Couple retain character of historic residence

Fifteen years ago, when Don and Joan Jamison decided to buy a Victorian home in Browne’s Addition, they couldn’t find one for sale.

So Don took to the streets, knocking on doors to see if he could find someone interested in selling.

He approached a classic Queen Anne home that had been converted to a restaurant and knocked on the door. Several months later, he and Joan became the proud owners of the home known as The Daniel and Mary Dwight House in the national historic register.

“This house had such a sense of home to us,” says Joan. “We felt like we belonged here.”

The spacious entryway is lighted by a sparkling chandelier. In fact, almost every room has a chandelier.

Huge pocket doors slide to reveal the cozy living room dominated by wide bay windows.

The Jamisons made no significant changes to the home, preferring to preserve its historical character. In Daniel Dwight’s former library the coal-burning fireplace shimmers with a coat of coppery paint.

Joan’s favorite area is the dining room. The walls are covered in green silk wallpaper imported from China. Glass-front built-in sideboards flank the room.

“I like to entertain,” says Joan. She often has her two daughters and their families, including four grandchildren, over for meals.

“I want my grandchildren to have the experience of formal dining,” she says.

The couple removed the commercial kitchen and restored the family kitchen. Paintable wallpaper on the ceiling gives the illusion of the tin ceilings common in turn-of-the-last-century homes.

The back staircase off the kitchen, traditionally used by servants, is very steep and has attained special status in the Jamison family. The grandchildren aren’t allowed to use this staircase until they are 4 years old.

When grandson Jacob turned 4 last May, he said, “Let’s go to Grandma’s house!” He couldn’t wait for the staircase rite of passage.

Spacious bedrooms with moss-green wallpaper and lace panel curtains, as well as other details such as glass doorknobs, crown molding and plate rails, echo the era of the home.

Although the Jamisons are planning to build a new house north of Spokane, the couple will be sorry to leave this house. They say they’ve felt privileged to live here.

“We are just the caretakers,” says Joan. “This is still very much the Dwights’ home.”