Sunday, October 21

A Look at My House




The deed of our house says it was built in 1890, but a couple of weeks ago there was a photo in the local newspaper of a brewing company that used to be located nearby. To my surprise, our house was in the photo, though it looked a little different than it does today. The side porch and kitchen wasn't there, the upper deck and kitchen was missing and there were few other houses in the neighborhood. There was a pop factory down the street about four houses. And a funeral home a couple of blocks to the north. But how could our house be in the photo if it was built in 1890? The photo in the newspaper was dated 1856.


I did a little research and found that though the house is in the picture, it was never recorded at the land office until the 1890 date. Seems rather odd, but of course the city was young at that time. It was founded in 1839.


The house has changed a lot in the 15 years we've had it. The cement front porch has been replaced (at the insistance of the fire insurance company) with the wooden one in the photo. The side porch had wrought iron railings when we moved here. When we replaced the front porch, we had the rusty wrought iron taken off and a new wooden railing put on. We also changed the back stairs for the upper floor because they went down onto the side lawn.

This house is old and there's no doubt about that. When we changed the ceilings a few years back we found chimney holes for an old woodstove in the living room and soot that had drifted into the rafters. It seems the place where my computer is today was a parlor and there is a trapdoor in the floor that went into the basement. It has now been covered with laminate honey-colored flooring.


Have you ever stripped wallpaper off of an old house? When we moved here the living room was papered with a floral paper that was circa 1960. It had been put on with wallpaper paste and it was tough to get off. We still paper it because the walls are so uneven they'd look horrible painted. One day we hope to take the horse hair plaster off and replace it with something a little more modern. First though, we have to do some work on the bathroom and kitchen.


The house is an ongoing project that will take years to renovate into the place we want it to be. However, it was purchased at a time when housing was less expensive than it was today and it suits us nicely. It most certainly has character. We've thought of selling it but it seems like too much effort to move at our age. This has been home for 15 years and it will continue to be home for many years to come.

Note: The house sits on a hill. The photo on the bottom shows the front of the house. My husband and I bought the new front door in lieu of Christmas and birthday presents last year. It is a mountain scene with a lake with mallard ducks in the forefront.

The photo on the top is looking up the hill at the side of the house. The lawn is greener than it's been all summer, but the summer drought took it's toll on the grass. I'm hoping it comes back next year, but if not, we will have to seed.

I hope you enjoyed seeing where I live. Later I will post some photos of what I see from my front door.

Look at the tree in front of the house. This photo was taken earlier today. It's Oct. 21st and all the green leaves are still on that tree. We broke a record today at 26 degrees C from 1979. Last year on the same day it was 11 degrees C. Though we are saving on natural gas, I am concerned about the environment. I think global warming is moving faster than we thought.

24 comments:

  1. Mary,

    Thank you for visiting with me and leaving a kind comment....I've enjoyed dropping by to see you...I like your home.....I will enjoy coming again.....Betty

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you, Betty, for dropping by. You're welcome anytime.
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  3. How nice to live in a house with so much history! It looks in great shape. People are so quick to tear down buildings rather than update and renovate.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ruth,

    I couldn't bear to tear down this house. It has so much character. I would love to be able to afford to make a loft. Maybe some day in the future.

    Thanks for visiting. Hope you will drop by again.
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks for sharing your home, I really like it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Denise,

    Thanks for your comments. It still needs a lot of work, but we can do it a little at a time. Maybe we'll be done someday. :-)
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a lovely home, Mary, thanks for sharing! There's nothing like a home with history, is there?

    Loved the nice photos, too!

    Smiles,
    Michele

    ReplyDelete
  8. Michelle,

    I would really like to know the stories of all the people who lived here over the years. It would definitely be interesting.

    Have a great week.
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Mary ~~ Thank you for showing us your house. It looks great and sure has some history. I would like to see a photo of the front door - it looks nice, but a close -up would be nice. Thank you for your comments
    and I am glad you like my photos.
    Have a wonderful week !! Take care,
    Love, Merle.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Beautiful home. I love old architecture and the stories behind the history.

    Thanks for visiting my site; I'll be back to read more of yours. I did try to read your other blog but, unfortunately, I can't read white on black - too painful and difficult on the eyes. Perhaps you could lighten the background? It looked interesting.

    bye for now

    ReplyDelete
  11. Merle,

    I will try to get a photo of the front door for you. I should have one for insurance reasons anyway. It is the one luxury that we have indulged in. Since we never plan on putting another door on this house, we decided to forego all other gifts and buy it. We're thrilled we came to that decision.

    Thanks for stopping by. I'm always glad to see you here.

    Have a great week.
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  12. marijke,

    I will try to change my other blog so you can read it. It's called "Treasures to Me" and will only feature those things that I class a treasure in my life.

    Thanks for stopping by and leaving the comments on the house. You're always welcome. I will be over to explore your blog further.

    Have magic Monday.
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  13. Your house looks so lovely - and what a history! I would love to live in a place like this someday, instead of one of those faceless apartments.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anna,

    I lived in an apartment for many years. We bought this place 15 years ago and we'll be paying for it for a long time. However, it's worth it to be able to garden and fix it up the way we'd like it.

    Thanks for stopping by. Have a magnificient Monday.
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  15. Mary,

    I love your house! It's beautiful and your front door is spectacular. I have never seen a door like yours. Just beautiful!

    Hugs,
    Tina

    ReplyDelete
  16. Tina,

    Thanks for the comments on the house. It is huge and old, but it is home.

    Thanks for visiting and commenting on my posts.

    Have a wonderful week.
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  17. Your house is lovely. I love the history behind it.

    We rent an older home and I've been wondering some about it and it's history...it has been such a have to me since last December when we moved in just before Christmas. That was a stressful time because of a strike at Hubby's factory but now that things have settled down I may have to get with my sweet landlady and find out what she knows of it. I do know that it is her family home and it is very well cared for and we reap the benefits of that for sure!

    ReplyDelete
  18. t*mmy,

    I'm glad you enjoy your home. If the landlady doesn't know the history of your home, try the land office. They often have records of the history of the homes. If you find out, I would be interested in hearing about it and seeing a photos.

    Thanks for stopping by. Have a great week.
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  19. Mary,

    Sorry I'm late. I have hardly had time for any enjoyable reading lately. Loved reading the history and seeing a picture of your house. You have a beautiful house.

    We still have a lot of green trees as well, although the colors are starting to come in now. And the temperatures are still very mild, perfect for beebopping around outdoors.

    I enjoyed a look at your house! Thank you for sharing.

    Blessings,

    Renie

    ReplyDelete
  20. Renie,

    I can imagine you're very busy with all the work around your place and your writing as well.

    Thanks for the lovely comments on the house. We're getting their little by little.

    Glad you've been outdoors. I spent a lot of time outside today as well. It was beautiful, but we have a cold front moving in. Back to more seasonable temperatures.

    Hugs,
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  21. BEAUTIFUL HOME!!!! Now, you piqued my intersts. Some day you mush show us the design of the interior...I bet there are a lot of stories those walls could tell us.!!!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anni,

    One of these days I will take photos of the interior. We have a lot of work to do inside yet.

    Thanks for dropping by and leaving such nice comments. I appreciate your friendship.

    Blessings,
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  23. What a beautiful house and so unique! I love old houses. What a great find of the newspaper picture dating it back further than you thought!
    We actually just sold our 1918 craftsman. It was cute and cozy but just to small for our large family.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Paula,

    Thank you for your comments on my house. It still needs a lot of work, but it's coming along nicely.

    I felt like I'd hit gold when I saw the photo in the newspaper. It was awesome!

    Sorry you had to sell your older home. They have so much character but sometimes we outgrow them or in the end they are too large.

    Thanks for visiting. I enjoyed your comments.

    Mary

    ReplyDelete