To spot the H. Orton Wiley House, look for a solid two-story red brick house with white trim, striped green awnings over the windows and doorway, and a big green sign out front that reads “Wiley Alumni House”-it’s right near the edge of the Northwest Nazarene University campus.
Now, picture it’s 1922: the roads are quieter, the smell of fresh-cut grass rolls across campus, and everyone at Northwest Nazarene College, as it was called back then, is abuzz with hope for the future. This very house, still standing strong, was built as a home for H. Orton Wiley, the college’s very first president. You’ve got to imagine Wiley himself: a determined man pacing the halls, determined to shape the school into something extraordinary, probably dodging a few leaky roofs and crossing his fingers for extra funding-hey, some things never change in higher education. The air was thick with the excitement of new beginnings, and little did anyone know, this red-brick retreat would become the sole survivor from those early days. While nearly everything else from that era has vanished, this home still radiates the optimism and grit of its original residents, reminding students and visitors alike that big ideas can sprout from the humblest of buildings… and maybe a stubborn president with a trusty umbrella on rainy days!
