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As mentioned above, I'm a nut for things historical. While wandering through the back country around Toutle, I discovered this old homestead. It appeared from a distance to be an authentic pioneer home, and a little research revealed that it was the original Finkas homestead. Frank Finkas built the house in 1899 using hand tools and locally available cedar timber. Descendants still living in the area have protected and maintained the house and caused it to be listed on the Washington State Register of Historical Places. The Register says the building is 17' by 25' which makes the "seedling" cherry tree behind it at least 50' wide, huge for a cherry.
A closer look reveals Frank Finkas's skill as a woodsman and carpenter. The cedar timbers fit tightly with no chinking visible from the outside and very little from the inside. This contrasts with the wide spaces and abundant chinking between logs in many pioneer houses.
An even closer look shows the marks of tools used to hew the cedar logs.
The same tool marks can be seen on the inner walls which were bone dry even though there had been heavy rains the previous day.
Looking from the south, you see the homestead barn, behind which runs a crystal-clear creek. Frank Finkas built his original cabin along the stream, probably while clearing the large field that became the site of the permanent home.
A close look at the south end of the house shows an artistic use of horizontal timbers rather than a vertical post to separate the two windows. Whether this was to add extra support to the upper timbers, to better define two inner rooms, or purely for esthetics is left to the imagination of the beholder.
Frank's great grandson and great great grandson re-shaked the house in the latter years of the 20th century. It is obvious they inherited some of their ancestor's woodworking skills and attention to detail...the length (at least 2 feet to the weather), width, and straight grain of the shakes indicate the care taken to replicate the quality of those originally split from old growth cedar by their grandfather.
Counting the rings on this timber butt would confirm that the timber came from a tree that began life in the late 1700s or early 1800s. There are approximately 65 rings shown here, and the full radius would involve at least 35 more making the tree 100 or more years old when cut. A scientific study of those rings (dendrochronology) would reveal the exact year the tree began its life.
All told, this fine specimen of pioneer carpentry provided the author with great visions and a better understanding of what our ancestors endured. He appreciates the Finkas family's understanding and support in allowing him to explore and photograph their ancestral home.
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