| The house was originally built for Hubert & Rose Stiff. Mr. Stiff was the general manager of the H.L. Stiff Furniture Company. The house was sold to Daniel & Edith Jarman in 1942 and Mrs. Jarman remained in the house after her husband ’s death until 1966. The house and property were then purchased by the State of Oregon who utilized the house as the Governors residence for Governor & Mrs. Tom McCall from 1967 until 1975. The house was then temporarily used as office space for the State Department of Environmental Quality from 1976 until 1978. During this time, the Governor of Oregon was Robert Straub who never lived in the house during his years in office. Salem City Directories for the year of 1979 list the property as ‘vacant’, although still owned by the State of Oregon. In 1979, Governor Victor G. Atiyeh took office and moved into the house with his wife in 1980 where they lived until 1987 when he vacated his position as Governor. The house was left vacant for two years until 1990 when it was converted into office space for the State Board of Licensed Professionals, the State Board of Chiropractic Exams, and the State Insurance Pool Government Board. The three agencies remained in the house through the 1990s. Today, the house is used as office space by the Oregon State Department of Administration Services.
Timeline of Occupants
1928 Original Construction
1928-1942 Hubert & Rose Stiff Residence
1942-1966 Daniel & Edith Jarman Residence
1967-1975 Governor & Mrs. Tom McCall Residence
1976-1978 Oregon State Department of Environmental Quality Offices
1979 ‘Vacant’
1980-1987 Governor Victor G. Atiyeh Residence
1988-1989 ‘Vacant’
1990-2000 Offices
Oregon State Board of Licensed Professionals
Oregon State Board of Chiropractic Exams
Oregon State Insurance Pool Government Board
Today (2011) Oregon State Department of Administration Services Offices
History of the Architect/Builder
The Stiff-Jarman House was built by Clarence Smith, a prominent designer in Salem in the 1920s and 1930s. Smith, born in Portland Oregon in 1894, began his architectural education by apprenticing for Charles Ertz and A.L. DuPuy before studying for two years at Cornell School of Architecture. From 1915 to 1920 Smith worked as a draftsman in architectural firms in New York, and returned to Salem to design independently in 1921.
Though Clarence accumulated over ten years of experience while practicing independently, all the while using the title of architect, he did not apply for a formal license until 1940. Soon after, he declined to pay the licensing fee, and his license was revoked. This did not heavily affect him, as he had built up enough experience, and a good reputation, to practice architecture residentially. During the Depression, Smith continued to design Period Revival homes for some of Salem’s most prominent residents. Houses were often in the Georgian, Colonial and English Cottage Styles, and included handcrafted detailing not heavily practiced during that time. Many of the houses he designed now reside in fashionable neighborhoods of Salem, including Lefelle Street and near the State Capitol on Winter and Summer Streets.
In 1928, Smith began partnering with the influential landscape designers Elizabeth Lord and Edith Schryver, whose intimate, meticulously planned gardens paired very well with Smith’s picturesque designs. A good example of their work from this period is Miss Elizabeth Lord’s on residence on Mission Street from 1932. They also collaborated on the house of important Oregon engineer and bridge designer Conde B. McCullough in 1934, and their house and landscaping design for Charles Robertson from 1932 is listed on the National Register. In all, 24 houses have been positively identified with Smith in the Salem area. Smith passed away in Portland in 1951, and records of his clientele have since been used to nominate his buildings to the National Register. |
