Be sure to download and print the Ocean Park Historic Home Tour Guide from the Ocean Park Area Chamber of Commerce. Please remember many of these are private homes. Please respect their property.
#1 -The Wreckage
1408 256th Place – At the South side of 256th between Hwy. 103 and N. PlaceGuy Allison conceived the inspiration for a log cabin after the breakup of a massive raft of piling poles. The raft, being towed from the Columbia River, broke up on the bar scattering logs from North Head to Leadbetter Point. Allison salvaged 48 logs in January 1912 and constructed an authentic blockhouse. The house is built largely from materials salvaged from the beach. The Wreckage is entered on the National Register of Historic Places.
#2 – King’s Haven
1307 258th – At the North side of 258th between Park Avenue and N. Place
James E. Haseltine owned this entire block at one time. He built the house in 1909, and, being an owner of a hardware store, he used solid brass hardware throughout his new home. In about 1928, the King family obtained the property and eventually added the porthole from the 1891 wreck of the “Strathbaine” to the front door.
#3 – Pilot House
25915 Park Avenue – At the West End of 260th on Park Avenue
The Pilot House, in its austere setting, was built in 1895 by L.B. Stearns, a judge in Multnomah County, Oregon. The simplicity of design and construction, with its broad porch and white railing, is well suited for the site. It commands an excellent view of the beach and ocean. Over the years the beach area has built up, so the ocean no longer comes to the base of the dune on which the house stands.
#4 – Haseltine Cottage
1209 Bay Avenue – At the North side of Bay Avenue between Park Ave. and N. Place
This tiny little gray cottage is one of the oldest buildings in Ocean Park. It was built in 1884 for a Portland businessman, James Haseltine, who helped found Ocean Park. The small, attached garage indicates it was built in a time when cars were narrow and garages were a new architectural development. Faye Beaver, whose grandfather built the first Shelburne Hotel nearly 100 years ago, lived here for over twenty-four years.
#5 – Taylor Hotel
1401 Bay Avenue – Northeast corner of Bay Avenue and N. Place
This proud old building has housed not only tourists but also shipwrecked sailors. The Taylors were very much a part of early Peninsula history. William came here in 1876, drove the stage from Ilwaco to Oysterville for a while, and later became the county sheriff/assessor. They built their hotel around 1887, and it operated as a business until 1940. Today their hotel is a flourishing place–the home of Adelaide’s.
#6 – United Methodist Church
1202 262nd Street – Southeast corner 262nd and Park Avenue
The dedication of the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Ocean Park on August 9, 1914 marked a momentous and exciting event. It started in the 1880’s with the first camp meetings being held outside and later under tents. Eventually, a building on Bay Avenue was remodeled as a chapel. Finally, the church moved to its permanent home where it still stands.
#7 – Lamberson Cottage
121 262nd Street – Southeast corner 262nd and Park Avenue
The Lamberson cottage, directly east of the Church, was built in 1883. It is still owned by Lamberson descendants and is the oldest building in Ocean Park. The aged shake on the cottage is indicative of the original look of many beach homes in an earlier time. In 1983 the Lambersons gathered to celebrate the cottage’s 100-year anniversary.
#8 – George Johnson House
26301 N Place – Northwest corner 263rd and N Place
In 1913, George and Mary Johnson laid out the floor plan for their small cottage, including doors and windows, on the beach in the wet sand. It appeared smaller than what they wanted, so they increased the dimensions. Their plans for a “small cottage” turned into a large house. Through the years it has been a well-maintained home, regal and distinctive with its columned porch, and curved windows. Today, it operates as a bed & breakfast.
#9 – Loomis House & Mural
1607 Bay Avenue – North side of Bay Avenue, second block from the 4-way stop
The Tokeland Oyster Station Mural, painted by Charlotte Davis, is in memory of the oyster stations that once existed throughout Willapa Bay. These stations were living quarters and work buildings constructed on pilings out over the water. Charlotte’s father, Roy Herrold, was part owner of this station where the family spent their summers. Edgar and Charlotte Davis are now restoring the Loomis house, built in 1908, by Lewis Edwin Loomis, son of Peninsula pioneer L.A. Loomis. They have also written two books on the histories of Peninsula pioneer families.
#10 – Whalebone House
2101 Bay Avenue – Northeast corner of Bay Ave. and U Street
S.A. Matthews built this lively looking house in 1891. He designed the house from the memory of a home he enjoyed in Maine. Mrs. Matthews loved to grow flowers on her front porch and eventually had it glassed in to protect her plants. Louise Rice restored the house and named it Whalebone since her husband, Roy, collected whalebones while beachcombing in the 1950’s, and the name seemed to fit. This place is on the Washington State Register of Historic Places.
#11 – Wiegardt House
2607 Bay Avenue – Northeast corner of Bay and Z, 1/2 mile east of the 4-way stop
This house is a beautiful old Victorian home built in 1897, by Heinrich J. Weigardt, a pioneer oyster farmer. The exterior and interior of the house have changed little. Both floors have bay windows with beamed walls and ceilings. The hardware, including porcelain doorknobs, is authentic. A narrow stairway with its curved banister leads to the upper floor. Third and fourth generation descendants still own and maintain the house which is now an art gallery.