I was struck by the old porcelain door knob, the bay windows, the corbels near the roof line, and the stone work close by. Yet I was saddened by this house in a tiny berg where there was once an elementary school and a thriving community. The house had to have been a magnificent structure at one time.
The dilapidated house had caught my eye when two friends and I were coming back from a road trip to Fremont and we decided to drive down what was once and probably still is the main street of this town - to see what was left. Two churches, a sawmill, a park, the old school and a few houses and trailers are what remains. Oh yes, and the old house.
I returned on a warm spring day to photograph what seems to be a symbol in our country of all the old beautiful buildings going to wrack and ruin.
I was curious about the story behind this structure. Who built this dwelling and in what year? And why was it left to rot? Who owns it now? Unless someone has money to burn, the old dwelling seems beyond repair.
I love old buildings and barns. I realize not everything can be restored, so in this case, wouldn’t it be better to tear the building down? Broken windows and wood siding that has separated to show the inside bones are a sad thing.
Yet I must admit, there is a forlorn beauty to the place. The gray weathered wood contrasted with a small group of jonquils along a side door.
Next week I am heading to the County Historical Society because I want to know more. I will return to the house when the lilacs are blooming because I think they are the bushes covering one side of the house. With some background knowledge, maybe the walls will whisper to me.
If I knew I wasn’t breaking and entering, I would try to get inside. However I might fall through broken floorboards into a cellar I couldn’t get out of. Best to admire what it once was from the outside. Still…..
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