Patch Blog: The Money Pit's History

Inside the walls of this 1905 house, we found remnants of gas lighting fixtures and gas pipes in the ceilings. We found pieces of electrical wiring with frayed coverings that look quite flammable and expose the wires. That the house had never burned down is remarkable.  

The wood used to build the original home has impressed my architects. They say you can’t find construction wood like this anymore. It’s in such good condition, it looks freshly cut, clean, well-preserved. Much has been done to support studs over the years, cut in places they should not have been cut.  

We found a fantastic old child’s toy car from the 50’s or 60’s in the basement of this house and we had it repainted. I rode in cars like this one as a child. In those days, it was the only type of toy car that a child could pedal and steer himself. It had terrible turning ratios and took a lot of effort to pedal.  

This little car will have a special place in our new house. I call it Panda’s car, since it was my dog who persuaded me to abandon our old walking route and come down a new street instead, where I discovered this enchanting property for sale. I would not have found our new money pit if not for Panda. She has not forgotten her traumatic episode in front of Mary’s when three large dogs had been left tied to flimsy patio furniture and came charging at her dragging tables and chairs across the parking lot, and although she has been back many times and even made new friends there, she is convinced that those dogs live around there and could be back anytime. She tugs on the leash to go the other way now.  

The basement of the house holds some other secrets. It has three different tiny bathrooms, surely unpermitted. Neighborhood rumors have it that the place was used as an illegal halfway house for criminals just out of jail by longtime owner Perez who has since died. If the basement area was used for these gentlemen, it couldn’t have much better than a cell, however the quiet property beats a prison.  

Also discovered in the basement was a door taken off its hinges and stored here. It appears to have belonged to a teenage girl who used it as a canvas for her artwork, musings and favorite photographs. A snapshot of a significant era of her young life, I cannot simply throw this door away, but have no idea what to do with it. I would try to return it to her if I knew who she was.  

A corner of the basement floor has impressions in the concrete of five hands with initials all ending in W. Plenty of imaginations about sinister happenings, spooky scenarios, ghosts of little locked up children and murderers have been floated around by those poking into the deep recesses of the house. There is a dirty old pillow in a crawl space above the front porch.  

We continue to find out more about this house. We would love to hear stories from anyone who might have lived in the neighborhood during its history.