Burnap-Rickard House

"Peter Rickard was a prominent figure in the Willamette Valley as both a farmer and stockman. He also served as County Commissioner and achieved prestige as one of Benton County's most popular sheriffs." Peter Rickard moved to this house in 1917 and lived there until his death in 1938. His wife Clarinda lived there until 1939. This is the only Corvallis property associated with Peter Rickard.

The structure is an intact example of a Bungalow style house. The exterior of the house has not been altered except for the color treatment which is reversible. The finely detailed interior is in exceptional condition. Original woodwork, hardware, and features show no significant alterations to the historic integrity of the interior. The Burnap-Rickard House is the most intact example in Corvallis of a two-story Bungalow house with bisecting gables.

Context

Oregon State Highway 99 in the early 20th century linked cities and farms within the Willamette Valley. Third Street, a major route heading south from the City of Corvallis, became Highway 99 as it left the City. As with most American cities, land use along these routes changed drastically with the popularity of the automobile. The Burnap-Rickard House, built in 1915, was part of this transition. Nineteenth-century Sanborn maps show many small frame houses and occasionally larger frame residences along Third Street. As Corvallis grew, the earlier structures were often replaced if they were considered too small or out-moded.
The evolution of the land, where the Burnap-Rickard House was later built, illustrates this change. The land on which the house was built was located within the original 1847 Provisional Land Claim of Joseph Covant Avery, the first settler to file such a claim in what is now Benton County. Realizing the location's potential, Avery established a mercantile store in 1849 and a post office in 1850 on the claim. In 1860 Avery sold the lot to Thomas J. Right. A dwelling was constructed on the site, evident in an 1888 Sanborn map. On the block along the west side of Third Street, between Washington and A Streets, were three houses in 1888; and four houses in 1890.

Ownership of the lot transferred from Right to Etta Downer in 1907. By 1908 it had been sold to Morse and Minnie Burnap, local land speculators. A 1912 Sanborn map of Corvallis shows the property vacant. Corvallis building contractor Charles McHenry built a house for the Burnaps in 1915, the last residence built on this block. The Burnap family lived in the home until it was sold to Peter and Clarinda Rickard in 1917. The house was given to daughter Leatha Porter after Clarinda's death in 1939.

Increased traffic, change to one-way, and escalated land values eventually transformed the established residential character of this block of Third Street. A 1927 Sanborn map shows a commercial structure directly to the north of the Burnap-Rickard House. Today, commercial development has completely surrounded the Burnap-Rickard House on all four sides. The integrity of the house and immediate site has not diminished over time, although the context has changed drastically. The house stands as one of the few vestiges of the residential character of this portion of Third Street, an important period in the growth of the City of Corvallis. A window survey was conducted to identify similar architectural examples to the Burnap-Rickard House. The survey area covered the three 1920-developed areas of Corvallis. Four houses were identified which appear to be built around the same time and exhibit similar architectural characteristics. The houses at 442 NW Third Street and 605 NW Fourth Street are both presently in commercial use and it is probable that the original interior features may not have been retained. The house at 520 NW Fifth Street is a residence. The exterior and grounds are in fair condition. A fourth house near Oregon State University, at 1050 SW Jefferson, has had its front porch enclosed, which drastically alters its appearance. The Burnap-Rickard House is the most intact example in Corvallis of a two-story Bungalow house with bisecting gables.

Historical Background

The Rickard family were significant pioneer farmers in the Willamette Valley. Peter Rickard's parents, John and Susanna Kime Rickard, were early Oregon settlers, having traveled from Petersburg, Indiana to Eugene, Oregon in an ox-drawn covered wagon in 1853. After spending the winter of 1853 in Eugene, the Rickards filed a Donation Land Claim on 280 acres located twelve miles southwest of Corvallis, along the Long Tom River. Peter, born in 1855, was one of nine children born on the Rickard farm. He attended McFarland Public School and Corvallis College for two terms. In 1875, after farming along Muddy Creek for several years, Peter leased a 320-acre parcel of land from his father, John Rickard. This property was part of an original land claim filed by James and Elizabeth Foster in 1853 and purchased by John Rickard in 1873.

In 1877 Peter married Clarinda Fiechter, the daughter of a local pioneer family. Clarinda's father, John, was born in Boden, Germany in 1822. According to family sources, John and his uncle, Martin Jauber, came to the United States in 1835 after hearing stories of the wealth to be made in the beaver trade. Fiechter is said to have joined an expedition to Colorado led by Captain John C. Fremont in the early 1840s. In 1846 Fiechter traveled with an overland party that left St. Joseph, Missouri following the old emigrant trail to Fort Hall, the California Trail, and the Applegate route into Oregon. 10 On December 18, 1847, Fiechter filed a claim to property which is now within the boundaries of the City of Corvallis. Family information indicates that John Fiechter traveled to the California gold fields during the mining rush in 1848-49. In 1850 Fiechter married Cynthia Newton and filed a land claim on property twelve miles south of the present City of Corvallis, then Marysville. Farming operations started, which included fruit orchards and cattle raising. A family home was built in 1855-1857. Seven children were born to the Fiechters between 1851 and 1859. At his death in 1861, John Fiechter had accumulated 764 acres of land and several hundred heads of farm stock.1 11 The John Fiechter House has been nominated for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.

Peter and Clarinda Rickard had five children between 1882 and 1890. Thella, the firstborn, married Amos Estella Scruggs and had one child. Thella was 25 when she died. Mark, born in 1884, is reported to have been the first person to drive a motorcycle from California to Corvallis across the Siskiyou Mountains in the early 1900s. Mark Rickard's motorcycle was not popular with the horse-riding community in Corvallis. Mark opened the first automobile dealership in Corvallis. Luke, the third Rickard child, died in infancy in 1886. Leatha was born two years later. She is 97 years old. The Rickard's last child was born in 1890. Vina died in 1918 at the age of 28.

Every Rickard child was tutored on the family farm instead of attending a school located about two and a half miles away. Although relatively uncommon, the Rickards were evidently financially able to use this option instead of transporting the children to school. According to a family friend, Leatha was her "Daddy's tomboy." Finding no discouragement from her parents, Leatha followed her father around the farm, helping with farm activities.

The Peter Rickard farm was a successful operation, raising wheat, oats, cattle, and pigs. Peter also became a successful public servant, serving as a county commissioner for four terms, elected two terms as sheriff starting in 1869, and reelected as commissioner from 1902 to 1908. A very respected man, Peter Rickard was known as "Honest Pete" in the community. A room in the Benton County Courthouse has been restored by Leatha Porter in memory of her father. The Peter Rickard House, built in 1890, has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Around 1903, in her early teens, Leatha Rickard left the family farm to attend Oregon Agricultural College as a Home Economics major. Leatha and her sister, Vina, also a student, shared a small cottage on 12th Street in Corvallis. After graduating in 1907, Leatha traveled to Portland to learn the skill of the milliner. After a two-week training session with a millinery wholesale house, Leatha returned to Corvallis. Here Leatha worked for three local businesses, including Kline's Mercantile Store, as a hat maker. Leatha made women's hats in winter and summer styles. Winter hats were made of velvet using a buckram frame. Summer hats were styled using wires as a base. All hats were hand-sewn. Reflecting her love of the artistry of hat making, Leatha has rarely been photographed without a hat. Leatha worked full-time at the Kline's Store until 1917, and part-time until 1930.

In 1917 Leatha Rickard, then 29, years old, married Charles Porter, an assistant manager with the Kline's Store. 14 Charles Porter was born in Linn County, Oregon, on August 22, 1875. Porter graduated from Oregon Agricultural College in 1896, as a mechanical engineering major.
Charles and Leatha Porter then moved to 536 West Second Street, Corvallis, into a house built by Taylor J. Porter, Charles' father. Leatha Porter aided in the construction of the house using carpentry skills taught by her father when she lived on the farm. The Taylor Porters who lived adjacent to their son and daughter-in-law, grew quite fond of Leatha. Apparently, out of respect for her carpentry skills, Taylor Porter gave his miter's outfit to Leatha before his death.

Burnap-Rickard House

On November 29, 1916, Peter and Clarinda Rickard purchased the house on 518 SW Third Street, Corvallis.17 The house and auto garage had been constructed in a residential area in 1915 by owners Morse and Minnie Burnap, The Rickards then rented their farm to F. 0. Harris and moved to Corvallis. Peter was 62 years old.

At the time of the purchase, the exterior of the two-story house was a pale yellow. It was equipped with indoor plumbing, electricity, and running water. Few structural changes have occurred since its construction. According to a family friend, the house was "a little more expensive than the others in the neighborhood. I heard someone say it was the best house on the street." Adjacent to the Burnap-Rickard House lived Dr. Taylor, a Corvallis dentist; Dr. Fred Meyers, a veterinarian; and Frank Graves and the Rose family across the street.

Charles Porter died in November 1930 after a long illness. He had worked for 26 years with the Kline's Store, and the last six years as a bookkeeper with Richard's Garage in Corvallis. Charles had been very active in local organizations, including the Presbyterian Church, Masons, Knights of Pythiaus, Knights of Khazans, Moose, and Maccabee Orders.

After the deaths of Peter in 1936 and Clarinda Rickard in 1939, Leatha Porter rented her Second Street home and moved to her parent's home on Third Street. Leatha continued her father's practice of living part of the week on the Rickard farm. Regularly she would leave Monday morning for the farm and return Saturday evening to her Corvallis home. During World War II, Leatha rented rooms of the Third Street home to the wives of soldiers stationed at Camp Adair, north of Corvallis. Through the war years, 20 to 30 women rented rooms at one dollar a day. The women cooked their own meals; they were not allowed to smoke or drink. After the war ended, rooms were occasionally rented to local young people.

Evidently, Leatha Porter kept tight control of the lodger's use of her home. The following are included in a list of house rules: "Boys in college, girls who work, no smokers, no baking, no heat in the time. Shoes that do not mar floors. Furnish your own linens, bedding, towels, soap, and toilet paper. Pay room rent in advance. Through the years Leatha Porter has become well known and active in the Corvallis community. She was a Civil Defense block leader during World War II. She was active in the American Red Cross, and Women's Club and was a member of the First Presbyterian Church. The Burnap-Rickard House was the site of many teas and other social events given by Leatha Porter for these organizations.

Still very much evident at her Third Street home is the result of Leatha Porter's landscaping and gardening skills and taste. Leatha designed the landscaping of her yard using many locally purchased plants. Some of the existing plants were gifts, such as the Saxifrage and the Port Orford cedar.

In 1944 the Peter Rickard House and farm were rented to Punderson Avery. After this, Leatha Porter lived permanently in Corvallis at 518 SW Third Street, the Burnap-Rickard House.

In 1983 Leatha Porter sold the Burnap-Rickard House to David Ueland and Cynthia J. Arthur. Mrs. Porter, now 97 years old, is a resident of Heart of the Valley Center, Corvallis. As the sole survivor of the Peter Rickard family, Leatha continues to carry with her the memories of the pioneering farm family.

Leatha Porter has recently donated several personal possessions and papers to the Benton County Historical Museum. Included in these items are bedroom and secretary sets, a rocking chair, a radio, a piano, and a woodburning range. Also, a 1936 Buick was donated, given to her by her brother, Mark Rickard. According to Grace Hennings, a long-time friend, Leatha Porter learned to drive the Buick in the alley, behind the Third Street House"... she backed up and went forward and back up and went forward there in the alley, and she learned to drive."