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George C Marshall House 1886
E Evergreen Blvd
GEORGE C. MARSHALL HOUSE 1886
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GEORGE C. MARSHALL HOUSE 1886
This home is named for its most famous occupant, George C. Marshall.
The Marshall family lived in the house from 1936 to 1938, when they hosted the unexpected crew of the Soviet Trans Polar flight.
President Roosevelt visited in the 1930’s.
The Vancouver American Red Cross headquartered here in the 1940’s, and the internationally acclaimed Nihonga Art Exhibit showed here in 1986.
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC Donated by Vancouver Granite Works
Text from Historic Marker for Officers Row
E Evergreen Blvd
AN ABUNDANT LAND
One of the advantages of this post was the excellent supply of food’s and crops.
Soldiers and settlers were familiar with products grown here: apples, peaches, hay, potatoes, beans, rutabagas, carrots, cabbage, oats and barley. Beef and mutton were easily fattened in grassy meadows. Fruit from the Hawaiian Islands and California oranges were often available. Fish and wild game were abundant year round. Donated by Great Western Malting Co.
Text from Historic Marker for Officers Row
Text from Historic Marker for Officers Row
A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT
Vancouver was praised for its moderate and healthful climate, compared to many military posts around the West.
Relatively few viruses, fevers, cholera or other infections that commonly raged through military camps afflicted the garrison here.
Dr. Glisan, stationed in Oregon Territory in the 1850’s, considered his military obligations easy work, providing him ample time to administer to the settlers of the area for additional fees. Donated by Security Pacific Bank Washington
E Evergreen Blvd
Text from Historic Marker for Officers Row
THE SPANISH AMERICAN WAR
????? The Spanish American Was Vancouver Barracks was a provisional supply and shipping center for provisioning American troops in the Philippines.
General Thomas Anderson, post commander, became the first U. S. General to serve overseas. Donated by Tidewater Barge Lines, Inc.
WORLD WAR I
Text from Historic Marker for Officers Row World War initiated an era of growth in Vancouver. Wooden shipbuilding became a major civilian industry.
Remnants of old shipways are found immediately south of Officers Row.
The garrison’s polo field made an excellent landing field for daredevils and wingwalkers as early as 1911.
The first documented flight at the field occurred in 1905 when a gasfilled balloon from Portland landed there.
Pearson Air Field, a former Army air strip, is believed to the be the oldest continuously operating airpark in the country.
Donated by Jack M. Jochim
63
E Evergreen Blvd
OFFICERS ROW
Officers Row, a procession of homes for officers and their families, began during the early frontier years when Vancouver Barracks was considered by many to be a remote and lonely assignment. The first officer’s quarters on the Row were log cabins built in 1850 – the only surviving example is now called the Grant House.
By the time the Department Commander’s quarters (now known as the Marshall House) was constructed in 1886, Vancouver Barracks was the headquarters for the Department of the Columbia and considered a prestige post.
Set apart from the rest of the post, Officers Row commanded a view of the entire garrison from the Parade Ground down to the Columbia River.
Both in placement and style, the Row highlighted the separation between officers and enlisted men. Some of the residences were later converted to clubs, where officers spent much of their free time.
The Row was carefully maintained through World War II, until the Army shifted its focus away from Vancouver Barracks.
The 21 structures were transferred to the City of Vancouver in the 1980s, and the homes rehabilitated in order to preserve the national significance of this site.
Text from Interpretive Panel for Officers Row
E Evergreen Blvd
Text from Historic Marker for Officers Row WORLD WAR II
At the start of World War II Vancouver emerged as a major shipbuilding center with supporting construction industries. President Franklin Roosevelt visited several times while the famed activist-composer, Woody Guthrie, found work in nearby shipyards.
Army activities began to shift to Camp Lewis and the glory days of Vancouver Barracks began to fade.
The post remains today as an active Army training center for the region. Donated by Keily Punteney and Bob Colf
