As an avid fan of history, I love seeing old photos, buildings and artifacts preserved for future generations to enjoy and appreciate, so I read with regret the news that Frank Mason had died Aug. 15, 2024, at the age of 83.
I didn’t know Frank well, but I’ve enjoyed the fruits of his many labors. When I attended the Lewis County Republican Party’s Lincoln Day Dinner upstairs in the Hotel Washington in Chehalis, I discovered an appreciation for his vocation — construction, especially rehabilitating old buildings — and his avocation when I descended the stairs into the Vintage Antique Motorcycle Museum.
I gazed in awe at the restored vintage motorcycles and learned about Indians dating back to 1902, so when my nephew put an Indian sign touting the deep red cycles on his Christmas wish list, I knew exactly what he sought. I saw early Harley Davidsons, Excelsiors, Thors and other two-wheeled motorcycles and even 19th century bicycles.
Mason grew up in Chehalis, where he delivered newspapers, collected scrap metal, picked blackberries and worked as a bellhop at the St. Helens Hotel during high school.
The St. Helens Hotel, an iconic Chehalis landmark also known as the St. Helens Inn, first opened as a wooden hotel in May 1891 when city leaders shifted the commercial district from Main Street to Market Boulevard. Former U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt stayed in the hotel in 1914. W.F. West, son of William West, Father of Chehalis, constructed the existing building at 440 N. Market Blvd., which opened in 1921, according to the city of Chehalis. After fire damaged the St. Helens Apartments in the 1970s, the building easily could have been demolished. However, Mason, who founded Mason Construction Co. in 1971, remodeled the building, which today sits on the National Register of Historic Places.
As with the St. Helens, the Hotel Washington also suffered damage from a fire. Mason restored the hotel, preserving the 1889 building from demolition and creating commercial space with character in downtown Chehalis. As his obituary stated, “Frank saw potential where others saw ruin.” He earned the Washington State Historic Preservation Award for his efforts.
Another iconic historic building still standing today, thanks to Mason, is the Judge Seymour White House, built in 1904 at 120 NW Pacific Ave. across from the Lewis County Courthouse. Ella Simmons, known for wearing red lipstick, later purchased the three-story Victorian home and, some say, operated a brothel or “house of ill repute” there until the early 1970s, according to the city of Chehalis. The home deteriorated, and city officials declared it a public nuisance in 1986, slating it for demolition. But Mason stepped in to save the home and restore it. Simmons lived rent-free in the house from 1989 until 1996, when ill health forced her into a nursing home. Shakespeare & Company bookstore and café opened in the home in the summer of 2017. The building later housed the Dandelion Creative Space. In June 2023, the Lewis County Dignity Guild established its headquarters in the building.
In 1984, Mason remodeled the second floor of the Boistfort Plaza at Boistfort and Market to create a mini-mall with more than a dozen shops.
Six years later, he built a 5,200-square-foot brick-and-oak mansion for orthopedic surgeon Dr. Carl Birchard and his wife, Dee, a registered nurse, where they often hosted convalescing missionaries and families in need of shelter.
Nearly two decades ago, the Lewis County Literacy Council received a Book Warehouse donation of 21,300 books but didn’t have enough room for all of them. David Hartz, owner of Book ‘N’ Brush on Market Boulevard, spoke with Mason, who owns the building and agreed to expand the bookstore into the former D&J Meat Market. The expansion doubled the size of Book ‘N’ Brush while also supporting the Literacy Council and Chehalis Friends of the Library.
Mason also gave back to the community, serving on the local airport board, St. Helens Hospital Board, and, from 1999 to 2005, as a Port of Chehalis commissioner.
Frank and Barbara (Back) Mason, his wife of 62 years, also supported local community events, such as the Chehalis Bridal Show and the annual Adna Car Show, which used the couple’s property to raise money for student scholarships.
Frank is survived by his wife, their two children, Kristine Redford and Todd Mason, and six grandchildren.
I loved what his beautifully written obituary stated: “Despite his many accomplishments, Frank remained humble and approachable, always ready with a story, a bit of practical wisdom, or a warm smile. He was a down-home philosopher, a humorist, and a true gentleman who never forgot his roots. His legacy lives on in the buildings he constructed, the motorcycles he restored, and the countless lives he touched through his work and community service.”
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Julie McDonald, a personal historian from Toledo, may be reached at memoirs@chaptersoflife.com.
