About the house - Kirkman House Museum, Walla Walla, WA

The Kirkman family lived in the home until 1919. At that time, Isabella Kirkman donated the home to Whitman College to become a boys dormitory. The home, estimated at a value of $20,000, became Lyman Hall. With the generous donation, a William Kirkman Chair of History was established.

Old photo of the house One notable Whitman student, Walter Brattain, a physics student, lived in the house. Brattain went on to win the Nobel Prize for his co-invention of the transistor. A photograph from the Whitman archives shows the young inventor sitting at his desk in the dining room near the sandstone fireplace.
(Click here to download a Word document about Walter Brattain.)

In the 1920s, the property was sold to a private landlord and the house became an apartment building for the next 50 years. This period of time brought many changes. Both the interior and exterior were altered dramatically to account for this new use of space.

In December, 1974, the Kirkman House was elected to the National Register of Historic Places. The home, however, was in great disrepair and Walla Walla was in dan Exterior Restoration Photo ger of losing it to deterioration. In 1977, the home was purchased by the Historical Architecture Development Corporation (H.A.D.). They were a group of concerned citizens of Walla Walla who came together to save the historic sites and buildings of this area. The organization used Kirkman House as an office, eventually purchasing it and restoring the home into a period house museum. In 1982, H.A.D. received an award for outstanding work in historic preservation from the Washington State Trust for Historic Preservation. Today the home is privately owned and operates as a non-profit organization under the management of a revolving Board of Directors.



	In 1874, William Kirkman began building one of the Northwest’s most outstanding Victorian structures. It was believed that the house took nearly $7,000 to complete. The family moved into the home in 1880, and it was home to three generations of Kirkmans before the family gave it to Whitman College in 1919. The Kirkman House is an authentic example of the luxurious 1880’s, a period of extensive growth for Walla Walla in downtown business buildings and in fine homes. *A NATIONAL HISTORIC PLACE* The Kirkman family lived in the home until 1919. At that time, Isabella Kirkman donated the home to Whitman College to become a boys dormitory. The home, estimated at a value of $20,000, became Lyman Hall. With the generous donation, a William Kirkman Chair of History was established. One notable Whitman student, Walter Brattain, a physics student, lived in the house. Brattain went on to win the Nobel Prize for his co-invention of the transistor. A photograph from the Whitman archives shows the young inventor sitting at his desk in the dining room near the sandstone fireplace. (Click here to download a Word document about Walter Brattain.) In the 1920s, the property was sold to a private landlord and the house became an apartment building for the next 50 years. This period of time brought many changes. Both the interior and exterior were altered dramatically to account for this new use of space. In December, 1974, the Kirkman House was elected to the National Register of Historic Places. The home, however, was in great disrepair and Walla Walla was in danger of losing it to deterioration. In 1977, the home was purchased by the Historical Architecture Development Corporation (H.A.D.). They were a group of concerned citizens of Walla Walla who came together to save the historic sites and buildings of this area. The organization used Kirkman House as an office, eventually purchasing it and restoring the home into a period house museum. In 1982, H.A.D. received an award for outstanding work in historic preservation from the Washington State Trust for Historic Preservation. Today the home is privately owned and operates as a non-profit organization under the management of a revolving Board of Directors.