Situated in the main hall, this speaking tube once served as an early intercom system.

Astoria’s Flavel House Museum, built in the 1880s, is a fine example of Queen Anne architecture, its interior curated to the later Victorian period.

While the home’s lavish decor can seem overwhelming, a careful look reveals more than meets the eye. As a volunteer docent, I enjoy sharing some of my favorite interior details of the home, many often overlooked.

For instance, the house once had an early intercom system. A speaking tube in the wall conveyed voices from one room to another. Systems like these, first appearing in 1822, were found in many upper-class Victorian and Edwardian homes.

Look for the speaking tube’s mouthpiece in the east side of the museum’s great hall, opposite the grand staircase. The other end was allegedly in Capt. Flavel’s bedchamber.

There, look for a display cabinet with lower drawers, where a stuffed green parrot is displayed. This cabinet is from the master’s room of the four-masted steel bark Peter Iredale. The ship wrecked on Clatsop Spit in November 1906 and can still be seen at Fort Stevens State Park.

There is a red and white upholstered, reclining divan in Mary Christina Flavel’s bedchamber. It was owned by the Flavel family and later donated to the museum. It is interesting that the piece was reupholstered, but only the sections that were worn. This resulted in a two-tone piece that shows great thriftiness.

Two coordinating spool chairs sit in the library, from the mid to late 20th century. Spool-turned furniture, which features repetitive rounded turnings, was very popular in the Victorian era.

Steam-powered lathes, introduced in the mid-19th century, made this furniture quicker and cheaper to manufacture. The chair with the needlepoint floral seat is alternately called a “lollipop” chair. Both are high-quality examples of spool-turned chairs.

In the dining room, a six-light chandelier is original to the house. It was a gas light fixture, or gasolier, and has since been electrified and restored. Its colorful glass shades show a bullseye pattern, similar to other light fixture shades in the house. It was removed in the 1930s and has recently returned.

Gas lighting was standard in the Flavel House, and in many Victorian homes until electric lighting became common. Few of the original gas light fixtures of the house survived the conversion to electric lighting. – This one is very special.

A set of black-painted wood chairs in the kitchen were made by Mary’s father, Conrad Boelling. These chairs are characteristic of homemade furniture of the mid-19th century.

They feature contrasting, delicate white detailing, like other Victorian household items. A flower basket decal marks the center of each chair back, a popular Victorian furniture ornament intended to make a plain object more decorative.

Finally, look to the walls to find an example of the home’s beautiful plaster work. The general rule is “if it is painted, it is plaster.” The ceiling medallions, cove molding and decorative interior arches are ornamental plaster. These are particularly well done, made by skilled craftsmen.

Seek these details on a visit to the Flavel House Museum. Tickets can be purchased at the Carriage House at 7th and Exchange streets.

This column marks the end of my year of monthly columns for Coast Weekend, but my work in historic preservation will continue. The Forsstrom House is a hub of restoration work and I will continue to write about historic interior decorating. Thank you for your kind feedback and comments. Stay in touch.