1926 Seaside beach house, the summer home of one of Oregon’s richest men, is for sale at $2.5M

For sale is a Seaside beach house in the Arts and Crafts style that was constructed for plywood magnate Thomas J. Autzen, whose family provided funding for Autzen Stadium at the University of Oregon.

One of the wealthiest individuals in Oregon used to spend the summers at the four-story home with a view of the beachside promenade. The Reunion House has been a holiday rental since 2001, when it underwent restoration that kept its elegance and century-old materials.

The furnished home on 0.23 acres at 1021 S. Promis is being offered for $2.5 million.

Ten years after Autzen served as president of his family’s timber business, the Portland Manufacturing Co., which became wealthy by inventing the production and distribution of plywood, the seaside home was constructed in 1926.

The property has a separate tax lot in the back and the dwelling in the front. Behind the home, there’s a gaming pavilion with an outdoor shower and sauna, a gazebo, a hot tub, and a patio with a fire pit that faces the ocean.

Listing broker Christy Coulombe of Saltaire Coastal Homes told The Oregonian/OregonLive that this house will appeal to people who value Oregon’s past and have a taste for fine craftsmanship.

According to her, the home’s grandeur, thoughtful detailing, and historical materials make it a unique legacy property. As soon as you enter, you get a feeling of nostalgia, as if you are entering a live piece of history.

Ora Mabyn Akers, a Portland-based architect who worked from 1921 to 1929, created the wood-framed house with cedar shingle siding, according to the Seaside Historic Survey inventory description.

Thirty of Akers’ initial house plans were rendered and published in The Telegram Plan Book in 1924.He created the opulent Shaunavon Hotel in Shaunavon, Saskatchewan, in 1915 before moving to Oregon from his home country of Canada.

According to Coulombe, the Autzen beach home stands out due to its features and size, which is currently 4,532 square feet.

According to her, many of the houses constructed along the Prom at the turn of the century were more modest. Prioritizing views of the ocean and Tillamook Head, the upstairs was created with an en suite bathroom—a rare luxury for the time.

The living area features a cobblestone fireplace surrounded by a wood mantel and stone hearth, as well as hand-hewn beams. The dining area features pocket doors, antique light fixtures, a corner display cabinet, and big windows that frame the seaside view.

There is a breakfast nook with tole-painted doors next to the kitchen cabinetry, which are original and come with stainless appliances.

The property includes four bedrooms upstairs and one bedroom on the first floor. The main suite’s windows provide expansive views of the headlands and ocean.

One of the three complete bathrooms features a built-in vanity, a pedestal sink, and vintage white hex tiling.

On the third floor are an east-facing bedroom and a soaring family area with a gas fireplace and expansive views.

The completed basement features storage, laundry, and shower stalls in the old-fashioned style with access to the outside.

Autzen history

Both here and at his palaces in Portland, Thomas J. Autzen, who lived from 1888 to 1958, spared no cost. Crafted hardwood floors and molding abound in his 1917 starter home, a Dutch Colonial in the Cathedral Park neighborhood of North Portland, and his 1927 Tudor Revival-style home in the Alameda neighborhood of Northeast Portland.

At the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition in 1905, Autzen was assigned to oversee a display that introduced three-ply panels of Douglas fir veneer when he was just 17 years old.

The young Autzen and the mill’s supervisor came up with a glue spreader that allowed softwood plys to adhere to one another, which was used to mass produce the panels.

Since then, the company’s plywood brand has evolved into a catch-all phrase for a building material that transformed the door, cabinet, and building sectors.

Autzen worked summers at the company’s St. Johns riverside operation after the Lewis and Clark Expo closed and enrolled at what is now Oregon State University in Corvallis. After earning a degree in electrical engineering in 1909, he began working for the company.

The 30-year-old Autzen took over as president of the company after his father passed away from injuries sustained in a 1918 car accident. He diligently promoted plywood all over the world during the Depression, World War II, and—most successfully—the post-war housing boom.

In addition to other charitable and education-based organizations in Oregon, his philanthropic Autzen Foundation was the biggest contributor to the University of Oregon’s stadium in Eugene.

The philanthropist Thomas E. Autzen, the son of Thomas Autzen, who attended the University of Oregon, is honored by the name of Autzen Stadium.

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Janet Eastman writes on trends and design. You can follow her on X@janeteastman and contact her at 503-294-4072 and jeastman@oregonian.com.

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