The Idaho Building at the 1905

Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition The Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition, commonly also known as the Lewis and Clark Exposition, and officially known as the Lewis and Clark Centennial and American Pacific Exposition and Oriental Fair, was a worldwide exposition held in Portlan ...

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

, was a 2-story exhibition hall designed by James A. Fennell of the

Boise Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown area's ...

architectural firm

Wayland & Fennell Wayland & Fennell was an architectural firm in Idaho. Many of their works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Charles W. Wayland (1874-1953) worked as a drafter in the office of Boise architect William S. Campbell for tw ...

. When the Idaho Building opened, journalist Blaine Phillips wrote, "The building is sublimely beautiful, the vivid colors which have been applied in perfect harmony with the surroundings, serving ably to accentuate the picturesqueness and uniqueness of the construction." Although constructed at the fair by the State of Idaho, the Idaho Building served as exhibition and entertainment space for three states without buildings, Montana, Wyoming, and Nevada, on days honoring the people of individual states.

Architecture

Dimensions of the Idaho Building were 100 feet by 89 feet, including a 12-foot wide entry hall leading to an exhibition room 100 feet by 60 feet, with reception rooms for women and men on each side of the hallway. The building included offices, a breakfast room, a kitchen, and two second floor apartments. ''The Washington Times'' described the building as "of a style peculiar to inter-mountain countries," and the ''Deseret Evening News'' said it was "in a form somewhat resembling a Swiss Chalet." At night, between 400 and 500 incandescent lamps illuminated the building.

Exhibits

In addition to agricultural, mineral, and mining exhibits, the building featured exhibits made by children in Idaho schools. Thousands of educational pieces were displayed, including photographs, paintings, drawings, bound volumes, and weaving.

Prizes

At the conclusion of the fair in September, the Idaho Building received the gold medal, and Idaho received another gold for excellence at exhibition. Idaho received a total of 91 gold medals, 46 silver medals, and 44 bronze medals awarded for its exhibitions.

After the Exhibition

Near the end of October, 1905, the Idaho Building was purchased by Paul Wessinger, who planned to remodel it into a clubhouse. Wessinger, son-in-law of

Henry Weinhard Henry Weinhard (February 18, 1830 – September 20, 1904) was a German-American brewer in Portland, Oregon. After immigrating to the United States in 1851, he lived in Philadelphia, Cincinnati, St. Louis, and Sacramento before settling in th ...

, managed

Henry Weinhard's Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve and Blitz-Weinhard were brands of beer first brewed in 1856 in Portland, Oregon. The brewery was owned by the brewer Henry Weinhard of the Weinhard family, who also made a line of soft drinks which survives to th ...

brewery and was chairman of the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition grounds and buildings committee. The Idaho Building may have been demolished soon after the Exhibition, however, as many of the buildings were temporary structures not well suited to Portland's climate. Other buildings withstood years of neglect prior to demolition. Parts of two buildings have survived since the Exhibition, the NCR Building in St. Johns, now a

McMenamins McMenamins is a family-owned chain of brewpubs, breweries, music venues, historic hotels, and theater pubs in Oregon and Washington. Many of their locations are in rehabilitated historical properties; at least nine are on the National Register ...

outlet, and the American Inn in North Portland, now a condominium.

References

External links