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Zimmerman House

Old Glory

Welcome to the Zimmerman House Museum
Thousands of artifacts fill the many rooms of the Zimmerman House. Many hours have and will be spent sorting, inventorying and cataloging this enormous collection. An intact collection of this size, exclusively owned by one family that remained in the same house for over 120 years, is rare among historical house museums throughout the United States.
The Historic Zimmerman House Museum is a delightful, 1874 farmhouse situated  in a rapidly urbanizing area of Northwest Gresham in East  Multnomah County, Oregon. The farmhouse is located on  5.98 acres, a remnant parcel  of the original dairy farmstead  that at one time extended over 600 acres of reclaimed  bottom land along the Columbia  River. The historic Zimmerman house and 1.58 acres of historical  property was listed on the  National Register of Historic  Places on June 5, 1986.
From the time Jacob and Lena Zimmerman purchased the property  in 1869, the Zimmerman family  had continuously lived on  the farm until the death of  their youngest granddaughter, Isobel Faith Zimmerman in 1992. It was Isobel’s desire  that the house, contents and  remaining 2.38 acres of farmland  be developed as a historic  house museum for future generations.
In 1987, Isobel joined ECHO as a charter  member. Subsequently, Isobel  willed the home to our organization for the purpose of preserving  the house, its comprehensive  collection of artifacts, its  gardens and grounds. In 1994  the land was donated to the City of Gresham for the purpose  of creating a community park.  ECHO received title to the  home in 1995. In 1996, the  City purchase an additional 1.5 acres directly west of  the House and in 1997 Kenneth Holfman, Isobel’s nephew,  donated and additional 2.1  acres to the City bringing  the overall park site to 5.98  acres
In 1997 ECHO commissioned  Robert Dortignacq of Dortignacq  & Associates Architects in Portland, Oregon to investigate the structural integrity of  the house and develop a restoration-rehabilitation  and accessibility plan for  the house.
In 1999, the City of Gresham  commissioned Slusarenko Architecture, PC to develop a Master Plan  for the development of historical  City of Gresham Park called  the Zimmerman Heritage Farm.
The historic house and the  grounds are managed through  a partnership arrangement  between the City of Gresham  and Fairview, Rockwood, Wilkes, Historical Society, whereby the City  owns the property and FRWHS owns the house and its contents.

ZIMMERMAN: About Us
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