Historic Hood River
Blythe Family
8-28-2013
Notes
This is a nice image to follow yesterday’s 1866 view of Samuel Blythe. Here we see him almost 30 years later, settled down as a family man in Hood River. This 1894 Blythe family portrait was taken in front of their house on Cascade. According to the notes on the photo, he purchased a small tract of 22 acres in 1877 while still a resident of Portland. In March 1878 they removed to Hood River and built this house. This was before the OR&N railroad was completed, so all travel was by riverboat.
l.e.
Everything by riverboat. Curtains, bricks, lumber, wagons, animals, fruit trees, furniture.
Since the ground looks flat, would this have been out at the west end of Cascade?
Looks like a comfortable home. Is that a wooden gutter pipe at the left corner of the house?
charlott
Children in the back are Clara and Edward. Just a very good over all photo of the era and what made it up.
Charlott
I think this has to be the side of the house with the actual front facing right. I don’t see anything to indicate what one would call a front door. It couldn’t have been too far out the west end of Cascade, as settled portion didn’t go out very far in that time frame.
Since there is a fence between where they are and the house, I am wondering if this might not have been where they kept the horse, with some sort of small barn structure out of the photo.
It appears they had a neighbor, as think that is the top of another house behind.
longshot
Looks neatly built, wonder if the house were a kit home produced by a local mill? Everything precut to lessen the hand work that needed to be done on site?
Arthur
I believe this is the house at "Twin Oaks Fruit Farm," a 44 acre property which included orchards and this residence. It was west of the city along the State Road, but I haven’t been able to find the exact location. I’m sure it’s in the county records.
l.e.
I hope this link works. Here is a 1933 Metsker Map which shows the S.F. Blythe land east of the Col. Gorge Hotel. East of Frankton School. Maybe where all of the construction is going on right now.
http://www.historicmapworks.com/Map/US/1314922/Page+016+++Township+3+N++Range+10+E+++Hood+River++Clifton++Ruthton++Sonny/Hood+River+County+1931/Oregon/
l.e.
A snip from a 1915 HR Glacier article. There evidently was a spring on the property.
Mr. Blythe, adjutant of Canby Post, is past commander of the Department of Oregon, G.A.R. He has been present at numerous national encampments of the Grand Army. To the local old soldiers and the early pioneers Mr. Blythe is known as Sam. Let a veteran get sick or find himself in need and a message to Twin Oaks gets a quick response. Twin Oaks is such a novelty in the Hood River valley that it has become the mecca for numerous local people, and visitors to the valley often journey there to witness the pleasing pastoral scenes. While Mr. Blythe has a productive orchard, he has left much of his estate in a natural condition. Giant oaks stand in the meadows. Indeed, there are oaks rearing themselves on every corner of the farm, Their foliage shades the deep, cool spring, the source of the domestic water supply. The farm name originated from two oaks, as nearly alike as nature could make them, that grew side by side in front of the pioneer home. This old building is now used for a storehouse. Mr. Blythe has built a handsome and commodious new residence among his oak trees. With the stores from their gardens in cellar and garret, with their time taken up in the care of a number of livestock and their poultry, Mr. Blythe and his wife are spending a happy evening time of life.
charlott
Isn’t Twin Oaks on Belmont?
Arthur
I don’t know if that is the same "Twin Oaks." We’ll need to do some more research in the county records. All the descriptions I’ve seen of Blythe’s "Twin Oaks" say it was out on Cascade or the old State Road, west of town.
Charlott
I went and looked and the place I thought was Twin Oaks is Cluster Oaks. Something I also noticed in this photo the strong resemblance of Blythe and General John Bell Hood of Civil War fame.
l.e.
Charlott, yesterday I drove up Rand St. thinking maybe Twin Oaks was on the west side of Rand just south of Little Bit Ranch. I couldn’t tell if there was a spring in that area or not.
l.e.
I think the Blythe Twin Oaks must have been just east of the Stonehedge Restaurant and Cliff Lodge.
On page 32 of this Historic Register for Cliff Lodge is a 1931 map showing the placement of Cliff Lodge. The adjoining property on the east is S.F. Blythe.
http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NRHP/Text/00000445.pdf
Also, to the east is Adams Paradise Acres and Watson Addition. Dr. Adams purchased his farm from Watson. As did S. F. Blythe.
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ormultno/Stories/blythe.htm
I think Watson purchased the original Jenkins homestead. The DeHart home is also in this area. The land for Cliff Lodge was purchased from Ella DeHart.
Bill P.
The Dehart home is the same as Cliff Lodge. It was accessed by a straight road in from the Columbia River Highway where Exit 62 is today. The entrance had a very handsome rock wall.
Bill P.
David
Where they related to William Jefferson Blythe? Known to most of us as William (Bill J. Clinton)