HISTORY IN THE BARN

A considerable amount of Oregon history can be read through the barn at the Willows Homestead:

• The 1890s Horatio Cole barn was moved to its current location in 1908 by James Haun, who enlarged the double-cupola structure to 10,000 square feet. • Haun, a poor settler from Missouri, arrived in the Wallowa Valley in the late 1870s, where he became one of the area’s wealthiest ranchers. He is listed on the “Original Pioneers” plaque on the Wallowa County courthouse. • The twostorey barn was designed to feed workhorses and store hay. • A dairy was added to the north in 1913. A granary, still in good condition, is located to the south. • The house, barn, and granary all were built from locally milled Ponderosa pine.

Homeowner Steve Arment, an accomplished woodworker, created the mantel and fireplace surround from elm wood, pairing the new work to an 1880s hand-carved ash mirror from San Francisco. Art Nouveau tiles surround an antique English coal-stove insert. The door leads to the master bedroom. The parlor fireplace had been walled up, windows shot out by vandals. “We considered that the house might be too far gone,” admit the owners.