On Thursday, September 10, 2007, Stahancyk, Kent, Johnson & Hook threw a fantastic party and open house celebrating five successful years in Vancouver. The event was planned carefully to fall on the 135th wedding anniversary of Charles and Rebecca Brown, which made the party twice as historic.

Approximately 60 guests attended the historic event, ranging from local judges, attorneys, clients and neighborhood friends.

The menu included salmon sliders (wild salmon fresh off the boat from Astoria), mini cupcakes and candied bacon. Teresa’s sons, Mason and Seth, acted as servers. Beer, wine and water rounded off the drink portion of the menu.

Jody, Lara, Teresa’s sons, neighbor Sallie Reavey and myself dressed in antique garb fitting of the time period in which the house was built, the Civil War era.

Guests were provided with a brief history and description of focal points in each room, house brochures, a slideshow, and tours of the house. All this, as they made their way to the back of the house where the food and drinks were stationed outside.

Special thanks to Javier, Adam, Lara, Humberto and Jesse and anybody else who I may have left out. Your hard work was much appreciated.

Here’s to another five more great years in Vancouver.

Stahancyk, Kent, Johnson & Hook is excited to welcome new associate Matthew Cohen to our Vancouver office. Matt graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and earned his law degree from Lewis & Clark College in Portland. Matt brings a high energy and hard working attitude to the office and we are thrilled to have him as a part of our team.

We recently donated photographs and other historical information regarding the Brown Family to the Knox County Genealogical Society in Galesburg, Illinois. This information was then forwarded to the Galesburg Public Library where it is stored in their archives. Galesburg was the hometown of Samuel Brown. Below are two thank you cards each organization sent us. Click to read.

A party to celebrate Teresa Foster becoming a shareholder in the firm was held on Friday April 20th in Vancouver. In attendance were the employees of both our Vancouver and Portland offices. We enjoyed food, drinks and a piñata. One-dollar gifts were purchased by each of the guests for Teresa, something that will help her become a better shareholder. A road map, bunny ears and bubbles were some of the gifts. The party was a success and all enjoyed the time spent with Teresa on her special day. Click to enlarge photo

This blurb appears in the current April 2007 edition of the Oregon State Bar Bulletin. It announces the Heritage Award we won for genealogical excellence for our Vancouver office’s website.

Stahancyk, Kent, Johnson & Hook is pleased to announce that Teresa L. Foster, managing attorney of our Vancouver office, has been elected as a shareholder of the firm. Everyday we see the hard work and dedication Teresa puts into her work. Congratulations, Teresa!

The Charles Brown House website has won another award! This time it is the Genealogy Award for preserving family history, presented by Connie’s Family History Pages. The award and Connie’s comments about the site are below.

Hello Vince,

Thank you so much for writing and drawing my attention to your website. Yes,
I agree, you may be the first law firm to not only revitalize a local
historical building, but also to research and share your findings of the
family and history of the building. Well done!

I’m happy to send this well deserved award from Connie’s Family History
Pages!

Thanks for sharing your research with the world.

P.S. Your restoration looks beautiful!

Connie Spindel

Connie’s Family History Pages

The Charles Brown House website has won the Heritage Award for genealogical websites. The award recognizes and encourages development of websites that contribute to the depth and breadth of trustworthy genealogical information available on the web.

1866
Alonzo and Isabella Cook, original owners.

June 19, 1874
Charles and Rebecca Brown. Charles died April 19, 1901.

June 1901
Homestead claim by Rebecca Brown. Rebecca died in 1910.

September 12, 1925
Heirs of Rebecca Brown deeded it to Alice Hubbard. Alice died April 3, 1935. It is unsure who occupied the house for the next five years.

April 13, 1940
Mary Prindle, Alice Hubbard’s sister, sold the house to William and Julia Frost, another sister and brother in-law. Mary may have inherited the house from her sister Alice after she passed away.

May 31, 1946
Law office of Bates and Burnett became owners. This was the first decentralized law office in the City of Vancouver.

June 8, 1960
Attorney James Gregg and wife Barbara became owners.

September 2004
The law firm of Stahancyk, Kent, Johnson and Hook purchased the Historic Charles Brown House.