11/23/2004: Moving house - Page 2

lumberjim · 11-23-2004, 06:58 PM

o/' our house.......in the middel of the street.....our house....`\o

c'mon, you were ALL thinking of that song.

capnhowdy · 11-23-2004, 07:12 PM

I'm still looking for the "two cats in the yard"

lookout123 · 11-23-2004, 08:49 PM

My hometown in Illinois saw something similar about 10-15 years ago. it was one of the historic John Deere Family homes that sat on the property of their corporate headquarters. the company needed the land to put in another office building but didn't want to destroy the old home so they donated it. A new church about 4 miles up the road had to pay to move it, but they received a beautiful victorian home for their pastor to live in free of charge.

chrisinhouston · 11-23-2004, 09:54 PM

If I'm not mistaken, this is a "Queen Anne" style house, typified by the porch and the round turret.

Read a story some time back about how houses were moved in the last century or 2 in the USA. Sometimes it was done with one man and a mule and a bunch of logs as the rollers; could take a week or 2. I know of at least 2 old estate houses in downtown Houston where the house was just turned 90 degrees to face a different street that may have become a new main thourougfare. Hard to imagine now adays with slab foundations to turn a house just a quarter turn. Pier and Beam was the foundation of the time and it made it much easier to do.

Best to all as we head to the holidays

Chris in Houston.

dp73 · 12-16-2004, 05:45 PM

This is a little late, but as one of the new owners of the house pictured above I couldn't help but post a reply.

First, it is a Queen Anne. It was built in 1894 for Oscar Mandel. It had been in the family ever since - until the church bought it. The church donated the house to the Old House Society who then sold it to us.

During the move I was singing "our house in the middle of the street". The neighbors made jokes about having a mobile home in the neighborhood.

As for the move itself - the house was moved onto dolleys that were self-propelled. So it was neither pushed nor pulled - it just moved down the street all by itself. The picture was taken with the house moving toward it. Several trees needed to be trimmed a little to make way for the house. The route went through a parking lot, into the street, down a block, through another parking lot, and onto our lot. The entire journey (about 2 blocks) took nearly 7 hours.

Thanks for the interest in the house and the support of our preservation efforts.

Griff · 12-16-2004, 07:04 PM

Did the masonry survived the trip ok?

xoxoxoBruce · 12-16-2004, 11:22 PM

Hey welcome to the Cellar and thanks for the info dp73.

Bullitt · 12-17-2004, 01:52 AM

Moving a house is one thing, moving a LIGHT house is a whole new game.

dp73 · 12-17-2004, 10:10 AM

Most of the masonry is okay. The bricks hadn't been tuckpointed in forever, so we had a section that pulled away from the exterior wall (now being held in place by a brace) that will need to be fixed.

The lighthouse move is amazing. The Old House Society (who was responsible for the move) actually contacted Expert House Movers - who moved the lighthouse - for a bid on this project.

11-23-2004, 06:58 PM	#1
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	o/' our house.......in the middel of the street.....our house....`\o c'mon, you were ALL thinking of that song. __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

11-23-2004, 07:12 PM	#2
capnhowdy Blatantly Homosapien Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 6,200	I'm still looking for the "two cats in the yard" __________________ Please type slowly. I can't read very fast............... and no holy water, please.

11-23-2004, 08:49 PM	#3
lookout123 changed his status to single Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Right behind you. No, the other side. Posts: 10,308	My hometown in Illinois saw something similar about 10-15 years ago. it was one of the historic John Deere Family homes that sat on the property of their corporate headquarters. the company needed the land to put in another office building but didn't want to destroy the old home so they donated it. A new church about 4 miles up the road had to pay to move it, but they received a beautiful victorian home for their pastor to live in free of charge. __________________ Getting knocked down is no sin, it's not getting back up that's the sin

12-16-2004, 07:04 PM	#6
Griff still says videotape Join Date: Feb 2001 Posts: 26,813	Did the masonry survived the trip ok? __________________ If you would only recognize that life is hard, things would be so much easier for you. - Louis D. Brandeis

12-16-2004, 11:22 PM	#7
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	Hey welcome to the Cellar and thanks for the info dp73. __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump.

11-23-2004, 09:54 PM	#4
chrisinhouston Professor Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Houston TX Posts: 1,857	If I'm not mistaken, this is a "Queen Anne" style house, typified by the porch and the round turret. Read a story some time back about how houses were moved in the last century or 2 in the USA. Sometimes it was done with one man and a mule and a bunch of logs as the rollers; could take a week or 2. I know of at least 2 old estate houses in downtown Houston where the house was just turned 90 degrees to face a different street that may have become a new main thourougfare. Hard to imagine now adays with slab foundations to turn a house just a quarter turn. Pier and Beam was the foundation of the time and it made it much easier to do. Best to all as we head to the holidays Chris in Houston.

12-16-2004, 05:45 PM	#5
dp73 Person Who Has Posted Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 2	This is a little late, but as one of the new owners of the house pictured above I couldn't help but post a reply. First, it is a Queen Anne. It was built in 1894 for Oscar Mandel. It had been in the family ever since - until the church bought it. The church donated the house to the Old House Society who then sold it to us. During the move I was singing "our house in the middle of the street". The neighbors made jokes about having a mobile home in the neighborhood. As for the move itself - the house was moved onto dolleys that were self-propelled. So it was neither pushed nor pulled - it just moved down the street all by itself. The picture was taken with the house moving toward it. Several trees needed to be trimmed a little to make way for the house. The route went through a parking lot, into the street, down a block, through another parking lot, and onto our lot. The entire journey (about 2 blocks) took nearly 7 hours. Thanks for the interest in the house and the support of our preservation efforts.

12-17-2004, 01:52 AM	#8
Bullitt This is a fully functional babe lair Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Akron, OH Posts: 2,324	Moving a house is one thing, moving a LIGHT house is a whole new game. __________________ Kiss my white Irish ass.

12-17-2004, 10:10 AM	#9
dp73 Person Who Has Posted Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 2	Most of the masonry is okay. The bricks hadn't been tuckpointed in forever, so we had a section that pulled away from the exterior wall (now being held in place by a brace) that will need to be fixed. The lighthouse move is amazing. The Old House Society (who was responsible for the move) actually contacted Expert House Movers - who moved the lighthouse - for a bid on this project.

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