An impressive 19th-century home that was one of the few surviving Oregon Trail homes in Washington County was demolished just days before its future was to be discussed at a town council meeting.
Preservationists had fought to preserve the historic structure, but developers took advantage of the long holiday weekend to tear down the house before a formal decision could be made on how to save it.
The Wilkes House was demolished Friday to make way for a new water treatment plant being built to support the proposed 30-acre Sunset View residential and commercial development on the West Banks.
The historical society and the Friends of the Wilkes House had requested that the water treatment plant be built elsewhere so that the historic house and the old growth trees surrounding the property could be preserved.
An impressive 1870s home, and one of Washington County’s few surviving Oregon Trail homes, was demolished days before its future was to be discussed at a town council meeting.
The Wilkes House was torn down Friday to make way for a new water treatment plant.
The water treatment plant is not expected to be built for another five to eight years.
The owners, Lone Oak Land and Investment Company and Wolverine Financial, had also offered to give the farmhouse to the Banks Historical Society for relocation.
“It’s heartbreaking to see how quickly 150 years of Oregon Trail pioneer heritage can be torn down without immediate need,” Jennifer Allen Newton, a volunteer with the Banks Historical Society, told Oregon Live.
Newton said he had hoped the one-acre property could be saved, but instead there was nothing he could do but watch as a bulldozer razed the 154-year-old, two-story structure.
“None of this was supposed to happen today. The city doesn’t take possession of the house for months. The water treatment plant isn’t scheduled to be built for another five to eight years,” he said. “On July 3, we got media attention; the owners applied for a demolition permit on July 3. And they demolished the house on July 5. That’s incredibly fast.
“All we wanted was to put plans on hold until we could get all the stakeholders together to discuss how the city could use this property when it takes ownership of it. This could have been stopped if the stakeholders wanted it to be. Instead of taking responsibility, everyone is diverting attention and pointing fingers, and over 150 years of Oregon Trail pioneer history is now a pile of rubble,” Newton told the Times. Beaverton Valley Times.
The preservation group did not outright oppose the new development known as the West Side Development project, but wanted the Wilkes House property left intact.
A bulldozer razed the two-story, 154-year-old structure on Friday.
The driveway leading to the house was cordoned off while demolition took place.
The house had stood for 154 years when it was finally demolished on Friday.
There was hope that some of the old trees surrounding the property could also be saved.
The house was run down from the outside and needed some maintenance.
Here you can see one of the bathrooms in the historic house.
The interior of the house was far less historic, with garish wallpaper and linoleum.
Last year, the Banks Historical Society paid $900 for an inspection to ensure the Wilkes House was structurally sound.
In 1845, the Wilkes family set out west along the Oregon Trail. According to Newton, author of the history book Banks: A Town on the Move, Peyton and Anna Wilkes are considered to be the first permanent European-American settlers in the Banks area.
“The Wilkes family lived in harmony with the Atfalati people,” Newton said, based on oral histories and Native American artifacts found in the archaeological survey.
Jabez Wilkes, son of Peyton and Anna, lived in the family’s log cabin until the early 1870s, when he built the gable-roofed house.
Last month, the Friends of Wilkes House launched the Save the Wilkes House campaign on March 11. GoFundMeraising $3,000 with the goal of using the money to preserve the historic site as a city park, cultural community center and museum.
Preservationists had fought to preserve the historic structure, but developers used the long holiday weekend to tear down the house.
The house was demolished before a formal decision could be made on its preservation.
The Wilkes House, built in the early 1870s, is believed to be one of the oldest pioneer buildings built on the site of Banks, Oregon.
Members of the demolition crew are seen at the site on Friday.
The property’s owners have contracted to sell the land to residential developer David Weekley Homes, including deeding the Wilkes House property to the city.
The Banks City Council was even expected to discuss the Wilkes House issue at a meeting next Tuesday, but that is no longer debatable.
“The city does not own the property or the Wilkes House and will not own the property until the west side developer satisfies certain conditions in its Development Agreement and transfers the property to the city,” Mayor Stephanie Jones said in a statement Wednesday.
“As far as we know, the owner of the property offered to give the structure to the local historical society free of charge provided they moved the building to another location. To our knowledge, that has not happened.”
In 1845, the Wilkes family trekked west along the Oregon Trail. Peyton and Anna Wilkes are considered to be the first permanent European American settlers on the Banks.
The Historical Society hoped that the house could be turned into a museum and the land around it turned into a park.
The house can be seen shortly before it was finally demolished forever.
The house stood for over 150 years and was demolished within hours.
Nicole Possert, executive director of Restore Oregon, a statewide preservation organization, lamented the home’s eventual destruction.
“What a tragic day of loss for all of Oregon and our collective heritage,” Possert said Friday. The Oregonian.
‘This property represents many layers of history and heritage, from the Atfalati tribe of the Kalapuya people to the pioneer-era settlers who founded the Banks community. Demolition over the long Fourth of July holiday weekend was unnecessary when the City Council had planned a work session next Tuesday to potentially work together on a long-term solution.’
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