Myrtle Point Historic Homes in Coos County, Oregon

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William A. Border Home, by Steven S. Means

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J U M P T O A N A D D R E S S:

525 'A' Street
" William A. Border Home "
Built: 1887
Square Footage: 2108
This home was constructed in 1887 for William A. Border, a venture capitalist, judge and landlord (with his wife) of the Myrtle Point Hotel since 1880. Together with Edward Bender, these two men platted the Border and Bender addition to Myrtle Point. This area begins at Railroad Avenue, the eastern edge of E.E. Catching's donation land claim (now Highway 42) and continues up the hill to Border and Bender streets, named after the two men.

For the curious, this explains the curious street names of 'A', 'B' and 'C' street in the middle of town and the reason why the streets are a different width and take an interesting jog beginning at Railroad Avenue. When the Border and Bender edition was added to Myrtle Point there was an empty space between the current town and the newly platted streets. One section was done using true north, the other using magnetic north. When the two sections were joined by the middle section being platted, the interesting jog in the street was the result.

Source: Pioneers and Incidents of the Upper Coquille Valley by Alice Wooldridge, c1972 p.36

The Home Today
"In the Spring of 2006 it was time to paint the lady once again. Deb [Means] looked deep into a purple pansy and found a natural color scheme. We started slowly. We worked 120 days. Three shades of purple from light to dark: Lilac Rose, Wildflower & Blackberry Farm. The white is called Bridal Veil, the yellow is Sunflower."
Source: Steven S. Means, Home in the Border House (was http://web.mac.com/stevenmeans/MeansFamily/HomeInTheBorderHouse.html)

Obituary of William A. Border Coos Pioneer Passes
News was received this week of the death of an Old Pioneer of Coos County, William A. Border, who passed away in Portland, Ore., at the home of his daughter, Mrs. L.W. Traver. Mr. Border reached the ripe age of 93 years. In the early days Mr. Border operated the Myrtle Point Hotel for a number of years. He also lived in Marshfield for several years before moving to Portland. A good portion of the town site of Myrtle Point was originally owned by W.A. Border and Edward Bender.

Source: Southern Coos County American, Myrtle Point, OR, Mar. 20, 1919