Situated alongside winding Lincoln Creek Road, a substantial turn-of-the-last century farmhouse sitting on nearly 8 acres in rural Lewis County stands as a holdout to a storied past.
Hand-built before the days of plumbing or electricity, earliest county records found to date place the home as standing by 1900.
Originally owned by the Webster family, whose descendants still live in the area, the home was sold to G.W. Padham in 1918, and family members lived there until 1959. The home is known locally as the Padham home.
The home’s connection to the farming community is strong. Generations spent much of their lives here, and descendants often return to the property to reminisce about times past.
Modern for its time, the home was built in the American Four Square design, an arts and crafts or prairie school architectural style of mid-1890 to the 1920s, which evolved in reaction to the ornate elements of the Victorian era, which came before it.
The American Four Square is characterized by a main 30-by-30-foot design, two stories, usually with 45-degree bay windows, added rooms, a large front porch and an emphasis on quality, handcrafted woodwork throughout.
The Padham home was most likely constructed from old-growth timber milled locally. Shiplapped boards served as framing, and the interior doors, wainscoting and framing were built from vertical grain fir.
With various families having moved in and out of the home and different uses of the property over recent decades, including as a bird-hunting base, the Padham home had lost much of its original charm.
Fixtures updated over the years had become outdated; woodwork was marred, and ceilings were lowered. As many as nine different layers of wallpaper covered some walls, while others were painted in mismatched, gaudy colors.
A deep connection to Centralia and a passionate interest in historic preservation, coupled with the pristine architecture and solid bones of the home, attracted the current owners, Daren and Brandy Richardson, of Rochester. Their family business, Alpine Heights Inc., is based on fine woodworking and successful restoration of architecturally significant homes in Southwest Washington.
The Richardsons have spent nearly every day over the past year painstakingly restoring the 11-room Padham home to its original beauty. The work is nearing completion and will soon be put on the market.
“People love this home,” Brandy said. “We love it, too, and we’ll miss it. It’s been a joy to bring it back for the community.”
A persistent smell of honey was present when restoration work began. Tearing out the lowered ceiling in a front parlor, they discovered a large hive of honeybees between the floors and inside the chimney. Undaunted, Daren his the youngest son, Eli, 16, suited up and successfully moved the hive, queen and all, into a new home.
A barn owl had taken up residence and was gently escorted out. A jacuzzi tub had been installed upstairs, nearly filling an entire small room. The only way to remove it was through a window. Renting a lift, the Richardsons slid the tub down the side of the house to the ground.
Considerable research to ensure restoration fits the era of when the home was built has resulted in serendipitous period-appropriate finds.
A designer friend was consulted, and damascene wallpaper purchased from Europe now graces the parlor and dining room walls. A rare crystal Adolf Schonbek chandelier like those from the turn of the last century was found on Facebook marketplace. A passerby who stopped in one day heard Daren mention a Merritt Parlor woodstove they had also seen for sale, and she drove to Forks to pick it up for the house.
The Richardsons’ three kids have assisted with the renovation, including tedious labor. A decorative wrought iron gate at the driveway was welded by their son Devon, 18, a recent graduate of Centralia College who earned a certificate of proficiency in welding. Their daughter Drew, 18, currently completing a business degree at the college, has documented the entire restoration process and has built a website for the house. Once renovations are complete, Eli, now in his junior year at Heart High, plans to refinish a vintage player piano that was left in the house.
“We’ve literally had hundreds of people stop by when we’re working, and they just want to see the home and talk about it,” said Daren. “It’s meant a lot to the community to see it being restored.”
The Richardson family sees the restoration as giving back to the community. They hosted a community open house at the home in September and plan another one after the holidays.
Daren said it’s unusual to have a workday go by without someone stopping. Visitors have included 90-year-old Mary Lou Padham, who was born in the house.
One day a full school bus emptied out in the driveway to see the renovation underway. Centralia School District Board President Tim Browning had organized his annual tour of the district for incoming principals, superintendents and others.
“Mr. Browning said he believes it’s important for school officials to fully know the area that their students come from,” Daren said. “And that means homes in the country where families have lived and worked and raised their children, such as this one.”
For more information, visit https://www.lincolncreekrestoration.com/.
