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Closed until March 1

Open by appointment only

Admission

$5 Adults, $20 Family

Step back in time in Walla Walla’s only house museum.

Located within easy walking distance of downtown Walla Walla wine tasting and lodging. rooms,lodging, and retail shops.

214 N. Colville St., Walla Walla, WA 99362 (509) 529-4373

Walla Walla, 1866- 1920

1800 Illustrated Advertisements

300 historic photos

edited and compiled by

Joe Drazan

This CD is now available at the museum for a $10 donation. If you would like to acquire one of these CD’s during our winter closure please call the museum or email us at khm@kirkmanhousemuseum.org to arrange a pick-up time.

Museum Rentals

The Kirkman House is open to weddings, receptions and other special events. We have packages for small intimate gatherings in the museum, and for larger events on the grounds. The unique character of our 19th century Italianate home coupled with its location adjacent to our historic downtown & lodging makes the Kirkman House an ideal venue for those special moments shared with family and friends. During the Christmas season every room in the house will be decorated and waiting for your intimate gathering of coworkers and friends. Call early to reserve your special date.

A Brief History

The Kirkman House was built between 1876-1880 of brick from the Weston, Oregon Foundry. When the house was completed, William and Isabelle Kirkman moved in with their four surviving children, William Henry, Fanny Ann, Myrtle Bell, and Leslie Gilmore. The family built an addition comprising of a larger dinning room and kitchen in 1890. Fanny and Alan Almos Reynolds were married in the front parlor on November 7, 1894. William Henry, upon becoming a widower in 1905, moved back into the house with his son William Leslie.

When built, the Kirkman’s home was one of the grandest residences in Walla Walla reflecting tastes of the day and wealth generated by the ranching business. Now the Victorian Italianate house remains the only example of its kind locally, though vestiges of early 20th century architecture can be found throughout Walla Walla.

In its heyday, the house was the setting for lavish entertaining, as well as for routine activities of daily American Victorian life. In addition to being home for the Kirkman’s, it also served as a boys’ dormitory for Whitman College from 1920-1924. During this time Walter Brattain, 1956 Nobel Prize winner for the co-invention of the transistor, studied in the home. Later, the house was converted into an apartment home for more than 50 years. The museum came into being as a rescue operation to save this home on the edge of the local Northern Pacific railroad. The house was elected to the National Historic Register in December of 1974 and has been run as a non-profit organization since 1981.

North American Reciprocal Museum program

The Kirkman House Museum is now a participant in the North American Reciprocal Museum program (NARM). NARM is an association of arts and cultural institutions in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and El Salvador which offers select benefits of membership to each member institution's premier members. Premier membership is $100 annually or above. NARM currently has 534 member institutions and are increasing weekly.

Upon presentation of a Kirkman House membership card with the gold NARM sticker our members will receive:

• Free/member admission from all NARM museums.

• Member discounts on gift store purchases, concert and lecture tickets.

New KHM membership cards with the NARM stickers will be issued to our members at the $100 Supporter level and above in November. In addition, all members at lower levels will be offered the opportunity to upgrade their membership to receive these great NARM benefits.