Old World Carpenter digging into the "Father of Dalles City"
Tobias Ammon of Old World Carpentry and Furniture exposed the substructure on one of the oldest houses in The Dalles on Tuesday, Sept. 19.The N.H. Gates House at 511 Union Street was home to the “Father of Dalles City”
By Tom Peterson
The Dalles, Ore., Sept. 19, 2023- Tobias Ammon was poking around in the underbelly of the historic house at 511 Union Street in The Dalles this morning, Sept. 19.
While some of the trim wood on this post had seen better days. The post itself was still solid.
The 59-year-old from Hood River had his trusty timber ax to cut mortise and tenons as he sized up the restoration of the porch at the N.H. Gates House that was built around 1860 - 163 years ago.
Ammon threw his tape measure on the dimensionally correct 2” x 6”s supporting the porch.
Don’t see that too often.
You don’t see this too often either - Ammon stands next to his trusty ‘85 Mercedes van imported from Germany no less.
He also showed off his 1985 Mercedes extended van he had imported from Kronach, Germany, where the vehicle started its life as a fire truck. Ammon grew up in Germany himself in the Black Forrest before moving to the Northwest in 1990. He admitted to eating a lot of Swiss Chocolate.
He said the gas motor in the Mercedes would go a million miles, and he bought it with just 11,000 miles several years ago before having it shipped to the United States.
John F Ratchye, 64, who owns the Gates House said he was happy to get Tobias working on the porch.
“He’s a real craftsman,” he said. “He’s kind of a busy guy. He’s just going to do the front porch now, and I'll see If I can get more of his time and figure out what to do. The kitchen is kind of an add-on… I like to cook more than the kitchen accommodates.”
Ratchye said he purchased the historic home earlier this year after living in Hood River and White Salmon.
He said the price of the home drove him to The Dalles. “I want to stay in the Gorge, and this made it affordable. I looked a long time, my real estate agent was super helpful and patient with me.”
And he liked the historic appeal.
The plaque in the front yard states the original owner of the house was the Father of Dalles City.
The house has a distinctive triparted upper window and label moldings on its front facade.
Notice the triparted upper window on the N.H. Gates House at 511 Union.
N.H. Gates was called the “Father of Dalles City” for carrying the city’s incorporation through the state legislature in 1857. Gates, a practicing lawyer, was elected Mayor five times, served on the City Council during the years 1855-59, 1867-69, 1873-75, and as City Recorder in 1890. The house remained in the ownership of the Gates family until 1946 and its last restoration occurred in 1992.
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From Cheryl Gates on Facebook:
He is my husband’s gr-gr-grandfather. I have a couple of pictures of that house. One is from the late 1930s. There has to be an old privy around there too. The stair railing inside came off the Bailey Gatzert. The matching side is in the Gates Hotel going up the stairs to the rooms. I have an interior shot from around the 1870s of my husband’s gr-gr-grandmother in the parlor. Col. Gates was also Speaker of The House in 1858 for Oregon Territory. He was General Gates in 1877 during the Indian Wars. He had a "desk job" and the title was given to him by a then gov. of Oregon. He earned the Colonel rank. He was a very interesting man. His lineage is a who's who of American and English history. His mother was a descendant of the Boleyn family in England. Col. Gates died in 1889. He was not city recorder. His son, N. H. "Ned" Gates was. Contrary to what the plaques say, Col. Gates was never called Ned. He was called Nat. As was his grandson, Robert Nathanial "Nat" Darragh, son of Capt. John Darragh who was adjatant to General Crook and son-in-law to Col. Gates. I hate the color on this house. No way was that the original color. I don't know what the original color was but a small scrape could be taken and tested for the original color.
