220 Wilson, The William Henry Managan House

In a turnabout from a more conventional sequence of events, the William Henry Managan House at 220 Wilson Street, was “handed-down” from son to father – as a result of a fire. That little footnote to history was revealed in research by the current owners, Mr. and Mrs. Lastie Paul Vincent.

The original cottage was built in 1920 by a young Managan – the bachelor son of a family well established in the lumber business – in Margaret Place, the Lake Areas' first "Streetcar Subdivision."

In the late 1920’s, the Westlake residence of the Managan’s parents was destroyed by fire while they were at their Calcasieu (Big) Lake summer home.

Improvements included a master bedroom and bath complete with dressing areas, a solarium, a library and a covered walk to a double garage with servant’s quarters overhead. Especially significant are wood carvings, depicting the Cascade Mountains of Washington, which frame all four walls of the library.

The home, including the solarium which may be used as a greenhouse, is heated by a still operable steam system. The library, dining, living rooms and master bedroom feature antique ceiling fans dating from the early part of the century. An ornate walkway leads to guest quarters and the utility and garage areas.

An elaborate fish pond in the backyard was covered when the house was purchased by its previous owners in 1981. They felt the pond was hazardous to small children.

The senior Managans occupied the house until their deaths in 1946, at which time their son, the original owner, and his wife returned to the house. He died in 1974 and his wife Frances, well known throughout the area as a musician and piano teacher, remained there until 1981. She died in 1989.