ultimate foundation failure

[aemeijers]

Ooh, too bad somebody let it go, and that they tore off the fancy porch. Ornate places like that are what historical societies thrive on. But from what I can see in the pictures, I'm pretty sure large portions of the bones are rotted at this point. You can always jack up a house and redo a foundation, but once the roof goes, and water gets into the structure and sits for a few years, it is usually fatal. It COULD be redone, but it would be more like recreating it, and reusing what few pieces aren't rotted away. All that adds up to more money than most historical societies have available, unless they have some very well off corporate patrons. If the inside hasn't been stripped or 'modernized' too badly, an architectural salvage place may want to bid on it just for salvage rights. A 1900s era house had interior fittings and woodwork you simply can't get today.

[camryguy]

Yes your probably right about the structural integrity of the house, but even more right about the interior detail. From what I could see through the windows, the house is outfitted with wide baseboards, pocket doors, crown moldings, ornate window casings, hardwood maple floors laid in long strips that are about 1 inch wide (Thinnest, I have ever seen!), and one room seemed to have a tin ceiling. It is one huge arc of a house and is a shame that nothing was done earlier. I also noticed the fancy veranda that was on the front of the house. Again, people not caring about detail and architectural features.

[jw]

Yea, and i it does have some historic value, maybe the historical society would want to buy it and rebuild it. I'm a farmer, and farmers do sll sorts of things that most city people would not consider. I have jacked up falling buildings, moved entire barns and more. If the wall is coming off, it can be jacked back in place. Fallen plaster is minor compared to the whole project. Mold can be removed, but that depends on the extent of it too. What that place needs now is someone to put jack posts and possibly a stack of railroad ties under the floor (like when they move buildings). Foundations can be rebuilt with block or poured concrete.

It sounds like you would like to see the place saved, but you dont have the funds or DIY skills. Yet, you can try to help save the place by contacting the historical society and other such organizations. If I was nearby and wanted a project, I'd not hesitate to tackle such a job (I guess, not actually seeing photos of it).

I'd like to see photos, you could post them on one of these photo sites (someone else can provide URLs, I never used them).

Also, what state is this in?

Jw

[camryguy]

Well, I went to the local museum yesterday trying to find anything I could about the property and why it was abandoned, but came up with nothing. Its easy enough to put a few jack posts up and rebuild the foundation, but as the house still has an owner, ( I checked the registry office with all taxes being up to date), I'm not about to spend time or money on a house I don't own...yet! There is a For sale by owner sign on the house. I called the number, and left a message, but have heard nothing. As for a historical society, there is one, but they don't have the funding nor do they have the board size to save older properties, which is a shame.

I posted some photos on photobucket with the link up above, I'll include it in this message aswell. It is a beautiful house and one I'd love to see saved. I've heard from people living nearby that they think it would make a great bed and breakfast! Maybe some incentive for the historical society, we'll see.

As for what state, the house is in Nova Scotia Canada, its in a small rural community called Melvern Square.

Here is the link to the picture of the house from 1902:

is the link of the pictures I took today, Sept 6, 2010:

[camryguy]

On the Melvern Square website, scroll all the way down to the yellowed picture.

[camryguy]

Well to update. I called the number once again and this time a woman answered. I gave her my name and where I lived, etc. Finally, I ask her this, "My understanding is that you have a property for sale in the Annapolis Valley." Without hesitation, she rudely remarked, "I THINK it has sold." I asked, "Is it sold or not? Don't say I think so, if it isn't." All she said was I think it is. I said to her, well sorry to bother you and proceeded to say goodbye when she said, "You know it needs to be torn down, right?" I said, "Not necessarily, it could be fixed/rebuilt." She said "I won't sell it unless its torn down." I asked her why? She hung up the phone.

Something bad happened in that house for her to leave it and not answer any questions I had. I wasn't trying to pry, all I wanted was to know the asking price. Have I gone too far with this? I don't know. Maybe I'm dwelling on something that is impossible. Is it a sick obsession? or a haunting fascination?

[camryguy]

I am sure there are other groups you can bother. I don't care if it gives you a headache or nausea or whatever. And if your not going to reply with an "on topic" comment, than please don't. Don't read it, I don't care at all. Like said earlier, you really don't have anything good to offer me, so please stop trying.

[DerbyDad03]

e quoted text -

re: "If you wish to reply, please do, but only on the topic being discussed. "

So it's OK for Hugh to reply "off-topic" since he is on your side, but Han can't because he disparaged your grammatical skills.

Interesting.

Since some folks are allowed to reply OT, I'll give it a shot and see what happens.

This isn't an insult, just an observation. Call it "constructive criticism".

As a "licensed Survey Technician" I assume you occasionally need to write up reports. Have you considered how much more professional you would appear if proper grammar were used in your writings? I don't know your employment status, so I'm curious if you think that that might open some doors for you in terms of advancement.

Just a thought...

[camryguy]

ide quoted text -

Yes I am a Survey Technician, but I do not write reports, I take observations using a Total Station which are then automatically stored in a data collector. I, then in a field book, draw a sketch of the property in question showing all features, fixtures, buildings, ROW, etc. Once complete, I hand in the field book and the data collector to the drafts man for processing. If there are any questions, he/she will ask me for verification (ex. if the number 7 is confused for a 1).

As for advancement, I am as high in the company as I can get right now as a Survey Technician. I was sent back to school by the company to get the 'Geomatics Engineering Technologist' Certificate. or GETG.

[DerbyDad03]

Hide quoted text -

Who are you and what did you do with camryguy? ;-)

Look at this last post as compared to your first post.

If you had written your first post as well as you wrote this last one, I doubt this arc of the thread would even exist.

Keep up the good work...and thanks for caring about that old house.

It is certainly a shame to see something like that in its current condition.

We used to go camping on Wellesley Island in the Thousand Islands. On the road to the campground was (is) a house that had been neglected for many years.

With each trip we watched it become more overgrown with vegetation and "shorter" as it slowly collapsed. I was always curious about the history of the house and what happened to cause it to be abondoned. Such a shame.

[Airport Shuttle]

You could send her a letter about your interest in buying the property.

[camryguy]

The property did sell and is now due for demolition. I wish I would have seen the sign earlier