History of Bridlemile Subdivisions
Subdivisions make up much of Bridlemile.
A typical sub-division is a plot of land, like a farm or an estate, that a land developer has purchased, upgraded with utilities and streets, and divided into lots, which s/he sells to individual home buyers.
Typically, most homes in a subdivision are built around the same time, using similar construction techniques, of roughly similar design styles and are sold to buyers from similar socio-economic groups.
Below are details on some Bridlemile subdivisions.
Bridlewood
Bridlewood is a large development (~104 residences) located in NE Bridlemile, north of SW Hamilton Street and east of SW Shattuck Road. It is north of Bridlemile School and Hamilton Park. (including houses on SW 43rd Avenue, SW 44th Avenue, SW 45th Avenue, SW 47th Drive, SW 48th Place, SW Lowell Court, SW Shattuck Road, and SW Tunnelwood Road). They were built between 1965 and 1984, except for the 1948 Walther house.
1 was built in 1948 (the Walter home)
29 were built between 1965 and 1970.
30 were built between 1971 and 1975,
39 were built between 1976 and 1980.
4 were built 1981 to 1984.
Below is an 08-01-1965 Oregonian advertisement
Brookford
Brookford is a large development of at least 108 homes located in SE Bridlemile, near Albert Kelly Park, south of Hamilton, west of Dosch, and north of Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway. It includes houses on SW Admiral Street, SW Hamilton Court, SW Lee Street, SW Seymour Court, SW Seymour Street, SW 35th Place, SW 37th Avenue, SW 38th Place, SW 39th Drive, and SW 42nd Avenue.
Most Brookford homes were built between 1955 and 1957.
32 were built in 1955.
54 were built in 1956
17 were built in 1957.
Below left: 3-27-1955 Oregon Journal Article
Below middle: 07-03-1955 Oregon Journal advertisement
Below right: 08-18-1955 Oregon Journal advertisement
Doschdale
Doschdale is development of roughly 60 homes located in SE Bridlemile. It is south of SW Hamilton Street and east of SW Shatttuck. It is south and east of Albert Kelly Park. (SW Boundary, SW Doschdale Court and Drive, SW Martha Terrace, SW 33rd Drive, and SW 34th Place). Homes were built there between 1959 and 1970, except for one outlier from 2008.
Below: March 13, 1957 Oregonian advertisement.
Ericwood Terrace
To be added. Ericwood Terrace is located in NE Bridlemile, north of SW Hamilton Street and east of SW Shattuck Road.
Below: July 8, 1962 and September 11, 1964 Oregonian advertisements
Greentrees
Greentrees is a subdivision of about 28 homes in NW Bridlemile, north of SW Hamilton Street, west of SW Shattuck Road, near Thomas Park, on SW 54th Place, SW 55th Drive, and SW 57th Avenue.
4 were built in 1975.
19 were built in 1976.
4 were built in 1977.
1 was built in 1979.
Below: are 1973-09-09, 1974-07-07, 1974-11-24 and 1975-01-26 Oregonian advertisements
Hamilton Woods
Hamilton Woods is located in NW Bridlemile, on SW Selling Court and SW Eleanor Lane, which go north from SW Hamilton Street, and are three blocks east of SW Scholls Ferry Road. Homes were built there between 1989 and 1991.
Below: Excerpts from a 11/6/1988 Oregonian article.
WORK GETS GOING ON HAMILTON WOODS AFTER 18-MONTH WAIT TO GET GREEN LIGHT
It took 18 months of struggling with neighbors and red tape before Homesite Development Corp. got the green light for its Hamilton Woods residential subdivision in the heart of the Raleigh Hills area of Southwest Portland. …
“Change is always tough, especially when you're dealing with a concept, something you can't see,'' offered Homesite's William C. Cox, who is co-developing the 8.4-acre, 20-lot project with partner Art Piculell.” …
Before the first shovel of dirt was turned at Hamilton Woods, Cox said Homesite Development surveyed the 8.2-acre layout, locating ``every tree over six inches in diameter. It also commissioned a study of the area's birds, which has led to the mandatory preservation of some wooded segments of the property.
“We wanted to do as little changing of the environment that we could, to make it appear as though it had always been there,'' Cox explained. ``The only trees that we removed were to put in the streets. And the only others that will be displaced will be those that are diseased, hazardous, or in the footprint of the home that is being built.''
Below: Excerpts from a 9/24/1989 Oregonian article.
SMALL GROUP OF LUXURY HOMES FIT COMFORTABLY INTO `POCKET'
Summary: Hamilton Woods near Raleigh Hills fills the ever more elusive bill of providing a secluded site within only a few minutes of downtown Portland
… These residences are going up in Hamilton Woods, a cul-de-sac development on Southwest Selling Court, off Southwest Hamilton Street near Raleigh Hills, and just minutes from downtown.
…When completed, the development, which also includes property on Eleanor Lane, will have 19 homes.
Minikahda
Minikahda is located in SW Bridlmile, north of SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway and west of SW Shattuck Road. It is on the 5700 and 5800 blocks of SW Seymour Court and SW Seymour Street. Homes were built there between 1967 and 1976.
Below: An October 8th 1967 Oregonian advertisement.
Montmore
Montmore is a ~72-home development in NE Bridlemile, located on north of SW Hamilton Street, east of SW Shattuck Road, mostly on a loop south of SW Patton Road and mostly north of SW Tunnelwood.
1 was built in 1930 (the original carriage house),
26 were built between 1966 and 1970,
32 were built between 1971 and 1975,
3 were built between 1983 and 1990,
1 was built in 2024.
Below: 10-18-1964 Oregonian article
Orchard Hill
Orchard Hill, in central - NE Bridlemile, consists of 8 homes on the east side of SW Shattuck Road, north of SW Hamilton Street, between SW Thomas Street and SW Windsor Court. It contains seven homes built between 1988 and 1994 and the original 1946 home.
Below are advertisements from the 04-19-1987 and the 08-02-1987 Oregonian.
Orchard Park
Orchard Park is in NW Bridlemile. It is north of SW Hamilton Street and the Smoke Rise subdivision, and west of SW Shattuck Road and south of Wilcox Estates. It includes homes on SW Lowell Street, two on SW Shattuck Road, SW Thomas Street, and 52nd Avenue. Homes were built there between 1947 and 1950.
Below left: A May 12, 1947 Oregon Journal advertisement.
Below middle: A June 22, 1947 Oregon Journal article.
Below right: A May 2, 1948 Oregon Journal article.
Semler Park
Semler Park is a sub-division in NW Bridlemile. It consists of seven homes on SW Semler Way as it heads north from SW Hamilton Street in NW Bridlemile. It is two blocks east of SW Scholls Ferry Road. It takes up the block-long Semler Way. Homes were built there in 2006 and 2007.
Below: Excerpt of a blurb from the 9/17/2005 Oregonian.
Buena Vista digs in at new Semler Park
Buena Vista Custom Homes recently broke ground at Semler Park, a new neighborhood off Southwest Hamilton Street.
Semler Park has five lots, with floor plans ranging from 3,333 to 4,837 square feet. Prices are from about $750,000 to $1 million.
Skylark
Skylark is in SW Bridlemile. It starts one block north of Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway, on SW 56th Avenue (two houses) and east of SW 56th on SW Seymour Court and SW Seymour Street. It includes six houses on SW 54th Avenue and one on SW 55th. Homes were built there between 1964 and 1976.
Below left: 01-08-1966 Oregonian advertisement.
Below right: 01-16-1966 Oregonian advertisement.
Smoke Rise
Smoke Rise is in NW Bridlemile, north of SW Hamilton Street, west of SW Shattuck Road, and south of Wilcox Estates. It includes 65 homes on SW Bancroft Street, SW Santa Monica Court, SW 51st Place, SW 52nd Avenue, SW 53rd Avenue, and SW 54th Place.
1 was built in 1986.
13 were built between 1972 and 1977.
22 were built between 1966 and 1969.
28 were built between 1962 and 1965.
1 was built in 1910.
Below: 08-02-1964 Oregonian advertisement.
Stonebrook
Stonebrook is in SE Bridlemile, west of SW Dosch Road and south of SW Hamilton Street. It includes SW Stonebrook Court and SW Stonebrook Drive.
21 homes were built there between 1980 and 1983.
One was built in 1979 and one in 1987.
Below left: 04-12-1978 Oregonian article.
Below right: 04-28-1978 Oregonian advertisement.
Tunnelwood Park
Tunnelwood Park is in NE Bridlemile. It is off SW Dosch Road. The Bridlemile portion includes the east end of SW Tunnelwood Road (five houses) and parts of SW Dosch Court. Parts are also on the Southwest Hills Residential League land.
Below left: 05-20-1925 Oregon Journal advertisement
Below right: 12-31-1925 Oregon Journal advertisement
Wilcox Estates
Wilcox Estates is a large subdivision in NW Bridlemile. It is located south of SW Patton Road and west from SW Shattuck Road. (SW Downs View Court, SW Shattuck Road, SW Thomas Street, SW Westdale Drive, SW WInsor Court, SW 48th Place, SW 50th, SW 52nd Place, SW 53rd, SW 54th Place, SW 55th Drive, and SW 57th Avenue).
72 were built from 1957 to 1960.
55 were built between 1961 and 1965
12 were built between 1966 and 1970.
8 were built between 1971 and 1977.
One is from 1914 and one from 1918. And then there is the manor house itself.
Below left: 09-11-1955 Oregonian open house article
Below right: 09-18-1955 Oregonian advertisement
Below left: 9-25-1955 Oregon Journal article.
Below right: 4-29-1956 Oregon Journal advertisement
Wilcox West
Wilcox West is composed of about 56 residences in NW Bridlemile. They are located south of SW Patton Road, east of SW Scholls Ferry Road, west of Wilcox Estates. (4 on SW Abernathy Court, 8 on SW Downs View Court, 4 on SW Gaines Court, 2 on SW Labor Court, 3 on SW Lane Court, 5 on SW Thomas Court, SW Westdale Court, and 26 on SW 58th Drive.) Homes there were built between 1977 and 1979.
Below: 11-05-1976 Oregonian advertisement
To be added:
Amy’s Addition
Bridlemile Place
Clarion
Honey Hill Farms