil for lamps, etc. since these were dated before automobiles.
Honey remembers that the Vandiver horses were kept at the livery. She also recalls that a large wagon was used to haul Havre de Grace people to Bel Air for jury duty, sporting events or any type of business. It was the only transportation before cars.
O.R. Currier rented out sleighs for races on Union Avenue and the water’s edge when the ice was frozen. Called the Union Avenue Sleigh Races, they were evidently well organized. He also rented buggies and horses to salesmen who came to town on the PA Railroad.
In 1918 the horses, wagons and trappings were all sold to Guilding Nitrate Company. The livery was changed to a gas station and storage company to be prepared for changing times. In the Currier B&B a picture hangs of the first gas pump at the station.
O.R. Currier was also the first chief of the Susquehanna Hose Company. Most likely the horses at the livery made him very important to the fire company. He held that position for fifteen years.
There’s a great deal more to learn from the small pieces of information that Jane Currier shared with me. Consider these receipts:
$1.00 for 9 KWH of electricity used the month of May 1915
$17.15 for City Taxes in 1900 (tax on $2900.00)
10 new horse shoes for a total of $10.00
14925 gals. water consumed from June 27 to Sept 25, 1915 @ 30 cents per thousand gallons = $4.47
A total of $23.20 for carriage repairs and painting from June 24 to Nov. 17, 1915
American Chestnut
There were once almost 4 million American Chestnut trees in the United States. They were among the largest, tallest and fastest growing trees in the eastern forest. The wood was long-lasting, straight grained and suitable for furniture, fencing and building. The nuts fed billions of birds and animals. It was almost a perfect tree-that is, until it was killed by a blight a century ago. That blight has been called the greatest ecological disaster to strike the world's forests in all of history. A tree that had survived all adversaries for 40 million years had disappeared in 10 years. What was once known as the queen of Eastern America, the American Chestnut is now nearly extinct.
The American chestnut was an economic staple of the original homesteaders in the Appalachian Mountains. The wood was light weight, weather resistant, very easy to chop and mill by hand. Colonists used the trees not only for their homes but for fencing, rails and the nuts that they produced. They were known to grow up to 26" in diameter and if your farm had many American Chestnut trees you were considered to be a very wealthy farmer.
It is believed that in 1904 a forester from the Bronx Zoo brought in Asian Chestnut trees to decorate the Zoo. It was in these trees that a blight called Endothia Parasitica was born. The fungus, which was unintentionally brought to America, spread fast. In less than 10 years the American Chestnut was all but extinct. The root bases below the disease are still alive but the saplings that they produce do not live long. Researchers have spent the last 100 years trying to revive the species but to no avail. Our American Chestnuts are now gone.
Farm Table
sold
6' x 40"
$2995.00
Wood is extinct
Thin top
Farm Table
Bench and Chairs
Table is constructed using Douglas Fir. Wood came from and old grain elevator. Table is constructed using no screws or nails other than what is holding the top down. Base is mortised and pegged and will not come apart. The top has been hand planed and spline jointed. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish. Table has been signed, numbered and dated,
Chairs have a patent and contain no screws or nails. Chairs are considered to be ergonomically correct. All joints have been mortised and pegged.
Bench is constructed using no screws or nails. Joints have been mortised and pegged and do not come apart. The bench measures 66" long and fits between the legs of the table. Each piece has been signed, numbered and dated.
Wood came from an old grain elevator that belonged to Primeland Cooperative. Primeland Cooperative was originally formed as Lewiston Grain Growers, Inc. The elevator was created by the merging of several smaller elevator companies and it became the largest grain shipper on the railroad. This grain elevator was built in 1941 out of wood. Several of the grain elevators were moved to form this one so the exact date is unknown. This grain elevator held 165,000 bushels and was dismantled in 2013.
Farm Table
7' x 39"
Thin top
Can be sold separately
Four ladderback chairs and one bench
Chairs have a patent and contain no screws or nails. Chairs are considered to be ergonomically correct. All joints have been mortised and pegged.
Bench is constructed using no screws or nails. Joints have been mortised and pegged and do not come apart. The bench measures 66" long and fits between the legs of the table. Each piece has been signed, numbered and dated.
Wood came from an old grain elevator that belonged to Primeland Cooperative. Primeland Cooperative was originally formed as Lewiston Grain Growers, Inc. The elevator was created by the merging of several smaller elevator companies and it became the largest grain shipper on the railroad. This grain elevator was built in 1941 out of wood. Several of the grain elevators were moved to form this one so the exact date is unknown. This grain elevator held 165,000 bushels and was dismantled in 2013.
Farm Table
7' x 39"
Thin top
Can be sold separately
Four ladderback chairs and one bench
Dresser
CAMERA MAKING IT LOOK MORE RED THAN IT IS.
Wood is Douglas Fir and came from an old Saloon. Dresser is constructed using no screws or nails. All four corners of the drawers are hand cut dovetails. We use no metal in our dressers and use sliding dovetails and box joints on the drawers. The cabinet is constructed using mortise and tenon joints. The dresser is solid wood- we use no plywood or paper backing. The drawer bottoms and backing are also Doug Fir. The back is pegged on like the front not stapled. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
Erickson’s Saloon, sometimes called the Working Man’s Club or The Erickson Saloon, was a Portland establishment whose grandeur and notable size—epitomized by the 684-foot self-proclaimed “longest bar in the world” on its central drinking floor—ensured a national reputation that gave its glory years during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries an almost mythological reputation. The saloon’s lasting fame is largely attributable to writer Stewart Holbrook, whose 1954 Esquire article, “Elbow Bending for Giants,” remains the primary source for most writing on the subject. Stories about the saloon have become part of Portland lore and attest to the significance of Erickson’s among the laboring class.
August Erickson immigrated from Finland in the early 1880s. Within a decade, he had established himself as a charitable publican, admired among loggers and laborers and known in those early years for his honesty in business and his commitment to hospitality. Erickson built the first of several eponymous saloons on the block of Second Street and West Burnside in the part of Portland known as the North End.
The 1894 flood was a defining event in establishing the reputation of Erickson’s Saloon. Erickson stocked a barge with liquor and “dancers” outside his submerged bar, and the story is that patrons floated in on everything from a sloop to a log, with some staying until their money ran out.
The saloon Erickson rebuilt after the flood was the setting for the so-called legendary years immortalized by Holbrook, a period roughly dating from the flood of 1894 to a 1913 fire. The structure, rebuilt on a half-block-sized piece of land, had three stories of excess. The cavernous main hall on the first floor was home to the “longest bar” and, according to writer Wayne Curtis, featured a “$5,000 pipe organ,” a free museum, a music stage, and imported oil paintings. The second floor catered to the wealthy elite and featured private card parlors, sedate bars, and a sumptuous Gentlemen’s Grill with tuxedo-clad waiters. The third floor was given over to roofless cubicles known as “cribs” that hosted sex workers and mistresses.
The main hall echoed with the music of a band, the stomping of dancers, and the laughter of the clientele, providing what was for some an irresistible draw. One patron, writing anonymously in 1925 for the Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen’s Four L Bulletin in a memoir titled “Erickson’s: A Logger’s Reverie,” recalled how “loggers and ranchers, railroad men and miners, fisherman and sailors, prospectors, cowboys, stakey men and stiffs; high and low, adventurers all, they came from everywhere” to revel in the “boisterous and hearty, but often rude spontaneity of rough men [who] had free rein.”
A free “Dainty Lunch” boasted a roast quarter steer, thick-cut bread, steamed clams, strong cheeses, mustards, and pickled fish—a substantial draw for working men. The selection of alcohol included sophisticated cocktails, an exclusive beer brewed by Henry Weinhard at an affordable nickel a pint, and cheap hard liquor that cost a quarter for two shots.
Erickson’s was an economic engine. The saloon employed at least thirty bartenders at the long bar alone, with additional bartenders at the other bars and a number of bouncers, bootblacks, sex workers, fruit sellers, waiters, dancers, musicians, card dealers, and chefs. The bartenders were notable for their meticulous mustaches and hair, as well as their wit, conversational skills, and general good nature. The bouncers were large and ferocious when confronted with those who insisted on breaking the saloon’s few iron-clad rules, among them a prohibition against begging and discussing politics or religion. Sex trafficking was a major part of the business. “At best,” Erickson’s 1925 obituary in the Oregonian noted, “the place August Erickson kept was a brothel, and at its worst it was an inspiration to rage and crime.”
The main clientele at Erickson’s was local, supplemented by tourists who brought in what former bouncer Spider Johnson estimated to be “50 to 500” customers at a time. It was also a center for itinerant laborers and a repository for messages delivered with the assumption that the recipient would eventually end up there. The writer in the Four L Bulletin remembered that the “songs of a dozen tongues” competed with one another in the main hall. The saloon was known as the House of All Nations for its willingness to serve foreigners, Blacks, and other minorities.
Erickson, an alcoholic, became the subject of frequent legal charges and arrests for offenses, including dispute over ownership of the saloon and illegal gambling. By 1906, he had sold a portion of his ownership to Fred Fritz Jr., who owned Fritz’s Saloon and Theater across the street, and J. J. Russell, who ran the Cabaret Grill next door, but he continued to work at the saloon as a manager and mascot, while also opening the Clackamas Tavern on Clackamas Road. After a 1913 fire damaged the saloon, he sold the remainder of his ownership to Fritz and Russell. He spent the rest of his life in penury and died in 1925.
The rebuilding of Erickson’s Saloon coincided with the advent of Oregon’s Prohibition laws in 1915. The bar sold soft drinks and “near beer” and charged for its once-free Dainty Lunch. By the time Prohibition was repealed, the saloon was a shadow of itself. The Fritz family owned the property until the 1960s, and the bar changed ownership multiple times over the years. An establishment with the name of “Erickson’s” operated on Second and Burnside before finally closing as Erickson’s Tavern in 1981.
Innovative Housing redeveloped the site as low-income apartments in the 2000s, using elements of the building’s history that included sections of the bar, a urinal trough, and a line of blue paint marking the height of the 1894 flood. A sign on the building identifies it as “Erickson’s Saloon 1895.”
Dresser
60" w x 36" T x 18" D
$ 2995.00
No screws or nails in the construction
Hand cut dovetailed drawers (all four corners)
Solid wood construction no plywood or veneer
Erickson’s Saloon, sometimes called the Working Man’s Club or The Erickson Saloon, was a Portland establishment whose grandeur and notable size—epitomized by the 684-foot self-proclaimed “longest bar in the world” on its central drinking floor—ensured a national reputation that gave its glory years during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries an almost mythological reputation. The saloon’s lasting fame is largely attributable to writer Stewart Holbrook, whose 1954 Esquire article, “Elbow Bending for Giants,” remains the primary source for most writing on the subject. Stories about the saloon have become part of Portland lore and attest to the significance of Erickson’s among the laboring class.
August Erickson immigrated from Finland in the early 1880s. Within a decade, he had established himself as a charitable publican, admired among loggers and laborers and known in those early years for his honesty in business and his commitment to hospitality. Erickson built the first of several eponymous saloons on the block of Second Street and West Burnside in the part of Portland known as the North End.
The 1894 flood was a defining event in establishing the reputation of Erickson’s Saloon. Erickson stocked a barge with liquor and “dancers” outside his submerged bar, and the story is that patrons floated in on everything from a sloop to a log, with some staying until their money ran out.
The saloon Erickson rebuilt after the flood was the setting for the so-called legendary years immortalized by Holbrook, a period roughly dating from the flood of 1894 to a 1913 fire. The structure, rebuilt on a half-block-sized piece of land, had three stories of excess. The cavernous main hall on the first floor was home to the “longest bar” and, according to writer Wayne Curtis, featured a “$5,000 pipe organ,” a free museum, a music stage, and imported oil paintings. The second floor catered to the wealthy elite and featured private card parlors, sedate bars, and a sumptuous Gentlemen’s Grill with tuxedo-clad waiters. The third floor was given over to roofless cubicles known as “cribs” that hosted sex workers and mistresses.
The main hall echoed with the music of a band, the stomping of dancers, and the laughter of the clientele, providing what was for some an irresistible draw. One patron, writing anonymously in 1925 for the Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen’s Four L Bulletin in a memoir titled “Erickson’s: A Logger’s Reverie,” recalled how “loggers and ranchers, railroad men and miners, fisherman and sailors, prospectors, cowboys, stakey men and stiffs; high and low, adventurers all, they came from everywhere” to revel in the “boisterous and hearty, but often rude spontaneity of rough men [who] had free rein.”
A free “Dainty Lunch” boasted a roast quarter steer, thick-cut bread, steamed clams, strong cheeses, mustards, and pickled fish—a substantial draw for working men. The selection of alcohol included sophisticated cocktails, an exclusive beer brewed by Henry Weinhard at an affordable nickel a pint, and cheap hard liquor that cost a quarter for two shots.
Erickson’s was an economic engine. The saloon employed at least thirty bartenders at the long bar alone, with additional bartenders at the other bars and a number of bouncers, bootblacks, sex workers, fruit sellers, waiters, dancers, musicians, card dealers, and chefs. The bartenders were notable for their meticulous mustaches and hair, as well as their wit, conversational skills, and general good nature. The bouncers were large and ferocious when confronted with those who insisted on breaking the saloon’s few iron-clad rules, among them a prohibition against begging and discussing politics or religion. Sex trafficking was a major part of the business. “At best,” Erickson’s 1925 obituary in the Oregonian noted, “the place August Erickson kept was a brothel, and at its worst it was an inspiration to rage and crime.”
The main clientele at Erickson’s was local, supplemented by tourists who brought in what former bouncer Spider Johnson estimated to be “50 to 500” customers at a time. It was also a center for itinerant laborers and a repository for messages delivered with the assumption that the recipient would eventually end up there. The writer in the Four L Bulletin remembered that the “songs of a dozen tongues” competed with one another in the main hall. The saloon was known as the House of All Nations for its willingness to serve foreigners, Blacks, and other minorities.
Erickson, an alcoholic, became the subject of frequent legal charges and arrests for offenses, including dispute over ownership of the saloon and illegal gambling. By 1906, he had sold a portion of his ownership to Fred Fritz Jr., who owned Fritz’s Saloon and Theater across the street, and J. J. Russell, who ran the Cabaret Grill next door, but he continued to work at the saloon as a manager and mascot, while also opening the Clackamas Tavern on Clackamas Road. After a 1913 fire damaged the saloon, he sold the remainder of his ownership to Fritz and Russell. He spent the rest of his life in penury and died in 1925.
The rebuilding of Erickson’s Saloon coincided with the advent of Oregon’s Prohibition laws in 1915. The bar sold soft drinks and “near beer” and charged for its once-free Dainty Lunch. By the time Prohibition was repealed, the saloon was a shadow of itself. The Fritz family owned the property until the 1960s, and the bar changed ownership multiple times over the years. An establishment with the name of “Erickson’s” operated on Second and Burnside before finally closing as Erickson’s Tavern in 1981.
Innovative Housing redeveloped the site as low-income apartments in the 2000s, using elements of the building’s history that included sections of the bar, a urinal trough, and a line of blue paint marking the height of the 1894 flood. A sign on the building identifies it as “Erickson’s Saloon 1895.”
Dresser
60" w x 36" T x 18" D
$ 2995.00
No screws or nails in the construction
Hand cut dovetailed drawers (all four corners)
Solid wood construction no plywood or veneer
End Table
(Can go with the dresser)
Wood is Douglas Fir and came from an old Saloon. End table is constructed using no screws or nails. All four corners of the drawer are done with hand-cut dovetails. The drawer slides on a sliding dovetail. The table is constructed using mortise and tenon joints. Drawer bottom is solid Doug fir and not plywood. The table has been hand planed. Table has a waterproof and heat resistant finish. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
Erickson’s Saloon, sometimes called the Working Man’s Club or The Erickson Saloon, was a Portland establishment whose grandeur and notable size—epitomized by the 684-foot self-proclaimed “longest bar in the world” on its central drinking floor—ensured a national reputation that gave its glory years during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries an almost mythological reputation. The saloon’s lasting fame is largely attributable to writer Stewart Holbrook, whose 1954 Esquire article, “Elbow Bending for Giants,” remains the primary source for most writing on the subject. Stories about the saloon have become part of Portland lore and attest to the significance of Erickson’s among the laboring class.
August Erickson immigrated from Finland in the early 1880s. Within a decade, he had established himself as a charitable publican, admired among loggers and laborers and known in those early years for his honesty in business and his commitment to hospitality. Erickson built the first of several eponymous saloons on the block of Second Street and West Burnside in the part of Portland known as the North End.
The 1894 flood was a defining event in establishing the reputation of Erickson’s Saloon. Erickson stocked a barge with liquor and “dancers” outside his submerged bar, and the story is that patrons floated in on everything from a sloop to a log, with some staying until their money ran out.
The saloon Erickson rebuilt after the flood was the setting for the so-called legendary years immortalized by Holbrook, a period roughly dating from the flood of 1894 to a 1913 fire. The structure, rebuilt on a half-block-sized piece of land, had three stories of excess. The cavernous main hall on the first floor was home to the “longest bar” and, according to writer Wayne Curtis, featured a “$5,000 pipe organ,” a free museum, a music stage, and imported oil paintings. The second floor catered to the wealthy elite and featured private card parlors, sedate bars, and a sumptuous Gentlemen’s Grill with tuxedo-clad waiters. The third floor was given over to roofless cubicles known as “cribs” that hosted sex workers and mistresses.
The main hall echoed with the music of a band, the stomping of dancers, and the laughter of the clientele, providing what was for some an irresistible draw. One patron, writing anonymously in 1925 for the Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen’s Four L Bulletin in a memoir titled “Erickson’s: A Logger’s Reverie,” recalled how “loggers and ranchers, railroad men and miners, fisherman and sailors, prospectors, cowboys, stakey men and stiffs; high and low, adventurers all, they came from everywhere” to revel in the “boisterous and hearty, but often rude spontaneity of rough men [who] had free rein.”
A free “Dainty Lunch” boasted a roast quarter steer, thick-cut bread, steamed clams, strong cheeses, mustards, and pickled fish—a substantial draw for working men. The selection of alcohol included sophisticated cocktails, an exclusive beer brewed by Henry Weinhard at an affordable nickel a pint, and cheap hard liquor that cost a quarter for two shots.
Erickson’s was an economic engine. The saloon employed at least thirty bartenders at the long bar alone, with additional bartenders at the other bars and a number of bouncers, bootblacks, sex workers, fruit sellers, waiters, dancers, musicians, card dealers, and chefs. The bartenders were notable for their meticulous mustaches and hair, as well as their wit, conversational skills, and general good nature. The bouncers were large and ferocious when confronted with those who insisted on breaking the saloon’s few iron-clad rules, among them a prohibition against begging and discussing politics or religion. Sex trafficking was a major part of the business. “At best,” Erickson’s 1925 obituary in the Oregonian noted, “the place August Erickson kept was a brothel, and at its worst it was an inspiration to rage and crime.”
The main clientele at Erickson’s was local, supplemented by tourists who brought in what former bouncer Spider Johnson estimated to be “50 to 500” customers at a time. It was also a center for itinerant laborers and a repository for messages delivered with the assumption that the recipient would eventually end up there. The writer in the Four L Bulletin remembered that the “songs of a dozen tongues” competed with one another in the main hall. The saloon was known as the House of All Nations for its willingness to serve foreigners, Blacks, and other minorities.
Erickson, an alcoholic, became the subject of frequent legal charges and arrests for offenses, including dispute over ownership of the saloon and illegal gambling. By 1906, he had sold a portion of his ownership to Fred Fritz Jr., who owned Fritz’s Saloon and Theater across the street, and J. J. Russell, who ran the Cabaret Grill next door, but he continued to work at the saloon as a manager and mascot, while also opening the Clackamas Tavern on Clackamas Road. After a 1913 fire damaged the saloon, he sold the remainder of his ownership to Fritz and Russell. He spent the rest of his life in penury and died in 1925.
The rebuilding of Erickson’s Saloon coincided with the advent of Oregon’s Prohibition laws in 1915. The bar sold soft drinks and “near beer” and charged for its once-free Dainty Lunch. By the time Prohibition was repealed, the saloon was a shadow of itself. The Fritz family owned the property until the 1960s, and the bar changed ownership multiple times over the years. An establishment with the name of “Erickson’s” operated on Second and Burnside before finally closing as Erickson’s Tavern in 1981.
Innovative Housing redeveloped the site as low-income apartments in the 2000s, using elements of the building’s history that included sections of the bar, a urinal trough, and a line of blue paint marking the height of the 1894 flood. A sign on the building identifies it as “Erickson’s Saloon 1895.”
End table/bedside table
20" x 20" x 26" T
$ 895.00
(Sold)
Bedside or End table
(can go with dresser and end table pictured above)
Wood is Douglas Fir and came from an old Saloon. End table is constructed using no screws or nails. All four corners of the drawer are done with hand-cut dovetails. The drawer slides on a sliding dovetail. The cabinet is constructed using mortise and tenon joints. Drawer bottom is solid Doug fir and not plywood. The cabinet has been hand planed. Cabinet has a waterproof and heat resistant finish. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.
Erickson’s Saloon, sometimes called the Working Man’s Club or The Erickson Saloon, was a Portland establishment whose grandeur and notable size—epitomized by the 684-foot self-proclaimed “longest bar in the world” on its central drinking floor—ensured a national reputation that gave its glory years during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries an almost mythological reputation. The saloon’s lasting fame is largely attributable to writer Stewart Holbrook, whose 1954 Esquire article, “Elbow Bending for Giants,” remains the primary source for most writing on the subject. Stories about the saloon have become part of Portland lore and attest to the significance of Erickson’s among the laboring class.
August Erickson immigrated from Finland in the early 1880s. Within a decade, he had established himself as a charitable publican, admired among loggers and laborers and known in those early years for his honesty in business and his commitment to hospitality. Erickson built the first of several eponymous saloons on the block of Second Street and West Burnside in the part of Portland known as the North End.
The 1894 flood was a defining event in establishing the reputation of Erickson’s Saloon. Erickson stocked a barge with liquor and “dancers” outside his submerged bar, and the story is that patrons floated in on everything from a sloop to a log, with some staying until their money ran out.
The saloon Erickson rebuilt after the flood was the setting for the so-called legendary years immortalized by Holbrook, a period roughly dating from the flood of 1894 to a 1913 fire. The structure, rebuilt on a half-block-sized piece of land, had three stories of excess. The cavernous main hall on the first floor was home to the “longest bar” and, according to writer Wayne Curtis, featured a “$5,000 pipe organ,” a free museum, a music stage, and imported oil paintings. The second floor catered to the wealthy elite and featured private card parlors, sedate bars, and a sumptuous Gentlemen’s Grill with tuxedo-clad waiters. The third floor was given over to roofless cubicles known as “cribs” that hosted sex workers and mistresses.
The main hall echoed with the music of a band, the stomping of dancers, and the laughter of the clientele, providing what was for some an irresistible draw. One patron, writing anonymously in 1925 for the Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen’s Four L Bulletin in a memoir titled “Erickson’s: A Logger’s Reverie,” recalled how “loggers and ranchers, railroad men and miners, fisherman and sailors, prospectors, cowboys, stakey men and stiffs; high and low, adventurers all, they came from everywhere” to revel in the “boisterous and hearty, but often rude spontaneity of rough men [who] had free rein.”
A free “Dainty Lunch” boasted a roast quarter steer, thick-cut bread, steamed clams, strong cheeses, mustards, and pickled fish—a substantial draw for working men. The selection of alcohol included sophisticated cocktails, an exclusive beer brewed by Henry Weinhard at an affordable nickel a pint, and cheap hard liquor that cost a quarter for two shots.
Erickson’s was an economic engine. The saloon employed at least thirty bartenders at the long bar alone, with additional bartenders at the other bars and a number of bouncers, bootblacks, sex workers, fruit sellers, waiters, dancers, musicians, card dealers, and chefs. The bartenders were notable for their meticulous mustaches and hair, as well as their wit, conversational skills, and general good nature. The bouncers were large and ferocious when confronted with those who insisted on breaking the saloon’s few iron-clad rules, among them a prohibition against begging and discussing politics or religion. Sex trafficking was a major part of the business. “At best,” Erickson’s 1925 obituary in the Oregonian noted, “the place August Erickson kept was a brothel, and at its worst it was an inspiration to rage and crime.”
The main clientele at Erickson’s was local, supplemented by tourists who brought in what former bouncer Spider Johnson estimated to be “50 to 500” customers at a time. It was also a center for itinerant laborers and a repository for messages delivered with the assumption that the recipient would eventually end up there. The writer in the Four L Bulletin remembered that the “songs of a dozen tongues” competed with one another in the main hall. The saloon was known as the House of All Nations for its willingness to serve foreigners, Blacks, and other minorities.
Erickson, an alcoholic, became the subject of frequent legal charges and arrests for offenses, including dispute over ownership of the saloon and illegal gambling. By 1906, he had sold a portion of his ownership to Fred Fritz Jr., who owned Fritz’s Saloon and Theater across the street, and J. J. Russell, who ran the Cabaret Grill next door, but he continued to work at the saloon as a manager and mascot, while also opening the Clackamas Tavern on Clackamas Road. After a 1913 fire damaged the saloon, he sold the remainder of his ownership to Fritz and Russell. He spent the rest of his life in penury and died in 1925.
The rebuilding of Erickson’s Saloon coincided with the advent of Oregon’s Prohibition laws in 1915. The bar sold soft drinks and “near beer” and charged for its once-free Dainty Lunch. By the time Prohibition was repealed, the saloon was a shadow of itself. The Fritz family owned the property until the 1960s, and the bar changed ownership multiple times over the years. An establishment with the name of “Erickson’s” operated on Second and Burnside before finally closing as Erickson’s Tavern in 1981.
Innovative Housing redeveloped the site as low-income apartments in the 2000s, using elements of the building’s history that included sections of the bar, a urinal trough, and a line of blue paint marking the height of the 1894 flood. A sign on the building identifies it as “Erickson’s Saloon 1895.”
End table/bedside table
20" x 20" x 26" T
8" Drawer
$ 1195.00
Erickson’s Saloon, sometimes called the Working Man’s Club or The Erickson Saloon, was a Portland establishment whose grandeur and notable size—epitomized by the 684-foot self-proclaimed “longest bar in the world” on its central drinking floor—ensured a national reputation that gave its glory years during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries an almost mythological reputation. The saloon’s lasting fame is largely attributable to writer Stewart Holbrook, whose 1954 Esquire article, “Elbow Bending for Giants,” remains the primary source for most writing on the subject. Stories about the saloon have become part of Portland lore and attest to the significance of Erickson’s among the laboring class.
August Erickson immigrated from Finland in the early 1880s. Within a decade, he had established himself as a charitable publican, admired among loggers and laborers and known in those early years for his honesty in business and his commitment to hospitality. Erickson built the first of several eponymous saloons on the block of Second Street and West Burnside in the part of Portland known as the North End.
The 1894 flood was a defining event in establishing the reputation of Erickson’s Saloon. Erickson stocked a barge with liquor and “dancers” outside his submerged bar, and the story is that patrons floated in on everything from a sloop to a log, with some staying until their money ran out.
The saloon Erickson rebuilt after the flood was the setting for the so-called legendary years immortalized by Holbrook, a period roughly dating from the flood of 1894 to a 1913 fire. The structure, rebuilt on a half-block-sized piece of land, had three stories of excess. The cavernous main hall on the first floor was home to the “longest bar” and, according to writer Wayne Curtis, featured a “$5,000 pipe organ,” a free museum, a music stage, and imported oil paintings. The second floor catered to the wealthy elite and featured private card parlors, sedate bars, and a sumptuous Gentlemen’s Grill with tuxedo-clad waiters. The third floor was given over to roofless cubicles known as “cribs” that hosted sex workers and mistresses.
The main hall echoed with the music of a band, the stomping of dancers, and the laughter of the clientele, providing what was for some an irresistible draw. One patron, writing anonymously in 1925 for the Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen’s Four L Bulletin in a memoir titled “Erickson’s: A Logger’s Reverie,” recalled how “loggers and ranchers, railroad men and miners, fisherman and sailors, prospectors, cowboys, stakey men and stiffs; high and low, adventurers all, they came from everywhere” to revel in the “boisterous and hearty, but often rude spontaneity of rough men [who] had free rein.”
A free “Dainty Lunch” boasted a roast quarter steer, thick-cut bread, steamed clams, strong cheeses, mustards, and pickled fish—a substantial draw for working men. The selection of alcohol included sophisticated cocktails, an exclusive beer brewed by Henry Weinhard at an affordable nickel a pint, and cheap hard liquor that cost a quarter for two shots.
Erickson’s was an economic engine. The saloon employed at least thirty bartenders at the long bar alone, with additional bartenders at the other bars and a number of bouncers, bootblacks, sex workers, fruit sellers, waiters, dancers, musicians, card dealers, and chefs. The bartenders were notable for their meticulous mustaches and hair, as well as their wit, conversational skills, and general good nature. The bouncers were large and ferocious when confronted with those who insisted on breaking the saloon’s few iron-clad rules, among them a prohibition against begging and discussing politics or religion. Sex trafficking was a major part of the business. “At best,” Erickson’s 1925 obituary in the Oregonian noted, “the place August Erickson kept was a brothel, and at its worst it was an inspiration to rage and crime.”
The main clientele at Erickson’s was local, supplemented by tourists who brought in what former bouncer Spider Johnson estimated to be “50 to 500” customers at a time. It was also a center for itinerant laborers and a repository for messages delivered with the assumption that the recipient would eventually end up there. The writer in the Four L Bulletin remembered that the “songs of a dozen tongues” competed with one another in the main hall. The saloon was known as the House of All Nations for its willingness to serve foreigners, Blacks, and other minorities.
Erickson, an alcoholic, became the subject of frequent legal charges and arrests for offenses, including dispute over ownership of the saloon and illegal gambling. By 1906, he had sold a portion of his ownership to Fred Fritz Jr., who owned Fritz’s Saloon and Theater across the street, and J. J. Russell, who ran the Cabaret Grill next door, but he continued to work at the saloon as a manager and mascot, while also opening the Clackamas Tavern on Clackamas Road. After a 1913 fire damaged the saloon, he sold the remainder of his ownership to Fritz and Russell. He spent the rest of his life in penury and died in 1925.
The rebuilding of Erickson’s Saloon coincided with the advent of Oregon’s Prohibition laws in 1915. The bar sold soft drinks and “near beer” and charged for its once-free Dainty Lunch. By the time Prohibition was repealed, the saloon was a shadow of itself. The Fritz family owned the property until the 1960s, and the bar changed ownership multiple times over the years. An establishment with the name of “Erickson’s” operated on Second and Burnside before finally closing as Erickson’s Tavern in 1981.
Innovative Housing redeveloped the site as low-income apartments in the 2000s, using elements of the building’s history that included sections of the bar, a urinal trough, and a line of blue paint marking the height of the 1894 flood. A sign on the building identifies it as “Erickson’s Saloon 1895.”
End table/bedside table
20" x 20" x 26" T
8" Drawer
$ 1195.00