Sumner Historical Society

The Ryan House has been under the city of Sumner's stewardship since 1926, but has fallen into disrepair in recent years. Plans were underway to renovate and restore the Ryan House, but in September 2023 the city council suddenly reversed course and voted to demolish this historic home. Now it is up to us as citizens to pick up the slack and raise the funds needed to save this symbol of Sumner's history and cultural identity. The immediate focus to is stop demolition, then given enough time, we can work together to make the Ryan House a source of community pride and a centerpiece of future events in Historic Downtown Sumner. Once our history is gone, it is lost forever. SAVE THE RYAN HOUSE from this fate!

Originally constructed in 1865 as a one-room cedar cabin for the Kincaids, a pioneer family fresh off the Oregon Trail, the homestead was purchased by George Ryan in 1872. Ryan made two additions to the house in 1875 and in 1885, giving the structure its present-day appearance. George Ryan later became the first mayor of the new town of Sumner, and Lucy V. Ryan landscaped the premises with hydrangeas, rhododendron, and the holly tree at the corner of the property. In 1926, the Ryan Family donated the house and property to the Town of Sumner, and it served as Sumner's library for the next 53 years from until 1979. Then from 1979 until just recently, the house was home to the Ryan House Museum, operated by the Sumner Historical Society.

(abridged from The Ryan House Story, by Shane Riley)