Historic Preservation Month

MAY 2024 Historic Preservation Month
This year's theme is Trails Through Time

Some events require registration, all are free. KEEP CHECKING BACK TO THIS WEBSITE FOR UPDATES OR CHECK THE VISIT CORVALLIS OR ALBANY VISITORS WEBSITES.
This events schedule is a collaboration between the Benton County and Corvallis Historic Resources Commissions, the Albany Heritage Commission, and PreservationWORKS. All events are operated by volunteers – please thank them for their service. Benton County and Corvallis will be celebrating our volunteers at our annual ceremony, which takes place on May 30th at the LaSelles Stewart Center on OSU campus this year.

In addition to the events planned for the month of May, the Benton County Historic Resources Commission is hosting a number of events all year long! Stay informed and participate by visiting their website. Benton County Historic Resources Commission - Historic Preservation Month - Benton County Community Development, Oregon (bentoncountyor.gov)

THE CALENDAR FOR THE MONTH OF MAY

April 26th - 10:30 AM BUILDING INFRASTRUCTURE IN BENTON COUNTY

Lecturer: William G. Robbins
Location: Corvallis Museum, 411 SW 2nd St, Corvallis

In preparation for Historic Preservation Month, retired Emeritus Distinguished Professor of History and accomplished author William G. Robbins will uncover what building infrastructure in Benton County looked like as it grew. Additionally, Mr. Robbins’ new book, Benton’s Story: An Oregon County History is now available in the Konick Family Museum Store at the Corvallis Museum, and he will be available for signing after his lecture.

May 2nd - 4:00 PM ALIVE IN THE MARGINS WALKING TOUR
Tour Guide: Jema Patterson
Meeting Location: Corvallis Museum, 411 SW 2nd St, Corvallis

The often-overlooked narratives of women, queerfolk, and people of color have shaped and enriched the tapestry of history. Come listen to remarkable stories of individuals whose struggles, triumphs, and contributions defied societal norms and odds to leave a mark on the course of history.

May 3rd - 4:30 PM to 7:00 PM PRESERVING YOUR FAMILY PHOTOS
Location: Albany Regional Museum

Learn from our very own Collections & Exhibits Manager, Amy Bozorth, how to preserve your family photos using our scanners! You can even help to contribute to our digital photo collection to preserve Albany’s memories for generations to come. This event is free to attend, and admissions to the museum is free all day on 5/03!

Please see below for how to participate:

Bring in no more than 10 photos that are 8”x10” or smaller. The photos must be loose photos to fit in our scanners.
Bring in a USB or portable hard drive to save your digital copies to, we cannot send your photos to you.
If your photo is related to Albany, it can be added to our digital collection with your permission!

May 4th - 11:00 AM TALKS ON ADAIR HISTORY

Lecturers: Three Adair Living History board members
Meeting Location: Santiam Christian High School, Maps Room, Adair Village

We regret that our scheduled presenter, Siletz Tribal member Robert Kentta, will not be able to join us as advertised. Instead, three Adair Living History board members will give talks on Camp Adair, the Adair Air Force Station, and what Adair Living History will be doing in the next couple of years, which is exciting and just a little daunting

May 7th - 6:00 PM FIRST AVENUE HISTORY WALKING TOUR, ALBANY

Meeting Location: Burkhart Square (Next to the Albany Civic Theater), 101 SE 1st Ave, Albany

Join this walking tour of 1st Avenue to learn about the history of the buildings and the businesses that have occupied them over the past 150 years. The tour starts promptly at 6 PM and will be approximately 1 hour in length. While the tour is free, there is a suggested $5 donation per person, to benefit the Monteith Historical Society.

May 8th - 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM HISTORIC WINDOWS AND DOORS? OH MY!
Location: Albany Regional Museum

Join Chris Gustafson, owner of Vintage Window Restoration LLC, in a conversation about a niche business adventure, perspective of the historic preservation trades industry, and of course, no shortage of window jargon and jokes. Come prepared for a presentation, show and tell items followed with a Q&A. History Bites is free to attend. Admission to exhibits is now fee based, but always free for members! Light refreshments provided.

6:00 PM SECOND AVENUE HISTORY WALKING TOUR, ALBANY

Meeting Location: Burkhart Square (Next to the Albany Civic Theater), 101 SE 1st Ave, Albany

Join this walking tour of 2nd Avenue to learn about the history of the buildings and the businesses that have occupied them over the past 150 years. The tour starts promptly at 6 PM and will be approximately 1 hour in length. While the tour is free, there is a suggested $5 donation per person, to benefit the Monteith Historical Society.

May 9th - 3:30 PM SOUTH CENTRAL PARK NEIGHBORHOOD WALKING TOUR
Tour Guide: Doug Eaton
Meeting Location: In front of the Art Center at 700 SW Madison Ave, Corvallis

Quality historic resources enrich this pedestrian-friendly tour. See Gothic and Colonial Revival, Italianate, American Foursquare, Craftsman, and High-Style Bungalow homes, while learning about adaptive use. This walk begins at an 1889 church (now an art center) and includes an 1892 Grocery (now a home). Brochure and YouTube Video

May 11th - 9:30 AM ALBANY TWEED RIDE 2024

Meeting Location: The Natty Dresser 124 Broadalbin St SW Albany

Don your finest tweed attire and join us for a bicycle tour of Albany’s National Historic Districts! Arrive by 9:30 am to enter the costume and best bike contests. The ride starts at 10 am. The tour will stop occasionally to talk about menswear and the historic buildings and sights along the way. Bring a cup if it looks like it is going to be a warm day as there will be a water break along the way. The ride ends at the Deluxe Brewery where they will be hosting their annual Vintage Bicycle Show and Swap Meet. Food and drink will be available for purchase at the brewery, but riders are also welcome to bring a picnic lunch to the ride, as the brewery allows outside food.

10:00 AM and 11:30 AM HISTORIC ALBANY STREETCAR TOUR
Meet at: Albany Regional Museum

Streetcar seating is limited, and reservations are required by May 7. Tickets are $5 for adults and youth. To reserve your ticket to board, contact the Museum today! Tour guests will hop aboard the Albany Streetcar at the Albany Regional Museum for a narrated tour by Bill Maddy, A.R.M. docent and Albany historian. The tour will feature how the arrivals of river, railroad, and highway travel were integral in Albany’s history, growth, and becoming known as Hub City of the Willamette Valley. The tour will feature humorous, unique, and wild stories related to the history of Albany’s street railway system and railroads.

12:00 PM to 2:00 PM CUMBERLAND CHURCH 132ND BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION & OPEN HOUSE
Location: 1400 Santiam Road S.E., Albany

Come celebrate the beautiful Cumberland Church, which is in the process of being restored. Long-term future plans are to offer educational and enrichment programs for children and families to promote the social well-being of the community, provide a facility for the arts, education, recreation, celebration and locally-based activities in order to increase the opportunity for personal and collective growth in our community, and invite groups, both public and private, to rent the building for events.

May 12th - 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY WALKING TOUR
Tour Guide: Larry Landis
This tour is limited to 25 persons, reserve a spot by emailing tro2005@gmail.com, Larry will tell you where to meet him.

OSU is Corvallis' most recent historic district with more than 80 contributing structures and it’s the only Oregon Campus listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Learn about the development of campus structures, and early Olmsted and Taylor campus plans, quads, and viewsheds. Appreciate the most comprehensive collection of distinctive John V. Bennes-designed buildings.

May 14th - 3:00 PM SE YOUNG & SON DEPARTMENT STORE BUILDING TOUR
Meeting Location: The Natty Dresser 124 Broadalbin St SW Albany

The tour will include all floors of the building, artifacts from previous tenants, and behind-the-scenes at the Natty Dresser. You will learn about the building’s original owner and the architect who made it happen. After the tour, you’re invited to stay and explore the Natty Dresser and enjoy a sample of cheesecake from Beloved Cheesecakes which is located inside the building!

May 18th - 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM CEMETERY CLEANING WORKSHOP, KINGS VALLEY CEMETERY
Presented by David Pinyerd and Bernadette Niederer of Historic Preservation Northwest
Meeting Location: If going north on Kings Valley Hwy, the cemetery driveway will be on your left immediately after the intersection with Hoskins Road

The workshop is free. Registration is not required. You can participate as much as you like. All tools will be provided. Please bring lunch and drinking water. A port-o-potty will be on-site. If you would like to work, please wear work clothes and bring gloves. A hat is also recommended.
10 AM Intro to cemetery preservation, 10:15 Evaluating markers, 10:30 Cleaning stones, 12:15 Lunch, 1 PM Cleaning stones, 2:45 Wrap up.

May 19th - 5:30 PM to 8 PM, (presentation starts at 6:00 PM) OREGON’S “TRAIL OF TEARS”
Presented by Nolan Streitberger, https://www.nolanstreitberger.com/trail-of-tears
Meeting Location: Corvallis-Benton County Public Library, 645 NW Monroe Avenue

This project started with several years of preparation and research, reading through thousands of historical letters, looking over old survey maps from the 1850s, and utilizing satellite imagery from today. Nolan retraced the entire route and was able to locate bygone roads that are no longer in existence while following others that are still here today. He made photographs using an antique wooden view camera and the wet plate collodion photo process from the 1850s and paired them with the journal entries written in the same time period. These landscape photographs illustrate the fraught expedition that Ambrose detailed in his daily journal. The imperfect photos play off the serendipitous technical flaws to create ghostly images that echo the grim history of the past and capture the forgotten and seldom told story of Oregon's “Trail of Tears.”

May 20th - 6:00 PM HOW TO RESEARCH THE HISTORY OF HOUSE WORKSHOP – IF WALLS COULD TALK
Presented by Camron Settlemeier
Meeting Location: Corvallis Museum, 411 SW 2nd St, Corvallis

Do you own a historic home and are curious about the history of structure? Join this workshop and learn how to research the story behind the building.

May 22nd - 1:00 PM ATOMIC RANCH WALKING TOUR
Tour Guide: Doug Sackinger

Meeting Location: intersection of NW Lincoln Ave & NW 15^th St, Corvallis

Explore the history of Ranch-style houses, which are a uniquely American domestic architectural style - long and low. Many ranch neighborhoods like those in Corvallis developed during the post WWII “Atomic Age” when housing demand for returning servicemen boomed. These homes reflect an informal and casual lifestyle and the auto-oriented culture of their time.

5:30 PM to 6:30 PM MASONIC TEMPLE TOUR
Location: 306 SW Madison Avenue

Are you curious about the Masons and what a Masonic Temple looks like? Register for this tour and you will meet some Masons, learn about the history of the guild, and all the ways Masons contribute to our community. Then you will get to walk into the temple, a site not to be missed! Limited to 25 people. Email inga.williams@bentoncountyor.gov to get on the list.

6:30 PM to 8:30 PM HISTORY THROUGH HEADSTONES – HISTORIC LINN COUNTY MEDICINE: A FAMILY PURSUIT

Albany Regional Museum in partnership with Riverside Cemetery invites you to attend our 14th annual History Through Headstones self-guided tour featuring docents presenting the historical contributions of local medical practitioners.

Can’t make it on 5/22? No worries! Signage will remain up at Riverside Cemetery following this event with QR codes. Once you scan the QR code with your smart phone, you will have access to a narration of the lives of this year’s subjects.

May 25th 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM
INTERIOR TOURS OF THE UNDER-RESTORATION WILLAMETTE GRANGE HALL
Tour Guide: Jay Sexton
Meeting Location: Willamette Grange, 27555 Greenberry Road, Corvallis
Guided tour times are 12:15, 1:15, and 2:15 - but the building is open to view the entire time.

Willamette Grange #52 is one of five active Granges in Benton County, alongside Hope, Fairmount, Marys River and Summit Granges. It is the oldest active Grange in Benton County. Willamette Grange was chartered as part of the Oregon State Grange in 1873, and is an organization promoting agriculture, forestry, & rural residents. The Grange Hall was built in 1922 on land donated by McCauley Porter and is being restored by the current membership of the grange, along with lots of help from the community. Willamette Grange Website and YouTube Video

May 30th 2:30 PM to 5:00 PM OWENS FARM: PAST AND FUTURE
Presented by: Jessica McDonald, Greenbelt Land Trust Executive Director
Please register for this even at https://greenbeltlandtrust.org/event/owens-farm-past-and-future/

Join Jessica McDonald for a presentation and walk at Owens Farm to learn about the fascinating history of the property and the exciting vision of community health-focused recreation that the Owens Farm Partnership is moving forward. Step inside the historic farmhouse, walk along the route of future trails, and learn how you can help the Owens Farm Partnership – City of Corvallis, Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, Benton County and Greenbelt Land Trust – make the vision come true. We will walk for up to one mile, with some mild elevation, over uneven ground at times. No restrooms on site. Please leave four legged friends at home.

May 30th - 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM HISTORIC PRESERVATION CELEBRATION
Location: LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26^th Street, Corvallis

Light refreshments and mingling will precede the ceremony, so please arrive anytime after 5:15 pm.

The annual celebration of historic preservation in Benton County. This year’s celebration will focus on how the important history surrounding the Van Buren Bridge will be preserved. Paul McMullen, the director of the Van Buren Bridge 7-part video series (modules) will present a 10-minute preview of the first video that features the history of the bridge and interviews from 4 local people and ODOT engineers and staff. The City of Corvallis will present a historic preservation award to the Sigma Nu Fraternity House and Benton County and PreservationWORKS will present an award to BA and Lenny Beierle for preserving the Williams H. McBee house. The Historic Courthouse Advisory Committee members will be honored for their volunteerism. Please join us in celebrating history and honoring preservation advocates!

For more information contact:

Inga Williams, Benton County Planning Division 541-766-6819

inga.williams@bentoncountyOR.gov

DIGITAL VERSIONS OF SELF-GUIDED TOUR PAMPHLETS. THESE INCLUDE MORE THAN ARE LINKED BELOW.

The Benton County Driving Tour is linked below under Supporting Documents.

VIDEO TOURS - NOW ON YOUTUBE

Willamette Grange
Hull-Oakes Lumber Mill

Benton County Courthouse Basement area and Exterior
Benton County Courthouse, Third Floor and Bell Tower
Benton County Courthouse, Second Floor
Benton County Courthouse, Front Facade and First Floor

Historic Sidewalk Markers - Self-guided tour pamphlet
South Central Park Tour - Self-guided tour pamphlet
North Central Park Tour - self-guided tour pamphlet
Franklin School Neighborhood Tree Tour - Self-guided tour pamphlet