Historians are mourning the loss of one of the Rogue Valley’s oldest residences, the Stimson House, which was toppled by bulldozer blades last weekend.

"One thing is for certain, we’ll never get this one back," said George Kramer, a local historic preservation consultant. "And it’s a shame when they go."

Built by the Stimson family in 1869, the two-story, tin-roofed, wood-frame structure sat upon its stone foundation on North Foothill Road for 136 years.

Former owner Eugene Coggins said he and his wife, Judith, were devastated when they discovered the house had been demolished while they were on vacation.

"The rubble of the chimney and the foundation was all that was left when we got back home," said Eugene Coggins. "My wife can’t even talk about it."

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Owner Dr. David Folsom said he’s sorry the old house had to be demolished. But he spent two years trying to find someone who would help save the dilapidated structure. No one came forward, he said.

"It would have been lovely to have saved the building," said Folsom. "But I couldn’t get anyone to participate in any meaningful way."

Judith Coggins’ father, Harry Blackburn, purchased the home along with 160 acres in 1935. The Blackburn family raised hay, turkeys, chickens and cattle on the property.

The Folsoms purchased the home and 79 acres in 2000 following Blackburn’s death in 1997, Eugene Coggins said.

Folsom said the decaying structure created a liability he could no longer bear.

"The floors were rotted and the walls were rotted," said Folsom. "You could see through the walls to the outside and you could see from the outside into the house."

Folsom said the home was repeatedly broken into during the two years he tried to find help. His insurance company told him he was maintaining an attractive nuisance.

"The house was incredibly dangerous," said Folsom.

Contractor renovation estimates exceeded $100,000, Folsom said — too costly a venture to restore a home for which he had no personal sentimental attachment.

Still trying to find a way to save the building, Folsom approached the Southern Oregon Historical Society for help, he said.

"They weren’t willing to help restore the house," said Folsom.

The financially strapped historical society doesn’t have money to purchase or refurbish these disappearing treasures, said SOHS Executive Director John Enders. Jackson County has no policy in place to protect privately owned historic homes, he said. Worse, said Enders, the county may soon lose millions of dollars in federal timber subsidies, likely leaving SOHS heavily dependent upon private funding.

Enders said historic properties should be placed on the National Register of Historic Places or have conditions for their preservation attached to the sale.

"The by-product of massive development is the destruction of our historic landmarks," said Enders. "People have recourse, but they have to take steps prior to sale."

Kramer agreed.

"If people really want to save a house, there’s always a way," Kramer said. "Either before they sell it or after they buy it. In this case, the seller and the buyer didn’t step up to the plate to make sure the house was saved, and now we’ve lost more history."

The family did not place protective deed restrictions on the home prior to its sale, Coggins said. He and his wife thought the house had been placed on the national register by other family members, he said.

"But it was not," said Coggins. "If we’d realized it hadn’t been, we wouldn’t have sold it until it was."

Folsom said Coggins approached him the day after the sale, asking him to donate the house and five acres back to the family. Folsom declined.

"I wasn’t interested in deeding property the day after I’d just bought it," said Folsom.

Folsom later offered to give the family the home if Coggins would move it across the road onto property still owned by Coggins’ wife and her siblings, Folsom said.

Coggins denied that Folsom offered the house for free if he moved it. Coggins asked Folsom to name a price for the house and an acre of property.

"But he never got back to me," said Coggins.

Folsom doesn’t understand why the Cogginses didn’t rescue the house themselves, instead of blaming him.

"I did quite a bit of legwork," said Folsom. "And I did offer him the house. If he wanted to pay to move it, he could have moved it. He had the money from the sale."

When it comes to historical structures, there are only three options — "Do nothing, rehab it, or tear it down," Kramer said. After-the-fact finger-pointing won’t bring back one of the valley’s oldest homes, he said.

"It’s unfortunate that the (Stimson House) is gone," said Kramer. "Everybody had good intentions here, but it just didn’t work out."

Reach reporter Sanne Specht at 776-4497 or e-mail sspecht@mailtribune.com

The vulnerable Wood House is not on the National Register of Historic Places

The recent bulldozing of the Stimson House has Eagle Point historians redoubling their efforts to preserve the Wood House, a picturesque two-story structure on the east side of Highway 62 just north of Eagle Point.

"We are trying to save the Wood House from the same fate as what happened to the Stimson House," said Skip Geear of the Eagle Point Historical Society.

The house was built in 1870 by Civil War veteran Marvin Sylvester Wood. A snowcapped Mount McLoughlin backdrop makes the homestead a popular attraction.

"There’s a gazillion photos and art paintings of this house," said Geear.

The house sits on 38 acres purchased by Californian James Folan in 1983. Folan donated the house to the society in 2000, said Geear.

"In 2001 we negotiated a seven-year lease on one acre for $200 a month," said Geear. "The lease is up in 2008."

The Wood House has not been placed under the protection of the National Register of Historic Places, putting the Doug fir dwelling on dangerous ground, Geear said.

"We can’t get it registered because you have to own the land the structure sits on," said Geear. If Folan declines to reinstate the lease, the house will have to be moved — or it could be legally destroyed, said Geear.

County budget cuts to historical societies likely means Eagle Point will have a difficult time findingfunds to protect the Wood House, he said.

"We need to stop these things from happening," said Geear. "I’ve been to the county commissioners and they say, ‘Our hands are tied.’ "

The Wood House is an important historic landmark, said John Enders, executive director of the Southern Oregon Historical Society.

But the potential loss of millions of dollars to Jackson County in 2007 — when federal timber subsidies are due to run out — means funding for SOHS and other historical societies remains uncertain, he said.

Every effort should be made to preserve these dwindling historic monuments, said George Kramer, a local historic preservation consultant.

"There are only about 40 or 50 (historical houses) left in the whole county," said Kramer. "And only about 10 houses that are that old."

Renovating a decaying historic structure can be costly, said Kramer. But in the long term, preservation can result in profits.

The oldest house in Jackson County is the Mountain House, built in 1853. The home on Old Siskiyou Highway near Greensprings is now living a new life as a bed and breakfast inn, said Kramer.

"Renovated historic space is worth more than new construction," said Kramer.

Eugene Coggins’ wife, Judith, grew up in the Stimson House. Coggins said he and his wife are still upset the home was demolished. But saving the Wood House would take some of the sting out of losing their family’s history, he said.

"If (the publicity) will save the other houses, then I guess the sacrifice of the old house was worth it," Coggins said.