Donald House History

Born in Ontario, Canada on December 31st, 1858, to Scottish immigrant parents, George Donald was the second of seven children.  Tragically George was only twelve years old when his father died in 1870, leaving his mother a widow of six children, her seventh being born three months after her husband’s death.  

In 1877, George Donald was nineteen years old when he moved south to America.  Upon arrival he began working for the Grand Trunk Railroad Company of Chicago.  The job served as his start to what would become a lifelong career in various railroad related businesses.  

In 1881 George traveled west by stagecoach to Montana.  He remained there for a time working for the Northern Pacific Railway.  Later he relocated farther west to supervise the expansion of the Lewiston and Farmington rail branches in Roslyn, Washington.  Three years later, in 1884, George arrived in Yakima City (now Union Gap) while working for the Northern Pacific Railroad.  It was there that his personal life would change causing him to settle down and remain living in the valley.

In September of 1885 George married his first wife Clara Burch in Yakima City.  The couple soon moved to North Yakima where their only child, a son name George Donald, Jr. was born.  In April of 1899, when their son was 14 years old George and Clara divorced.  George was awarded custody of his son as well as their wood home, which stood on the same lot that the Donald House stands today. By 1900 several members of George’s family, including his mother, two brothers and two married sisters were also living in the valley

As a single father, George continued to work and invest in various developments throughout the valley.  He served on the board, and later as the President, of the Yakima National Bank, was involved with various railroad construction projects, helped build the Kiona and Sunnyside Canals, started several ranches, held stock in several mining companies and owned real estate.  In 1904 George became a member of the Washington State delegation of the National Republican Convention in Chicago.  It was during this time that he also met and married his second wife, Mary Ditmars in North Yakima.

On September 4th, 1904, George Donald and Mary Ditmars were married in North Yakima.  The ceremony was held in the afternoon with only close family and friends attending.  Mary’s mother Jean Ditmars Porter traveled west from Philadelphia for the occasion.  Mary’s wedding dress was white, and her flowers were Lilies of the Valley.  The central color of the ceremony was yellow with Chrysanthemums serving as décor.  After the wedding ceremony, a luncheon was served to the family.  A much larger, more public reception was held at 4 in the afternoon.   

After their North Yakima wedding, the couple traveled to New York.  Just ten days after their first wedding, George and Mary were solemnized in a ceremony at her parents’ home in Saratoga Springs, New York.  The couple then went on a honeymoon and returned to North Yakima.  They made their home in George’s existing wooden home at the site of the present-day Donald House.  

George continued to work with railroad related projects and was elected as the president of the North Yakima and Valley Railway.  A position that involved his platting of the Town of Naches, as well as laying trail to Cowiche, Naches, Moxee, Zillah, Sunnyside, and White Swan.  He was also the President of the Yakima National Bank and would later be involved in several banks in the lower valley.

The Donald’s welcomed their first child, a daughter named Jessie, to the world in September of 1906.  Sadly, the same year that Jessie was born disaster struck the family when their home burned. It would take almost two years for them to rebuild the house which would remain one of the finest in the city.  (See The Donald House.) 

When the Donald’s moved into their new home they brought with two employees to help with their young child and prepare meals.  Both servants, a governess and nanny named Magdalen Stacker, and an unknown Chinese cook, lived in the house with the family.  They cared for their children, George Jr. and Jessie, and assisted with the home while both Donald and Mary continued their busy lives.

Although a new mother, Mary was actively engaged with various businesses and community organizations.  Her business ventures included involvement with the Yakima Valley Bank as well as several downtown lots and buildings.  Among the buildings she owned was the Embassy Hotel building, one of the city’s finest hotel buildings at the time.

In June of 1909, George and Mary welcomed their second child, a daughter named Jean. A third child, a son named Alanson, was born the following year in 1910.  Having three younger children in the house did not slow the Donald’s down.  Still active in business and the community, they also enjoyed traveling and meeting prominent figures.  On March 21st, 1911, while visiting Hawaii, George and Mary met with Queen Lil’uokalani, the last sovereign monarch of the Hawaiian kingdom, on March 21st, 1911.

Six years later, in 1917, the Donald’s last child, a son named Remson, was born.  The same year of his birth, Washington State Governor Lister appointed George to the State Council of Defense.  It was there that he served as the Chairman of the Transportation Department during World War I. He had also become involved in various community orientated organizations.  He was an active member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Masons and Yakima’s Commercial Club.  

Mary continued to remain busy with conducting her own business affairs as well as being involved in various organizations.  She was one of the original members of the Daughters of the American Revolution (D.A.R.) Yakima’s Narcissa Whiteman Chapter.  Along with her cousin Helen Lynch, Mary was also active in North Yakima’s Red Cross, helping to assist with the needs of soldiers and residents.  

In 1919 George Donald, who suffered from diabetes, became suddenly ill.  On the evening of March 14th, 1919, George passed away in the family home.  His body was taken to the Shaw Funeral Home.  Afterwards, his casket was returned to the Donald Home, where his funeral services occurred.  Reports regarding his funeral service indicate that it was heavily attended with people flowing out of the home onto the porches and yard.  His death was observed throughout the city by both citizens and businesses.  The Yakima National Bank was closed to honor his passing.  After the service his body was taken to Tahoma Cemetery where it was laid to rest in a family plot.

Mary was now a widow with four children and an owner of a large house and various businesses.  After George’s death the Yakima National Bank asked Mary to consider taking over his position as President of the bank.  For unknown reasons, Mary declined.

Over the next several years Mary and her children remained living in Yakima.  In the mid 1920’s, wishing to be closer to her family, Mary moved with her children to a new home on Park Avenue in New York City. Although she still owned the Donald House in Yakima she would no longer live there.  In a letter, one of her daughters could only recall the family returning to Yakima once.  They stayed for approximately a month in a home they rented.

Mary negotiated the sale of the Donald House through letters in the mail and the Vance family in the late 1920’s.   In 1930, she sold the home to the Women’s Century Club for $30,000.00.  The sale included several of the Donald family items.  

Mary Ditmars Donald never remarried.  She remained living on the east coast as an independent and strong natured woman who loved traveling the world, both with family and alone.  According to family descendants her preferred method of travel was by water.

On October 14th, 1964, forty-five years after the death of her husband, Mary Ditmars Donald passed away at the age of 86 in New York.  Her body was returned to Yakima where a service was conducted.  Afterwards, she was laid to rest next to George, the Vance’s, and her cousin Helen Lynch in the family plot within Tahoma Cemetery.

The successful business and personal ventures of George and Mary Donald live on long after their deaths.  In 2008, the City of Yakima declared September 13th, 2008, to be George Donald Day in honor of his contributions and accomplishments to the city.  The Donald House still stands as a testimony to the family’s success.

In September of 1906 the wood home of George and Mary Donald located on the northwest corner of North 2nd Street and East Lincoln Avenue burned down.  After the fire devastated their home, the Donald’s began preparing for the construction of a fabulous new home on the same lot.  

The first step was to hire an architect.  There is some confusion regarding which architect designed the home for the Donald’s.  Some suggestions indicate that the design was that of the Spalding and Umbrecht architectural firm based in Seattle, Washington.  Other sources point towards Henry Harrison Weatherwax as the architect.  Henry Weatherwax was credited as being a renowned architect who had designed structures at World Fairs and across America.  He was living in North Yakima at approximately the same time that the Donald’s home design was completed.

The Donald’s home was completed in 1908 at a cost of $25,000.  At the time of its completion. It was reported as one of the most expensive homes in the city.  The main floor consisted of the kitchen, a dining room, front room, a den, library, two fireplaces and a large wrap-around front porch.  The second floor had six bedrooms, four bathrooms and a small outer porch. The third floor served as rooms for servants.  The home's basement was accessible by two staircases, one large one for family or visitors and another smaller one for servants. The basement had large storerooms, a laundry and bathroom as well as rooms for some of the families’ servants.

Materials used to build the new home are noted as being from both Canadian and local sources. The stone for the home was purchased and shipped from Kingston, Ontario, near where George’s family lived.  While the stones came from Canada, other special materials and furnishings were ordered and hand made locally.

The home was furnished and decorated with custom built furniture and woodwork.  Several of the furnishings are reported to have been hand made by Mr. A.W. Ambrose and his son E.J. Ambrose, both local custom furniture and woodworking employees at the Cascade Lumber Company.  The carving on the furniture was done by an immigrant German youth who had been in prison when he learned the carving craft.

Most of the custom-built woodwork located within the home was made of white oak. In the dining room, hand crafted items included a 12-foot mission style sideboard with two double door cabinets on each side and eight other drawers in the middle.  The family's large dining room table was also among the items hand crafted for the home.  At 72 inches long, 48 inches wide and 30 inches high the table stood on 6-inch square legs and had an available extension. The table served as the centerpiece for the dining room. Also located within the dining room, but not made of white oak, was a 6 foot long and 5 feet high carved cut glass cabinet.  Fine woodworking and furniture were also located throughout the home.  The main floors and two fireplace mantels were also hand carved, as were the woodwork located throughout the remainder of the home.  

After moving into the home, the Donald’s remained living in the home for their entire marriage.

When George passed away on March 14th, 1919, Mary remained living in the home with their four children until the mid-1920’s, when she moved to New York City to be closer to her family.  In 1929 Mary Donald began negotiating the sale of the Donald House with the Woman’s Century Club through letters sent in the mail and the assistance of the Vance’s, her uncle and aunt.  The following year, in 1930, the Woman’s Century Club purchased the home from Mary Donald for $30,000.  The sale amount included the lot used by the Woman’s Club on South 3rd Street as well as two other lots. Also included in the sale were several pieces of Donald's handmade furniture.  Such pieces included the dining room table and chairs, china cabinet, two pianos, an organ, the family davenport, an imported Chinese table with teakwood chairs given to George Donald by a business associate, and a marble bust. 

After taking possession of the Donald House, the Woman’s Century Club obtained a $6,000 loan and hired Mr. F.H. Fassett, a local architect, to remodel the home to accommodate the club and its membership.  The remodeling included the removal of the third floor, and four bedrooms and three baths on the second floor to make room for an auditorium with a stage.  An extra north entrance and the moving of the stairs to accommodate another entry, as well as the removal of a claw foot tub and the fireplace in the den downstairs were also part of the remodeling.  To pay off the debt of the remodeling the club was divided into eight groups that were tasked with fundraising events.  Some of the fund-raising events included collecting old gold and melting it, a waffle committee that had a booth at the fair and a fair on the Larson family home lawn. 

Over time, many donations have been given to the Woman’s Century Club.  All of which are still located within the home.  They include a clock by the Home Economics Club, a prayer rug donated by Mrs. A.E. Larson who had purchased it in one of their world travels, a Mona Lisa print presented by Mrs. Goodrich, a tapestry donated by Mrs. Mabel Crum and a painting done by Henry Harrison Weatherwax that was donated to the club by two of his grandsons.

On December 12th, 1976, forty-six years after the purchase of the home, the Donald House was placed on the National Register of Historical Places.  Three years later, on September 18th, 1979, a plaque designating the house as historical was placed outside the home during a public dedication that was attended by Bruce K. Chapman, the Secretary of State. Years later, to avoid vandalism, the plaque was removed and is presently stored within the house.

The Donald House has also been placed on the City of Yakima Local Historical Registry.  Today it stands as a reminder of not only the City of Yakima’s historical past, but that of the Donald Family and the Woman’s Century Club as well.  

Today, the Woman’s Century Club Donald House is the site of the clubs’ meetings and events.  It is also considered one of the finer venues for private rentals, venues, and events.