A native of Oregon, Pipes was highly regarded, and as fellow celebrated architect Pietro Belluschi wrote in 1986, “He began as a skilled craftsman and became an inspired designer with a flair for good composition and fine detailing” (Wade Hampton Pipes – Arts and Crafts Architect in Portland, OR Anne Brewster Clarke 1986: pg. IX).
Between 1911 and 1961 Pipes designed 69 custom residences in the Arts and Crafts manner, many of which are considered the best examples of this style in Portland. Fifteen of these homes are listed on the National Register. The Muldur-Lake house in Lake Oswego is in the English Cottage style. His architectural viewpoint evolved over the years and modernism became part of his works while he followed William Morris’ philosophy of total design and the permission to look beyond historical style.
Pipes went on to design a series of houses for the Bates family in Lake Oswego. The Bates House #4 is considered the best of the four houses Wade Pipes designed for John and Elizabeth Bates, as the culmination of his work and experimentation in integrating Arts and Crafts principles with modernism.