The Irvington Home Tour

Since 1967, the Irvington Home Tour has been opening doors to our past, present and future, giving participants an inside look at homes in the Irvington National Historic District, the largest such district in Oregon and one of the largest in the country. This year’s 6-home event, brought to you for the 41st time, includes an impressive array of styles, from Prairie Craftsman to Mediterranean Revival. Located slightly outside the main tour area is a seventh “bonus” house, which is just completing a two year restoration.

Each year proceeds from the Irvington Home tour provide critical support for local schools and non-profits, as well as community-wide programs and events. Our giving program focuses on youth and seniors, ranging from preschool scholarships to ride-shares for shut-ins. You can see a list of past recipients and learn more about the Irvington Community Association’s charitable giving guidelines here.

Some beneficiaries of past home tour fundraising include:

Home Tour Etiquette

To ensure an enjoyable and safe experience for all, please follow these guidelines:

• Admission is by ticket only, no exceptions.

• Children under the age of 7 are not permitted inside homes – with the exception of infants carried in “front packs.”

• No high-heeled shoes! Comfortable walking shoes are recommended.

• Booties are provided and must be worn over shoes (not over socks or bare feet - no exceptions).

• No opening of drawers, cabinets, or closets.

• No handling of any household furnishings.

• No smoking, eating, or drinking while on private property.

• No photography or video cameras allowed inside homes.

• No pets.

• Do not use the restrooms in tour homes (restrooms are available in the Irvington Club).

Irvington Home Tour Participant Liability Waiver

By purchasing a ticket and attending this year’s home tour event, you and all members of your party agree to the following terms. This is for the protection of the homeowners who have so generously opened their homes for you to enjoy.

I / We (all members in my party) understand that the Irvington Home Tour and Irvington Community Association members, homeowners, and volunteers assume no legal liability associated with this event.

By attending this event, I / We (all members in my party) agree to hold the Irvington Home Tour and Irvington Community Association members, homeowners and volunteers harmless from any and all liability claims of any nature which may arise in connection with this event.

The full waiver is available here: irvingtonpdx.com/waiver

Moreover, I acknowledge that I have been given the opportunity to read the liability waiver in full.

History of the Irvington Home Tour

The inaugural Irvington Home Tour, conducted in 1967, was the first such tour in the city. The tour was scheduled intermittently until 1983, when the popular program became a permanent part of the Irvington Community Association's annual calendar.

The Tour has its genesis in the turbulent times of the 1960s. Middle-class flight to the suburbs had drained population and resources away from the neighborhood and many of the fine homes were turned into rooming houses or falling into disrepair. Some of the larger ones had been abandoned altogether. Compounding the problem, the part of Irvington west of NE 15th Avenue was "red lined" by the racist managements of local banks, making it difficult for residents to obtain loans for restoration or purchase of the houses there.

In those years, apartment developers began to demolish the homes between Tillamook and Broadway, replacing them with uninteresting apartment buildings whose principal architectural feature was a large parking lot. By 1964, a few neighborhood residents took the lead to organize the community to fight the blight. The Irvington Community Association (ICA) was formed that year, the first such organization in Portland.

In 1967, one of the activities organized by the ICA was a home tour of 20 neighborhood residences. The idea was to inform the larger community of the historic homes still very much intact in the neighborhood, to provide an activity that would help neighbors get acquainted, and to raise money for community projects. Those goals have remained the focus of the tour ever since. In the ensuing years, the tour was held sporadically, as interest and available volunteers permitted.

By the early 1980s, the germ of an urban renaissance sprung up and the Irvington Home Tour was made a regular annual activity. The Tour provided a stimulus to rehabilitation and recognition for the home owners who were making major investments in cash and “sweat equity” to restore their properties. The Tour began to grow in attendance as citywide interest in Irvington increased in the 1980s and 1990s. By 1991 the attendance had grown, and revenues from the event had grown beyond the few hundred dollars that was typical of earlier years. In response, the ICA created its Charitable Giving Program and developed guidelines for distributing the proceeds of the Tour to worthy charities that have a connection to the Irvington neighborhood.

Today, as Irvington has resumed its status as one of the premier neighborhoods of Portland, the Tour continues its role of bringing neighbors together and raising money for community projects. Where once sales of a few hundred tickets were considered a success, now sales are capped at 1,000 and most years tickets sell out in advance.