Imbrie Farm

Imbrie Farm is a historic farmstead and hospitality property on Cornelius Pass Road in Hillsboro, Oregon. The site is associated with the Imbrie family, early Oregon settlers who developed farms in what is now Washington County. Although the property is sometimes treated as a place-brand or historic venue rather than a conventional consumer brand, its identity continues through the preserved buildings, the surrounding grounds, and the Cornelius Pass Roadhouse operated by McMenamins. The property’s principal landmark is a three-story Italian Villa-style residence known as the Gables. Robert Imbrie developed the farm after acquiring and expanding the neighboring Lenox Farm in the mid-nineteenth century. A granary was built during the 1850s, and construction of the main residence began in 1863 or 1866, with completion taking approximately three years. The home accommodated a large Imbrie household and reflected the family’s prosperity as agricultural producers. The original farm also included a distinctive eight-sided barn and a shed, both of which remain important elements of the historic setting. Agriculture at the site changed over time. The family initially raised Morgan horses as draft animals for sale to other farmers. After Frank Imbrie assumed control, the operation became a dairy and acquired its unusual octagonal barn around the turn of the twentieth century. Later, James Hay Imbrie shifted the farm toward grain and hay production. Barley grown at the property was sold to Portland brewer Blitz-Weinhard beginning in the 1930s, linking the farm’s agricultural history to Oregon’s brewing industry. The Imbrie family’s farming activities ended in the 1960s. In the following decade, a descendant opened the Imbrie Farmstead Restaurant in the historic home. The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. Donald and Billie Jean Herman purchased it in 1984 and continued operating the restaurant before leasing the operation to McMenamins. McMenamins took over in 1986 and later purchased and restored the buildings. Today, the property is known primarily as McMenamins Cornelius Pass Roadhouse. It combines a brewpub, brewery, distillery, historic lodging and event environment, outdoor meadows and groves, and preserved structures including the Octagonal Barn, Imbrie Hall, and the 1860s Italianate farmhouse. The venue’s presentation uses original artwork, period furnishings, and the agricultural setting to create a destination built around local history and hospitality. Mature English chestnut and black walnut trees, reported to be more than 130 years old, contribute to the site’s landscape character. Imbrie Farm therefore functions less as a packaged product brand than as a preserved historic estate whose current public identity is delivered through the Cornelius Pass Roadhouse.

The land associated with Imbrie Farm was first claimed in the early settlement period of Oregon. Edward Henry Lenox, who had traveled from Kentucky over the Oregon Trail, established a claim at the present farm site in 1843. The Imbrie family arrived in Oregon during the large influx of white settlers in the mid-1840s. The family’s patriarch, James Imbrie Jr., had been born in Fife, Scotland, and had come to Oregon from the American Midwest. James Imbrie Jr.’s sons developed separate agricultural properties in Washington County. James Imbrie III farmed in the North Plains area, while Robert Imbrie acquired and expanded the neighboring Lenox Farm, where the surviving Imbrie Farm buildings stand. Robert reached Oregon by sailing around Cape Horn. During the 1850s he constructed a granary, establishing an early permanent agricultural infrastructure on the property. Robert later commissioned the large residence that became known as the Gables. Construction is dated to the 1860s, with work beginning in 1863 or 1866 and taking roughly three years. The completed building was a three-story Italian Villa-style house with prominent gables. At the time, Robert’s household included twelve children and his mother. The house expressed the scale and status of a prosperous nineteenth-century farm family and remains the defining architectural feature of the estate. The farm’s economic activities evolved across generations. Robert and his family raised Morgan horses as draft animals for sale to other farmers. After Robert’s death in 1897, his son Frank continued the operation and converted it into a dairy. Around 1900, an unusual eight-sided barn was added. The structure, now commonly called the Octagonal Barn, is one of the property’s most distinctive surviving agricultural features. Under James Hay Imbrie, the farm later concentrated on grain and hay. Barley from the property was sold to Portland’s Blitz-Weinhard brewery beginning in 1933, providing a direct connection between the farm and the regional beer trade. Family members gradually modernized the residence, adding electricity and indoor plumbing during the 1930s. Frank Imbrie died in 1945, and James Hay Imbrie ended the farm’s agricultural operations in 1962. James Hay died in 1968; in 1969, his son Frank moved his family onto the old homestead, making his children the sixth and final generation of Imbries to live there. The property entered a new phase in the 1970s. A descendant opened the Imbrie Farmstead Restaurant in the historic home in 1977, the same year the property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Donald and Billie Jean Herman purchased the farm in 1984 and continued the restaurant operation. They subsequently leased operations to McMenamins, which assumed control in 1986. McMenamins eventually purchased and restored the buildings and established the Cornelius Pass Roadhouse as the property’s current public identity. The site now includes the historic farmhouse, the Octagonal Barn, Imbrie Hall, a brewery, a distillery, open meadows and groves, and spaces used for gatherings and special events. Its preservation-based hospitality model keeps the farm’s architectural and landscape character visible while adapting the property from a private agricultural estate into a public destination.

• 1986

  McMenamins takes over operations

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  McMenamins assumes operation of the property and develops it into the Cornelius Pass Roadhouse brewpub.

• 1984

  The Hermans purchase the property

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  Donald and Billie Jean Herman acquire the farm and continue operating the restaurant.

• 1977

  Restaurant opens and historic listing is granted

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  A descendant opens the Imbrie Farmstead Restaurant, and the property is added to the National Register of Historic Places.

• 1962

  Agricultural operations end

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  James Hay Imbrie closes the family’s long-running farming operation.

• 1933

  Barley sales to Blitz-Weinhard begin

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  James Hay Imbrie’s grain operation begins supplying barley to Portland’s Blitz-Weinhard brewery.

• 1900

  The octagonal barn is added

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  During Frank Imbrie’s tenure, the farm becomes a dairy and gains its distinctive eight-sided barn.

• 1866

  The Gables farmhouse is completed

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  Robert Imbrie completes the large three-story Italian Villa-style residence after several years of construction.

• 1855

  Granary construction

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  Robert Imbrie builds a granary during the 1850s, one of the earliest documented structures associated with the farm.

• 1850

  Robert Imbrie develops the Lenox Farm property

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  Robert Imbrie acquires and expands the neighboring Lenox Farm, establishing the property that contains the present historic buildings.

• 1843

  Lenox establishes a claim at the future farm site

  [1]Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org

  Edward Henry Lenox, traveling from Kentucky over the Oregon Trail, stakes a claim on the land that later becomes associated with Imbrie Farm.

A historic Oregon farmstead presented as a destination brewpub and events property, combining McMenamins hospitality with preserved nineteenth- and early twentieth-century agricultural architecture.

• Brewpub and historic hospitality venue · 1986

  Cornelius Pass Roadhouse

  The current operating identity of Imbrie Farm is McMenamins’ Cornelius Pass Roadhouse. It occupies the historic farmstead and combines food and drink service with preserved architecture, outdoor grounds, and spaces for events. The property includes an on-site brewery and distillery and presents the former agricultural estate as a destination hospitality experience.

• Heritage property

  Historic Farmstead

  The preserved estate includes the three-story Italian Villa-style farmhouse known as the Gables, the Octagonal Barn, a granary, a shed, Imbrie Hall, and surrounding meadows and groves. Original artwork, Victorian-era furnishings, mature trees, and historic agricultural structures form part of the visitor experience.

• 1986

  Conversion into the Cornelius Pass RoadhouseStrategy

  Background

  After the property had operated as the Imbrie Farmstead Restaurant and McMenamins assumed its operation, the historic farm was repositioned as a broader hospitality destination.

  Action taken

  McMenamins developed the site as the Cornelius Pass Roadhouse, incorporating brewing, dining, restoration, outdoor spaces, and event uses.

  Aftermath

  The farmstead remains an active public venue while retaining its historic buildings and agricultural landscape.

  Source

1. 1Imbrie Farmen.wikipedia.org
2. 2McMenamins Cornelius Pass Roadhousemcmenamins.com