The mansion of a pioneering Maine Republican is on the market

A Portland mansion commissioned by one of the founders of the Republican Party is on the market for $2.75 million.
The six-bedroom, four-bathroom home on Spring Street in Portland was built in 1868 for Israel Washburn, a Maine politician who was the state’s governor entering the Civil War from 1861 to 1863. Washburn represented Bangor and Orono in the Maine House of Representatives.
Washburn’s biggest contribution to U.S. politics was the founding role he and his three brothers took in forming the Republican Party. His brother, Elihu Washburne (he added an “e” to his name at age 14), was an Illinois congressman and early home-state ally of Abraham Lincoln who became a conduit between the president and Gen. Ulysses S. Grant during the war.
Israel Washburn built the house during his 14-year patronage job as Portland’s port collector, which began under Lincoln and ended when Grant left the White House. The home hasn’t changed hands many times since then, Karen Reiche, the property’s listing agent, said. Each steward has left key period details intact, including original wood, custom fireplaces and detailed crown molding.
“The craftsmanship that went into the house is just incredible,” Reiche, an agent with LandVest Inc., said. “It’s a real walk through history.”
The home’s current owners have lived here since the early 2000s and recently renovated its kitchen and roof, so there are no necessary upgrades a new buyer would need to make, Reiche said.
The home has been listed for two weeks, and it’s already seen a lot of interest. Reiche said people like the home’s size of nearly 6,000 square feet, lavish features like a library with floor-to-ceiling shelves, its history, and its location in Portland’s walkable West End.
But some have been turned off by the mansion’s size, a sign that the real estate market in Maine is changing and cooling slightly, Reiche said. Potential buyers have been a mix of out-of-staters looking for a second home and some locals, too, she said.
“It’s one of those properties that just takes the right buyer that appreciates the history and the size of the house. Not everyone needs a large home,” Reiche said. “I really think someone that appreciates the finishes and the detail … they’ll just be swept away.”