1892 RICHARDSONIAN ROMANESQUE. Designed by Architects M c CAW & MARTIN. 615 NW 20th AV ENUE PORTLAND, OREGON. mackenzie HOuse

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1 1892 RICHARDSONIAN ROMANESQUE Designed by Architects M c CAW & MARTIN 615 NW 20th AV ENUE PORTLAND, OREGON mackenzie HOuse { AbbOtt HALL } The Dan Volkmer Team Specializing in Historic & Architecturally Significant Homes

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3 welcome to The Mackenzie House. Anyone familiar with the NW neighborhood has stopped to take in and ponder in awe, the castle at 20th and Hoyt. A medieval and weighty building standing on a great stone foundation. Would it surprise us to see Sir William Wallace (Braveheart), with blue war paint and sword in hand, step out of the front porch loggia under the fairytale turret? Although no knight or prince is on record as having lived in the grand home nevertheless the stories are as interesting, the lives are as important to our community and the good works are numerous and regal. Built in 1892 for Dr. and Mrs. K.A.J. Mackenzie by Architects McCaw and Martin she ranks in the top 10 of architectural works of art in Portland. This highly ornate house embodies a plethora of distinguishing characteristics attributed to the high style architectural residential buildings of the last decade of the 19th century and is the most important example of the Richardsonian Romanesque residential architecture still standing in Portland. She is located in the heart of the Historic Alphabet District and remains one of the surviving Grand Old Houses of the opulent 19th Avenue neighborhood that grew up in NW Portland in the 1880 s and 1890 s. The exterior demonstrates the massive strength of Tenino stone, quarried in Olympia Washington, gray-blue slate roofing material and the architectural craftsman details befitting the fierce Scottish Baronial nature of the Mackenzie clan. The interior reflects the intricacies of the exterior with its attention to detail down to the minutia of hand painted fireplace tiles, the abundance of golden oak carved wood, leaded and stained glass windows and hand wrought metal works and lighting fixtures. The hero in our Portland fairytale is Dr. Kenneth Alexander James Mackenzie ( ), the son of Roderick Mackenzie, head of the Hudson s Bay Company. Raised in Manitoba, he received his medical degree from McGill University in Toronto The Mackenzie Family Crest and Edinburgh University in Scotland, and moved to Oregon in His princess is Cora Kerr who he married in Dr. Mackenzie was the driving force behind the founding of the then 24 acre hilltop University of Oregon Medical School, now OHSU and was head of both Portland and Oregon State Medical Associations. He lived in the home until his death in Cora Mackenzie was accomplished as well. It is believed that she studied Fine Arts at a woman s University in San Francisco and that much of the wood work, leather tooling, tile designs, decorative glass design and art installations are attributed to her. She raised 3 children in the house and was known to be a warm and loving hostess. She died in Now housing the administrative offices of William Temple, a non-profit social services agency, the floor plan of the main house remains reasonably intact and Cora Mackenzie s public room decorations, wall coverings and woodwork are nearly untouched on the main level. The MacKenzie House served as administrative offices, chapel, meeting place and offices for a string of good deed doers: Good Samaritan Hospital, followed by The Jesuits and now the William Temple House. All have filled this architectural wonder with positive energies, community assistance and good will. The property has been designated as historic in three ways. The first was the designation of the Mackenzie House as a City of Portland Landmark in 1970, the second was an individual listing on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996, and the third was its inclusion as a contributing property in the Alphabet District National Register Historic District in The Mackenzie house survived like a sturdy Scottish Thistle, the ravages of the midtwentieth century s proclivities to tear down, or re-purpose the big old beauties of yester-year. With it s sale, another chapter begins in the life of this magical, resilient and significant architectural treasure. mackenzie HOuse The Dan Volkmer Team 3

4 above: An exterior arch above the dining room bay window features a huge cast iron stag head affixed to an intricately carved panel simulating thistles. right: The south chimney and the ceiling of the front terrace are enhanced by stylized wrought iron renderings that depict the sun and wavy sunrays. 4

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7 Foyer mackenzie HOuse The Dan Volkmer Team clockwise: Guests are welcomed by a massive front door fashioned from panels of golden oak and richly decorated dark oak hand-carved with Scottish thistle leaves. Overlooking the foyer is light fixture designed in the shape of a bat with a serpent spiraling above it. In Scottish folklore, this signifies the triumph of medicine over witchcraft. Mosaic floor tile in the vestibule just inside the front door has corners accented by a stylized thistle design. left: Leaded glass front door pictures two fierce dragons. 7

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9 The central hall is the backbone of the house and spans the entire length of the east-west axis. It is lined with richly carved oak paneling and has a coffered ceiling.

10 CENTRAL HALL above: The crowning glory of the central hall is an impressive carved limestone fireplace bearing the family motto Luceo Non Uro - I shine, not burn. Stained glass with thistle design above the limestone fireplace. Two chimneys flank the stained glass centerpiece. right: Cora Mackenzie s hand tooled leather and copper Juliet balcony with stained glass window. 10

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12 12 library

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14 dining room clockwise: Two Atlantes imported from Italy and each 4 feet high support the intricately carved Italian rosewood fireplace mantel. High relief garlands with a female mascaron ornament adorn the center of the dining room fireplace rosewood mantel. The face and hearth of the fireplace are tiled with well-preserved fossilized fish and crustaceans embedded in limestone that was quarried in Montana. 14

15 CHAPeL mackenzie HOuse The Dan Volkmer Team The Drawing Room was converted into a chapel by The Society of Jesuits who owned Mackenzie House from 1946 to the mid 1960s. 15

16 16 main staircase

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18 Hand painted tiles depicting birds, flowers and nature were designed by Cora Mackenzie for the fireplaces in her daughter s room and the day nursery. A 19th century nod to the famous Vaux Swifts. 18

19 Cora McKenzie s 3rd floor artist study faces West in the turret. mackenzie HOuse The Dan Volkmer Team The safe is securely embedded in the master bathroom wall. Original egg shaped brass door handle. 19

20 1981 Designed by Architects FLETCHER, FINCH, FARR & ASSOCIATES 2023 NW HOYT STREET PORTLAND, OREGON AbbOtt HALL

21 Abbott Hall, the addition to Mackenzie House, is a structure designed by the firm Fletcher, Finch, Farr and Associates and was constructed in 1981 to house the expanding counseling and social service programs of William Temple House. It is named in memory of Fr. Abbott, who served as Executive Director from Abbott Hall was designed to compliment it s sister house and yet afford an independent function. The architecture, separated by nearly 100 years of design, incorporated the shingles of The Richardsonian/Shingle style and the fenestrations echo those of the main house. A breezeway connects the two structures and serves as the reception area for both. AbbOtt HALL The Dan Volkmer Team Besides the meeting rooms, 16 offices and entry hall of the upper levels, the lower level of the building is equipped with cold storage, mechanical rooms, laundry and lots of storage and work spaces. 21

22 mackenzie HOuse FLoor plan 8 Bedrooms, 5 Full & 1 Half Baths, 9,287 sqft lower sq ft main sq ft upper sq ft third floor sq ft 22

23 AbbOtt HALL FLoor plan 16 Offices, Lobby, 2 Conference Rooms, 4 Half Baths, Storage, Parking Lot, 8,960 sqft lower sq ft main sq ft mackenzie HOuse The Dan Volkmer Team upper sq ft 23

24 For more information RMLS mackenzie HOuse 8 Bedrooms 5 Full & 1 Half Baths 9,287 sqft AbbOtt HALL 16 Offices, Lobby, 2 Conference Rooms, 4 Half Baths, Storage, Parking Lot 8,960 sqft LOt Size Lot R141216: 12,500 sqft Lot R141217: 3,750 sqft Lot R141218: 3,750 sqft Burdean, Dan, Mardi and Kishra The Dan Volkmer Team Specializing in Historic & Architecturally Significant Homes DAN VOLKMER, Principal Broker BURDEAN BARTLEM, KISHRA OTT & MARDI DAVIS, Brokers Licensed in the state of Oregon DAN@DANVOLKMER.COM DANVOLKMER.COM The Dan Volkmer Team at Windermere Realty Trust. All right reserved. Information deemed reliable but is not guaranteed.