Museums and Old Buildings and Homes

Friday, August 11, 2017

Adler House

The Adler House in Baker City is a beautiful restored home which was built in 1889 and was a Sears catalog kit home.  In 1899 it became the home of Carl Adler, his wife and three children and later was the home of son Leo until his death in 1993.  Leo Adler was a bachelor businessman and philanthropist who willed the house to the Baker County Museum Commission.   After probate of the will in 1994, renovation work began and the home was opened as the Adler House Museum in 1998.  It was not an easy transition as the house was in very poor condition but thanks to four local ladies, grant money, volunteer labor, garage sales, etc. the house was opened and provides a wonderful picture of life in this small town during the early 1900’s.   Below are several pictures from the inside of the home.

Driving around the residential areas turned up these few interesting old Victorian homes.

Heading back toward downtown we stop at the Baker Heritage Museum which is housed in an old 1921 Natatorium and Community Center located on the main street.   If you are not familiar with the word natatorium, it is a building containing a swimming pool usually with locker rooms and in this case steam room, meeting rooms and a maple floored ballroom.  It closed at the beginning of World War II and was used for other purposes and was finally abandoned until 1982 when it became the Oregon Trail Regional Museum which houses beautiful displays of memorabilia, furniture, equipment, photographs, etc. from the local area  We spent about an hour taking in the displays enjoying learning more about Oregon and Baker City. 

School Bus

Wheat Thresher

School Room

Old Laundry Room

Old Washing Machine

Skirt Hoop Form

Downtown Baker City is also full of old historic brick buildings from the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s.  A post office was established in 1866 and it was incorporated in 1874.  The city and county were named for U.S. Senator Edward D. Baker, the only sitting senator who was killed leading a charge in Virginia during the Civil War.  In 1900 it was the largest city between Salt Lake City and Portland and a trade center.  The city is situated between the Wallowa Mountains to the east and the Elkhorn Mountains (part of the Blue Mountains) to the west with the Powder River running through the middle of town on its was to the Snake River.

Buildings of note include the Geiser Grand Hotel, circa 1889 ; Baker Tower constructed in 1929 in the Art Deco style ; Bowen Bldg, c.1888 ; Bamburgr Building, c 1888; Mint Building, c.1889 ; and Pythian Castle, c. 1907 and many, many other buildings of the same time period.  

 

Grand Geiser Hotel

Baker Tower

Bowen Building

Bamburger Building

Mint Building

Pythian Castle

We really enjoyed seeing all these old buildings and museums today and look forward to getting out on the road out of town tomorrow to see what the countryside has to offer.