Lorane, OR
While Lorane is nowhere near dead (Pop. 389), I chose this town as my family has deep roots here. The old DB Cartwright house is where I'll be spending some time this summer. My Great-Great-Grandmother bought this place in 1889. It was passed on to her son in 1902, and my Grandmother was born there in 1911, she'll be celebrating her 95th Birthday this year!
Apparently Cartwright had the frame of the house hewn from cedar logs and the outside of the house was of fir lumber.. The nails were square-headed and hand forged and puttied over to prevent rust. (My Uncle Jerry went by there when they were tearing the house down and the carpenters gave him some of the nails from the house.) There were 15 rooms in the house, with living rooms on both floors. They had running water in the house which came by means of a series of hollowed out logs which ran from Cowell Creek behind the house to the kitchen, then out by a drain made of similar hollow logs. There was room for 12 double beds in the house but only one closet under the stairway which was used to store guns. Pegs were driven into the walls to hang clothing on. D. B. Cartwright built the cabinetwork in the house himself in both the dining room and kitchen. There were elaborate cornices at the eaves, 12 paned windows throughout and a massive double front door which required a 9 inch key. Porches on both floors ran the full length of the house. If you know what Lincoln's house in Illinois looks like, you have a good idea of what this house looked like. I'll get some old pics up soon. It is believed that General U.S. Grant, before he became president of the U. S. was an overnight guest at the hotel while traveling from Portland to San Francisco. Geez, where DIDN'T Grant sleep?

William Russell bought the house from his father-in-law in May of 1866, renaming it the Mountain House Hotel. Cartwright remained there however, until his death in 1875. Russell established a telegraph station at the hotel during the Civil War and his wife, Katie Cartwright was the first telegraph operator. One of the first messages received was the news of the assassination of President Lincoln. It was necessary to relay the message by horseback to Cottage Grove however, as there was no telegraph to that town at the time.
After the railroad was built through Cottage Grove and there was no longer a need for the less comfortable stagecoaches, the Mountain House ceased it's operation as a hotel. The Cartwright-Russell heirs used it as their home until 1889 when it was purchased by Nancy E. Addison along with 200 acres of land. It remained in the family until 1953. The first pic is of the historical marker, the second is of the site as it is now, with Dianna in the foreground.