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Inventory Document
NR Nomination

LOCATION AND PROPERTY NAME
address:5303 SW Westwood Vw historic name:James, W. Leland, House
Portland, Multnomah County current/other names:
assoc addresses:
block/lot/tax lot:
location descr: twnshp/rng/sect/qtr sect:1S 1E 16
PROPERTY CHARACTERISTICS
resource type:Building height (stories):2.0 total elig resources:1 total inelig resources:2
elig evaluation: eligible/significant NR Status: Individually Listed
prim constr date:1928 second date: date indiv listed:05/23/2016
primary orig use: Single Dwelling orig use comments:
second orig use:
primary style: Late 19th/20th Amer. Mvmts: Other prim style comments:
secondary style: Arts & Crafts sec style comments:
primary siding: Brick:Other/Undefined siding comments:
secondary siding: Half Timbering
plan type: architect:Harold W. Doty; Richard Brown Architects (addition)
builder:E.F. Saucerman
comments/notes:
Owner considering possible NR nomination (02/23/11) ck; built for Leland James, founder of Freightliner, by Harold Doty. Hawkins & Willingham consider this property Doty's "finest work." HRR on file (03/16/11)
GROUPINGS / ASSOCIATIONS
Not associated with any surveys or groupings.
SHPO INFORMATION FOR THIS PROPERTY
NR date listed: 05/23/2016
ILS survey date:
RLS survey date:
106 Project(s): None
Special Assess Project(s): None
Federal Tax Project(s): None
ARCHITECTURAL / PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
(Includes expanded description of the building/property, setting, significant landscape features, outbuildings and alterations)
The 1929 W. Leland James House was designed by Portland architect Harold Doty in the English Arts & Crafts style with some elements of the Tudor Revival style. The house has an irregular plan with two stories plus an attic and basement comprising 6,416 square feet. It is located at 5303 SW Westwood View in southwest Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon. It sits on an irregular, sloping corner lot at the northeast corner of SW Westwood View and SW Westwood Drive and faces north onto SW Westwood Drive, filling much of its original lot with its 2,276 square foot footprint. The house is considered a superb example of its style. It displays the following design features that are emblematic of the style: relatively unembellished forms, in contrast to the Craftsman style; steep, gabled roofs with intersecting gables; massive chimneys; asymmetrical façades; small-paned casement windows; natural cladding material, including brick, wood and stucco; and features from the medieval English vernacular tradition. The 0.58-acre property contains the house, as well as a below-grade attached garage at the east end, a pool house and in-ground swimming pool at the west end, and a terraced lawn with simple gardens south of the house. An evergreen laurel hedge borders most of the property. Several mature, mostly deciduous trees are beyond the hedge within the property, including a Japanese maple and a spruce at the front. The residence has complex gable and hip roofs clad in thick cedar shingles. The roof is hipped at the west and east ends of the building. Three sets of gables—one cross-gable, one subordinate gable, and one dormer—are featured on each side of the ridge of the main hipped roof in symmetrical pairs. The house has two character-defining brick and stucco chimneys. The larger exterior wall chimney is at the front (north), near the northeast corner. The other chimney extends from the roof near the west end. There are several non-contributing features on the property. Along the west end of the north frontage are a pool equipment room (building, 1999) and a retaining wall. South of the retaining wall is a swimming pool (structure, 1966). In the middle of the present tax lot, south of the house, is another retaining wall that terraces the property into two levels. The pool and pool equipment building are non-contributing, as they were completed more than 25 years after W. Leland James sold the property in 1938.
HISTORY
(Chronological, descriptive history of the property from its construction through at least the historic period - preferably to the present)
The W. Leland James House, located in Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon, is significant at the local level under Criterion B in the category of Transportation, as the only single-family and long-term residence directly associated with W. Leland James during the years he was involved with Consolidated Freightways. James founded Consolidated Freightways—a nationwide trucking firm that evolved into the recently dissolved firm of Con-Way—and its long-time subsidiary Freightliner, a manufacturer of semi-trucks. Both had headquarters in Portland. The house is the primary residence in Oregon associated with James during his tenure at Consolidated Freightways and his residence at the time of its founding (1929-1938). No industrial or commercial buildings related to either company that also existed during his affiliation with the companies have survived with any integrity to the present in the Portland area. The James House is also eligible at the local level under Criterion C as a superb example of the Arts & Crafts style in the English Arts & Crafts tradition in the city of Portland, as discussed in the book Classic Houses of Portland. It was designed by noted local architect Harold Doty, a prominent Portland residential architect whose other local works were published in the national publication Architectural Record. Doty was active as a lead architect in Portland from 1926 to 1941. He often collaborated with better-remembered local masters Wade Pipes and Herman Brookman. Doty received the honor of a memorial retrospective of his works at the Portland Art Museum in 1943.
RESEARCH INFORMATION
Title Records Census Records Property Tax Records Local Histories
Sanborn Maps Biographical Sources SHPO Files Interviews
Obituaries Newspapers State Archives Historic Photographs
City Directories Building Permits State Library
Local Library: University Library:
Historical Society:Oregon Historical Society Other Respository:
Bibliography:
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Ancestry.com/National Archives and Records Administration. ———. “Ruth Catlin, Certificate 239737, Roll 2155 - Certificates: 239476-239849, 27 Dec 1922-29 Dec 1922.” U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 [database on-line], 2007. Ancestry.com. ———. “U.S. City Directories, 1822-1989 [database on-Line],” 2011. Ancestry.com. ———. U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012 [database on-Line]. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. http://ancestry.com. Ancestry.com, and United States, Selective Service System. “World War II Draft Cards (4th Registration) for the State of California; State Headquarters: California; Microfilm Roll: 603155.” In U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 [database on-Line]. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. “Archtects Move Offices.” Oregonian, August 5, 1928. Askin, Timothy. “Section 106 Programmatic Agreement Memo, Klamath Falls Street Paving CMAQ, ODOT Key No. 18278; Federal Aid No. 3970(024),” February 5, 2015. Oregon Department of Transportation Records. “Big Development Seen.” Oregonian, September 26, 1926. Byars, Mel. The Design Encyclopedia. New ed. New York: Museum of Modern Art, 2004. Capitol Publishing Co. “Doty, Harold W.” Capitol’s Who’s Who for Oregon, 1936-1937. Portland, OR: Capitol Publishing, 1936. “Catlin Gabel School: History.” Catlin Gabel. Accessed October 8, 2015. http://www.catlin.edu/page.cfm?p=511. “Caves, History and Invention - Story of the View-Master - Oregon Travel Experience.” Accessed September 25, 2015. http://ortravelexperience.com/news-press/caves-history-and-invention-story-of-the-view-master/. “City News in Brief: Architects to Talk.” Oregonian, March 18, 1943. City of Portland. “PortlandMaps,” 2015. http://portlandmaps.com/. Clarke, Ann Brewster. Wade Hampton Pipes: Arts and Crafts Architect in Portland, Oregon. Portland, OR: Binford & Mort, 1986. Clark, Rosalind. Oregon Style, Architecture from 1840 to the 1950s. Portland, OR: Professional Book Center, 1983. “Cohan Home Completed.” Oregonian, December 1, 1929. “Common Brick Home Noted for Beauty and Interesting Features of Design.” Oregonian, March 3, 1929. “Court Voids Contract.” Oregonian, June 7, 1929. “Daily City Statistics: Building Permits More than $1000.” Oregonian, March 21, 1928. Doty, Harold W. “Blue Prints and the Pauper.” Architect & Engineer 109 (May 1932): 35–38. ———. “Harold W. Doty Architectural Papers,” 1941. Mss 3104. Oregon Historical Society. “Dotys’ Bodies Found in Car.” Oregonian, March 26, 1941. Durr, Kenneth D., and Philip L. Cantelon. Never Stand Still: A History of CNF Transportation Inc. Rockville, MD: Montrose Press, 1999. Durr, Matt. “Ann Arbor-Based Fortune 500 Company Con-Way to Be Sold as Part of $3B Deal.” MLive.com, September 10, 2015. http://www.mlive.com/business/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2015/09/ann_arbor-based_fortune_500_co.html. “Eastmoreland, Portland, House; H. Brookman and H. W. Doty, Arch; Views and Floor Plan.” Architectural Record 88 (November 1940): 72–73. Edgemont Investment Co., and Hiller Bros. Inc. “[Ad] Where a King Would Build His Castle.” Oregonian, April 24, 1927. Fattig, Paul. “Oregon Caves Meeting Led to Invention of the View-Master.” MailTribune.com, August 22, 2013. http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130822/NEWS/308220327. “Fine New Dwelling Houses to Be Erected Upon West Side Hills.” Oregonian, June 14, 1931. Fong, Dominique. “Two Studies Bolster Concerns of Former Beaverton View-Master Employees about TCE Contamination.” OregonLive.com, October 5, 2011. http://www.oregonlive.com/beaverton/index.ssf/2011/10/two_studies_bolster_concerns_o.html. Freightliner Corporation. “Twenty-Five Years of Professional Truck Building,” 1972. OREGON 629.11 F86t. Multnomah County Library. Fuenmayor, Ernestina. “Ralph A. and Corina R. Cowden House, 258 Mill Street.” Silverton Landmarks Registration Form. Salem, OR, 2014. Oregon SHPO. Gabrick, Robert. Freightliner Trucks: 1937 through 1981 Photo Archive. Photo Archive Series. Hudson, WI: Iconografix, 2002. Gruber, Gretchen Jane. View Master: The Biography of William B. Gruber. Minneapolis, MN: Mill City Press, 2014. “Harold Wade Doty.” Pencil Points 22 (June 1941): 66. Hart, Eric David. “The Process of Neighborhood Development: The Role of Restrictive Covenants in the Development of Residential Neighborhoods.” M. Urban Studies thesis, Portland State University, 1991. Hawkins, William John, and William F Willingham. Classic Houses of Portland, Oregon: 1850-1950. Portland, OR: Timber Press, 2005. “Help to Find Couple Sought.” Oregonian, March 20, 1941. “House of Frank D. Cohan in Portland, Oregon—Harold W. Doty, Architect.” Architectural Record, August 1933. “In Doty Memorial Show.” Oregonian, March 14, 1943. Jones, Catherine. “Art Field Offers Variety of Exhibits During March.” Oregonian, March 14, 1943. Kreisman, Lawrence, and Glenn W. Mason. The Arts and Crafts Movement in the Pacific Northwest. Portland, Oregon: Timber Press, 2007. “Land ‘Sharks’ on Trial.” Oregonian, March 30, 1929. Lerten, Barney. “(Don’t) Keep on Truckin’: Consolidated Freightways Goes under.” Bend Bugle, September 3, 2002. http://www.bendbugle.com/2002/09/dont-keep-on-truckin-consolidated-freightways-goes-under/. Library of Congress. “Stereograph Cards - Background and Scope.” Prints and Photographs Online Collection, 2015. http://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/stereo/background.html. “Lot Payment Refund Sought.” Oregonian, March 31, 1929. McAlester, Virginia. A Field Guide to American Houses. Revised edition. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2013. McKay, Bruce. “[Ad] Just Completed, Never Been Shown.” Oregonian, March 2, 1930. “Harold Doty Memorial Exhibition.” Bulletin [Portland Museum of Art] 4, no. 7 (March 1943): 1–2. Multnomah County. “Survey and Assessor Image Locator (SAIL).” Multnomah County, Oregon, 2015. http://www3.multco.us/slv/?Viewer=SAIL. “New Firms Incorporate.” Oregonian, May 1, 1929. “65 Lincoln High Pupils Graduated.” Oregonian, June 21, 1911. Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-Line]. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, 2006. ———. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-Line]. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2002. http//ancestry.com. ———. “1940 United States Federal Census [database on-Line].” Ancestry.com, 2012. http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2442. ———. “Minnesota, Births and Christenings Index, 1840-1980 [database on-Line],” 2011. Ancestry.com. ———. “Norton Ralph Cowden.” Selective Service Registration Cards, World War II: Fourth Registration. Records of the Selective Service System, Record Group Number 147. St. Louis, Missouri, April 25, 1942. Records of the Selective Service System, Record Group Number 147. Ancestry.com/National Archives and Records Administration. ———. “Ruth Catlin, Certificate 239737, Roll 2155 - Certificates: 239476-239849, 27 Dec 1922-29 Dec 1922.” U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 [database on-line], 2007. Ancestry.com. ———. “U.S. City Directories, 1822-1989 [database on-Line],” 2011. Ancestry.com. ———. U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012 [database on-Line]. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. http://ancestry.com. Ancestry.com, and United States, Selective Service System. “World War II Draft Cards (4th Registration) for the State of California; State Headquarters: California; Microfilm Roll: 603155.” In U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 [database on-Line]. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. “Archtects Move Offices.” Oregonian, August 5, 1928. Askin, Timothy. “Section 106 Programmatic Agreement Memo, Klamath Falls Street Paving CMAQ, ODOT Key No. 18278; Federal Aid No. 3970(024),” February 5, 2015. Oregon Department of Transportation Records. “Big Development Seen.” Oregonian, September 26, 1926. Byars, Mel. The Design Encyclopedia. New ed. New York: Museum of Modern Art, 2004. Capitol Publishing Co. “Doty, Harold W.” Capitol’s Who’s Who for Oregon, 1936-1937. Portland, OR: Capitol Publishing, 1936. “Catlin Gabel School: History.” Catlin Gabel. Accessed October 8, 2015. http://www.catlin.edu/page.cfm?p=511. “Caves, History and Invention - Story of the View-Master - Oregon Travel Experience.” Accessed September 25, 2015. http://ortravelexperience.com/news-press/caves-history-and-invention-story-of-the-view-master/. “City News in Brief: Architects to Talk.” Oregonian, March 18, 1943. City of Portland. “PortlandMaps,” 2015. http://portlandmaps.com/. Clarke, Ann Brewster. Wade Hampton Pipes: Arts and Crafts Architect in Portland, Oregon. Portland, OR: Binford & Mort, 1986. Clark, Rosalind. Oregon Style, Architecture from 1840 to the 1950s. Portland, OR: Professional Book Center, 1983. “Cohan Home Completed.” Oregonian, December 1, 1929. “Common Brick Home Noted for Beauty and Interesting Features of Design.” Oregonian, March 3, 1929. “Court Voids Contract.” Oregonian, June 7, 1929. “Daily City Statistics: Building Permits More than $1000.” Oregonian, March 21, 1928. Doty, Harold W. “Blue Prints and the Pauper.” Architect & Engineer 109 (May 1932): 35–38. ———. “Harold W. Doty Architectural Papers,” 1941. Mss 3104. Oregon Historical Society. “Dotys’ Bodies Found in Car.” Oregonian, March 26, 1941. Durr, Kenneth D., and Philip L. Cantelon. Never Stand Still: A History of CNF Transportation Inc. Rockville, MD: Montrose Press, 1999. Durr, Matt. “Ann Arbor-Based Fortune 500 Company Con-Way to Be Sold as Part of $3B Deal.” MLive.com, September 10, 2015. http://www.mlive.com/business/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2015/09/ann_arbor-based_fortune_500_co.html. “Eastmoreland, Portland, House; H. Brookman and H. W. Doty, Arch; Views and Floor Plan.” Architectural Record 88 (November 1940): 72–73. Edgemont Investment Co., and Hiller Bros. Inc. “[Ad] Where a King Would Build His Castle.” Oregonian, April 24, 1927. Fattig, Paul. “Oregon Caves Meeting Led to Invention of the View-Master.” MailTribune.com, August 22, 2013. http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130822/NEWS/308220327. “Fine New Dwelling Houses to Be Erected Upon West Side Hills.” Oregonian, June 14, 1931. Fong, Dominique. “Two Studies Bolster Concerns of Former Beaverton View-Master Employees about TCE Contamination.” OregonLive.com, October 5, 2011. http://www.oregonlive.com/beaverton/index.ssf/2011/10/two_studies_bolster_concerns_o.html. Freightliner Corporation. “Twenty-Five Years of Professional Truck Building,” 1972. OREGON 629.11 F86t. Multnomah County Library. Fuenmayor, Ernestina. “Ralph A. and Corina R. Cowden House, 258 Mill Street.” Silverton Landmarks Registration Form. Salem, OR, 2014. Oregon SHPO. Gabrick, Robert. Freightliner Trucks: 1937 through 1981 Photo Archive. Photo Archive Series. Hudson, WI: Iconografix, 2002. Gruber, Gretchen Jane. View Master: The Biography of William B. Gruber. Minneapolis, MN: Mill City Press, 2014. “Harold Wade Doty.” Pencil Points 22 (June 1941): 66. Hart, Eric David. “The Process of Neighborhood Development: The Role of Restrictive Covenants in the Development of Residential Neighborhoods.” M. Urban Studies thesis, Portland State University, 1991. Hawkins, William John, and William F Willingham. Classic Houses of Portland, Oregon: 1850-1950. Portland, OR: Timber Press, 2005. “Help to Find Couple Sought.” Oregonian, March 20, 1941. “House of Frank D. Cohan in Portland, Oregon—Harold W. Doty, Architect.” Architectural Record, August 1933. “In Doty Memorial Show.” Oregonian, March 14, 1943. Jones, Catherine. “Art Field Offers Variety of Exhibits During March.” Oregonian, March 14, 1943. Kreisman, Lawrence, and Glenn W. Mason. The Arts and Crafts Movement in the Pacific Northwest. Portland, Oregon: Timber Press, 2007. “Land ‘Sharks’ on Trial.” Oregonian, March 30, 1929. Lerten, Barney. “(Don’t) Keep on Truckin’: Consolidated Freightways Goes under.” Bend Bugle, September 3, 2002. http://www.bendbugle.com/2002/09/dont-keep-on-truckin-consolidated-freightways-goes-under/. Library of Congress. “Stereograph Cards - Background and Scope.” Prints and Photographs Online Collection, 2015. http://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/stereo/background.html. “Lot Payment Refund Sought.” Oregonian, March 31, 1929. McAlester, Virginia. A Field Guide to American Houses. Revised edition. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2013. McKay, Bruce. “[Ad] Just Completed, Never Been Shown.” Oregonian, March 2, 1930. “Harold Doty Memorial Exhibition.” Bulletin [Portland Museum of Art] 4, no. 7 (March 1943): 1–2. 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