Timeless Stump Houses Never Cease to Amuse

From Age-old Makeshift Shelters to Modern Day Getaway

 

There certainly is a lot of charm in these unusual stump houses as curious visitors photograph and document them from as early as the 1900s to this day. One man even decided to build one of its own and dedicated 22 years to carving out one from the stump of a goliath Sitka Spruce – but it was all well worth the effort. The quirky structure features handmade furniture, built-in shelves, and a cone-shaped, cedar-shingled roof sporting a dormer window and drooping copper peak, and apparently acoustically superior interior.

 

Tree stumps have long served as temporary shelter for road-weary travelers seeking rest or escape from inclement weather. Moving into one as an actual residence is a whole other matter.

As early as 1847 the pioneering McAllister family… (had) set up shelter by hollowing out a stump and making a “Home Sweet Home” there (at the Medicine Creek area) until they could erect a proper house.

Later, on June 20, 1892, a William D. McDonald opened up the very first U.S. Post Office located in the remote northern portion of the Olympic Peninsula… in a large roofed stump… Today the aging icon still stands.

But the most famous of all local stump houses was one located on the Lennstrom family’s property in the tiny community of Edgecomb. In 1903 the Skagit County Times newspaper offered this description of the stump-house:
“Inside it is one good-sized room, which is boarded up and neatly papered and made as comfortable as any apartment could possibly be made. The walls inside slant inward at the top, which gives one the impression rather that it is an upstairs room, otherwise it is not different from any other room.”

Take a look through these images and tell us what you think on our Facebook page!

 

Elwha Post Office, Washington

elwha-1

elwha-2

Lennstrom family’s 3-bedroom Stump House, Edgecomb, 1901

lennstrom-1

lennstrom-2

Noel Wotten’s house, north coast of British Columbia

stump-house-2

stump-house-1

Stump House at Sunway Kelley, northern Washington

sunray-3

sunray-2

 

 

 

 

NEXT UP: MAGNIFICENT WEEKEND HOME IN ALDERSON MOUNTAINS

 

 

NOW TELL US WHAT YOU THINK BY JOINING THE DISCUSSION ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE!

 

 

Article and Image Source 1

Article and Image Source 2

Article and Image Source 3

Article and Image Source 4


READY FOR YOUR NEW CABIN?

Click here to find builders, cabin kits, plans, and designers in your area!