At Rejuvenation’s flagship store in Portland, the company’s well-known reproduction fixtures share space with a wealth of architectural salvage.
These architectural salvage outlets of old stuff keep us well-supplied with the hard-to-find moldings, mortise lock springs, doorknob set screws, rewired light fixtures, and replacement toilet tank lids that every old-house owner needs to lovingly maintain their period property.
Central Eastside
Architectural Heritage Center. Portland’s preservation headquarters, the AHC is a nonprofit organization with one of the largest collections of architectural artifacts in the country. The center includes two galleries with changing exhibits and a research library. 701 SE Grand Ave.; visitahc.org.
Rejuvenation. This Portland institution is a candy store for old-house owners, with 35,000 square feet of new and old lighting, hardware, plumbing, furniture, and decorative accessories. Have lunch downstairs in the Daily Cafe, then check out second-floor businesses Classic Sash & Door, Versatile Woodworking, Kush Carpets, and my own, Arcalus Period Design. 1100 SE Grand Ave.; rejuvenation.com.
Hippo Hardware. Since 1976, Hippo has kept Portland’s old-house purists from taking themselves too seriously. Quirky and chaotic, this emporium has 30,000 square feet on three floors, with an eclectic mix of new and old house parts, including an extensive array of unrestored lighting fixtures and original shades. 1040 E. Burnside St.; hippohardware.com.
Southeast Portland
1874 House Antiques. Located in Sellwood, a neighborhood known for its antique shops and small restaurants, 1874 House is Portland’s oldest purveyor of old lighting, hardware, stained glass windows and architectural antique salvage, and offers an excellent selection of fine antiques as well. 8070 SE 13th Ave.
Old Portland Hardware & Architectural. The most recent addition to Portland’s vintage house parts suppliers, this charming shop is housed in an old Maytag store and artfully presents hardware, restored light fixtures, and sparkling beveled glass among its varied array of goodies. 1667 SE Tacoma St; oldportlandhardware.com.
North Portland
The ReBuilding Center. Adding a new dimension to Portland’s old-house scene in the last decade, this home-grown nonprofit offers deconstruction services, but is best known for accepting donations of used building materials and reselling them at their extensive salvage yard and warehouse.3625 N. Mississippi Ave.; rebuildingcenter.org.
South of Town
Aurora Mills Architectural Salvage. Housed in a complex of weathered old mill buildings in the historic Aurora Colony (a regional antiques shopping destination), Aurora Mills has an outstanding collection of salvage artifacts from around the country, and is especially strong in hardware and architectural elements. 14971 1st St. NE, Aurora; auroramills.com.
