trying to turn back time

[1880 Stick Victorian]

Shortly after moving into the house four years ago, a neighbor gave a turn of the last century post card of our house. We went out and took another from about the same spot but the foilage had take over years ago. Cut to last weekend, with the help of our good friends who gave up their saturday afternoon and the neighbors who own the property, we are slowly moving the clock back if only visually. It took us four hours with four adults and two kids and several trips to the yard debris drop off site. Another resident of the village reaped about one cord of wood..

This is where it start from and where we are at today.

1907


2008


2012


we've got some more clearing this weekend to do and replanting some of the ivy to grow back on the hillside... with the work we have done on the exterior of our house is making our new neighbors also want to remove the asbestos siding on their house to reveal their original siding...all in good time..
scott

[jwesevich]

Nice work! What happened to the tower?

jeff

[cfisher057]

I was wondering the same thing. Lovely work, though! You are so fortunate to have older pictures of your home.

[1880 Stick Victorian]

Nice work! What happened to the tower?

jeff

In Sept. 1928, faulty wiring caught the attic on fire just before the grade school was letting out for lunch, luckily the children that lived here at the time saw the flames through the attic window and ran inside to tell their mom, which probably saved the house. While the top floor of the tower did suffer some fire damage the worst of it was to the right of the tower. I was able to meet the second owners granddaughter who was living in the the house at the time of the fire, and she gave me pictures of the firemen actually on the roof fighting the fire but was unsure of who took them and how they got up that high. The top floor (3rd floor) of the tower was removed (dammit) when the new roof was put on, but everything below that is still here. Here are the photos of the firemen working to put out the fire. If you look around the chimney you will see two of them next to it. How they managed to not fall off a wet, wood shingle roof it beyond me. The attic still has blacked and scorched wood.









We would love to put the third floor of the tower back on, we did put the front porch back on and this winter will start on restoring the kitchen, then the front staircase and the upstairs bathroom then if wood hasn't skyrocketed out of sight will strongly consider it... unless my lotto retirement comes early! LOL

[Hoosier Foursquare]

Looking really good, great progress! Really stinks to have lost the 3rd floor, maybe that can be down-the-road project? Those pictures are awesome!!

[housecrazy sarah]

Those old photos of the fire are AMAZING!!!
Terrible thing to happen to a house, but you are so lucky that the event was captured by camera! What neat record to go with the house.

[S Melissa]

Amazing reveal Scott! Our house is shrouded in trees - the big maple - probably planted when the house was young now towers over us and keeps us cool(er) all season long. Some years ago the big maple suffered significant storm damage, and I reasoned that it wouldn't be long before she succumbed to disease and rot and died - so I planted a young seedling Tulip Poplar in the front - thinking it would take the place of my too soon counted out Maple. Now the Tulip tree is getting big - and my old maple is just as happy and healthy as can be! So - we're shrouded in the summer. Oh well. I couldn't bear to take any of our trees down but in the future if one needs to go - others will be there to lend their shade!

[1880 Stick Victorian]

the trees were growing on a narrow strip and it wasn't like they were planted. also mingled in was poison ivy, poison oak, wild grape...it was from years ago when the neighbor's house was a multi-unit rental. About 7 years ago it was converted back to single family but they just didn't do anything to the landscaping, they were hanging so low that people had to walk in the street, it was not very safe. we have a 3-way intersection there and the foliage was creating a big blind spot, lots of slamming on brakes.

[Kansas. 1911.]

I'm fascinated by your driveway. If I remember, You've put a lot of work into that thing. It is very long and curves to the back of the house.

The turret is nice, but the porch was a better project. The turret might be the job for the next generation of owners, don't ya think?

[1880 Stick Victorian]

I'm fascinated by your driveway. If I remember, You've put a lot of work into that thing. It is very long and curves to the back of the house.

The turret is nice, but the porch was a better project. The turret might be the job for the next generation of owners, don't ya think?

The driveway starts to the left of the house, curves around the back and then goes down what we call the lower driveway which makes it nice when we have a lot of people over...but can be a pain in the backside when the snow comes or when we have to seal it...another project this summer

the porch does get a lot of use and was a good decision, glad we did it when we did with the way that lumber at least in this part of the country has skyrocketed. Having wood storms replace the old triple tracks and every year the cost goes up and up. Not quite ready to let go of putting the turret back...but its down there on the bottom of the list.