This 1910 Craftsman-style house includes collections of:   mermaids, artistamps, crowns, hamburgers, a Cadillac couch, 10 
foot clothes pin, a rare Soundie Machine, over 500 hats, John 
Steinbeck's doorstop, Cher's pants, The Woman Who Married Her 
House wedding cake, kitsch and the little roadster that went coast to coast.
 

1928 S. E. Ladd Avenue Portland, Oregon 97214 503-232-0433

Map to this location

Built:  1910
Area:  5,956 square feet
Height:  47 feet
Weight:  409,200 pounds
Occupation:  The Hat Museum
Hobbies:  Preservation and Keeping Alyce Happy
Pet peeves:  Traffic and dog hair
Member:  Ladd's Addition
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Portland was growing up around William S. Ladd's sheep pasture.  A trolley car ran along its north border on Hawthorne Avenue.  Ladd of the Ladd-Tilton Bank,  refused to divide and develop his property until the idea was right.  He found his plan, as legend goes, on a visit to Washington, D.C.

In 1891 Ladd returned from the nation's capitol with a capital idea.  He had a plan (one of the first attempts at city planning on the West Coast) for a neighborhood designed for a quality life. 

Ladd's Addition is a system of diagonal streets, four diamond-shaped rose gardens and a center circle named Central Park on the original plan.  Driveways are uncommon--instead a 
series of alleys connect neighbors and garages.  A 1922 advertisement for Ladd's Addition called it, "A residential section for cultured people." 

It's also been called, "The place where the streets go crazy."  Visitors to Ladd's Addition have been known to get lost while on foot!  Sunset Magazine featured Ladd's Addition in its May 1983 issue and walking tours of the neighborhood are usually conducted in May.  Many of the historic homes are open for tour day.
 

Ladd-Reingold House

Iron rings for tethering horses still decorate curbs and the largest stand of elms in the city is in Ladd's Addition.  In 1977 Ladd's Addition was designated an Historic Conservation District and currently 122 Ladd houses are considered of Primary Historic Significance and are eligible for the National Historic Registry. 

One of these houses is the Ladd-Reingold House.  Build in 1910 and owned by the Reingold family, the house is of Craftsman-style architecture which is characterized by large over-hanging eaves.

There are several similar homes in Ladd's Addition, however, this is the only house with a large wide A-design on its southwest side. The house has four levels and 17 rooms, was originally heated with sawdust furnace and features leaded glass windows, a dumb waiter and closets so large that they have their own windows. 

The Ladd-Reingold House survived a depressing period after the 1950's and was abandoned for nearly 5 years.  Restoration began in 1974 and continues today.  Ladd's Addition itself has been in a revitalization mode since the late '70's. 
 

She watches the house from the garage

Secret hiding places, enclosed rooms, prohibition stills and occasional "spirits" are typical with Ladd houses.  The Ladd-Reingold House is no exception.  A dumb waiter (a small elevator-type shaft) between the basement and kitchen, was discovered in 1980 behind a kitchen wall.  A man's clay pipe was found over a basement beam evidently left by a workman while building the house nearly 100 years ago.  A Civil War era bullet was uncovered in the yard with a metal detector in 1978.  A secret hiding place in the main floor fireplace was found empty.  A fencing foil was found in the attic when insulation was added in the flooring area.

The house has been used for photography sessions and in 1984 was the scene for a movie set. 

The Ladd-Reingold House is currently owned by period kitsch collector Alyce Cornyn-Selby, author and international speaker.  Nicknamed "The Museum" by clients and friends, the Ladd-Reingold House has plenty of artifacts--a 1940 movie arcade player, a 10-foot clothes pin, hat and costume collection, a couch made out of a 1966 red Cadillac and a full sized British phone booth.

Whoever said, "Home is the one wild place in a world of rules," probably had the Ladd-Reingold House in mind when they said it.

The Ladd-Reingold House was the scene of an unusual wedding in 1996 and was featured on the Leeza Show, the Maury Povich Show, Linda Ellerbee's Talk Soup and the  Carol and Marilyn Show, AM Northwest, the National Inquirer, the Sun and in British television and newspapers.

HGTV's "If Walls Could Talk" show featured the Ladd-Reingold 
House and the amazing coincidences between the various owners 
of the house.
 
 

Alyce Cornyn-Selby is an International speaker and  popular talk show guest and author of What’s Your Sabotage? and the Procrastinator’s Success Kit  available secured on-line ordering or 1-800-937-7771 or Amazon.com. 
Email questions/comments:  justalyce@usa.net
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