Jun 30, 2009
Ten-Word Tuesday. The History Edition.
There is little that delights Bossy as much as history, but there is nothing that leaves her sadder than looking at historic photos of her neighborhood.
Like many neighborhoods on the outskirts of a major city, Bossy’s town dates back to the laying of the railroad in the 1850s — and its growth was supported by the construction of a college.
Bossy is lucky to live in a place where most of the original houses and general layout remain. But many things were lost to progress, where progress equals cars cars and also some cars.
Bossy always says she could never live in her village if she had seen it with its farms and spring houses and stone water towers. And space, space, space.
Bossy’s unique house was built on a cow pasture — along with eighteen houses exactly like it — in the 1950s. Bossy’s lot was defined by a quaint stream which used to run along the back and cut toward the front, but all that changed exactly never, and explains everything.
Bossy and her husband are only the third owners of their house, whose history could be summed up this way: Previous owners threw enormous parties. Purchased house based on this.
Which is what today’s Ten-Word Challenge is all about. In exactly ten words, can you share with Bossy and her council something you know about the history of the town or house where you are living?
And be sure to check back later today for the best historical brevity on the web.
And about that? Bossy has the best commenters in the world. If you missed yesterday’s autopsy comments, click here — it’s not too late!
the original superman was born and lived in my town
Previous landowner parked truck on railroad tracks. Train came. Splat.
Theodore Roosevelt married in my mill town unburned by Sherman.
Lordy, but I love this little suburb. We’ve even got quaint ghosts.
1880 farmhouse on 200 acres; sadly less than one left.
Two cats shared basement litter box. Humid days? Smell lingers.
They raised pigs, then chicken. We just raise some hell.
Bossy’s town has quaker roots. Good politics, no liquor. Boo!
Was friends with previous owners for years prior to purchase.
–>Colonists landed first in Virginia Beach before settling in Jamestown.
http://www.WebSavyMom.com
our town is home to the illinois stateville correctional center.
Houston – history almost always torn down for “improvement.” Little left.
Nixon bought his Western White House here, and no wonder.
Where I grew up (Fall River MA) is more historical than where I am now.
Lizzie Borden took an axe. Gave her Mother forty whacks.
Previous owner’s wife ran off with next door neighbor’s husband!
I wonder what my 140+ year old house has seen
Jewish family moved, left their mezuzah, touch it every day!
My house was entirely pink inside every wall every room.
Fort Wayne Indiana’s former mayor’s name was Harry Baals. Word.
House built in 1978. Creaks like it was built in 1878.
Carol Channing once ate in my dining room. Previous owner.
Neighborhood built for Lockheed workers, complete with bus to work.
Shoddily built in 1973, everything crooked, been repairing since 1996!!!
Named after General ‘Mad’ Anthony Wayne. Ft. Wayne=Crazy town.
moved to our town and brought our schtetle with us. spelling?
Old chicken pig farm. My town is an old shoe-making town.
Dinosaurs walked here, I saw the footprints on a hill.
10 children with parents in my house. Now complain of 3 people.
Built 1880’s, briefly chiropracter’s office with spa in dining room.
Found hidden 100 yr old huge cigar, thought it was 100yr old discinegrated money!
Neighbor used to golf where subdivision is now. Progress?
First house on street, Gmaw has been its only owner.
1896-brick- 2 staircases (1 with oak gingerbread) -1380 square feet- limestone foundation crumbling.
numbers don’t count for words, right?
Previous owner loved pink and blue decor. Like a nursery!
South of loop, printers printed in long warehouses. Now lofts.
A lady used to raise birds on our back porch.
City named after John Greenleaf Whittier. He’s never been here.
Town traces back to Native American Lakota, called Paha Sapa.
Oldest city still in existence in county. Much history abounds.
Only school district allowed to use Smoky Bear as mascot!
(Seriously…how cool is that?!?!)
For those from Chicago – Sue found here. Major controversy arises. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sue_(dinosaur).jpg)
Second owners of ’50s house – first were Republican with guns
Previously family of 8. Had to add on for us 4.
1857 Quaker farm house built on what became a highway.
Originallly 2 rooms by threee stories; firepalces on either side of house in 1st two floors. Today, cut through the bathroom (previous sewing room) to third floor.
Is that ten?
previous owner claimed she was interior designer. house never re-decorated since 1971 – including cobwebs!
Food room door stolen from a hotel somewhere. Room 26.
Built 1895 by stonemason working on state capitol, midnight supply
Old Georgia house built 1854.Used as Confederate hospital. Haunted.
Scott Peterson (infamous pregnant wife killer) happy toddler next door.
None of the 5 kids wanted it. reasons quickly apparent.
I am confused… house or town – I shall do both.
House:
Original owner ran out of money, all finishing work shoddy.
Town:
Named for Lynch: expression from different time than you think.
house: Built before people had a need for closets outside bedrooms.
town: Was an orchard; became housing for returning WWII vets.
Previous owners were killed in tragic car accident. Got ghosts????????
Home next to old military fort used during Indian wars.
Generic townhouse, one of many, I’m one of “those” people.
Neighborhood called “Center of the Universe,” has statue of Lenin.
Home–1927 english tudor, light airy and so not scary. 3rd owners too, Boss.
Town–Aberdeen, WA.. birthplace of one certain Cobain boy, and his bff Kris Novoselic..(my favorite)
gangsters, mafia, crooked politicians, great restaurants, neighborhood bars, LOVE IT!
Apparently my town was bought from some Native Americans with beads by some wily Dutch traders.
World ski jumping records set on neighborhood hill in 1930s.
House built in 1912 – last owner was Lenny Bruce’s dad.
House: Original owner’s wife ran off with contractor – husband hung himself (supposedly in the stairwell – and yes, we do have a ghost – not sure if it is the husband or someone else… and no, words in parentheses Do Not count towards the 10 *grin*.)
Strange street names the norm. Blue February. Sun Circle Way.
I can never do the 10 word thing so I won’t even try. We live in one of the oldest parts of our city but our house is only 2 years old. The house that was here burnt down about 3 years ago (we didn’t live here at the time)…if I go on the Net and type in my address, there are pics of the old house on fire…it was one of the worst house fires in the city…bizarre to see. The house has good karma though… old house burnt because car in garage caught fire…wasn’t the house’s fault, so no bad karma!lol
Used to be orange groves and oil wells-now dense population.
three houses on my block look exactly like mine. kewl!
(full disclosure – 4 houses built on former farmland for 4 siblings and their families. house built in 1941. spouse and I are owner #5.)
Red brick house built in 1979. We’re the second owners.
Ghost hunters claim sleepy New England town’s Town Hall haunted.
Our town is the home to the first Drummond home. Historical.
Camp Cactus was built in 1910…100th birthday next year!
Boarding house built by a railroader with poor measuring skills.
Rich people came to live here and make richer babies.
Town is “Goose Capitol of the USA,”- Canada goose flyway.
Town saloons: “The horny toad” & “The satisfied frog” Fun.
Lumber mills, lobster, art and Yankee ‘make-do’ mentality. Ayah.
New house in 2003.No history.Wish we had ghosts.
Explorers Iberrville/Bienville sailed into our bay on April 12, 1699
Concrete bunker, to withstand nuclear holocaust. Also great for toddlers.
House: Previous/only other owner security freak, windows sealed shut.
Town: Capital of the Confederacy, Monument Avenue, James River, Much History
Founded on sausage. Full of chubby midwesterners. Moving soon. Yay!
Al Capone said the best moonshine came from my hood.
1907. Built after 1906 San Francisco Earthquake destroyed the original.
Where I live was once named Chicapoula, meaning bad grass.
(Ga-head, I know what you’re thinking. The Choctaws weren’t smoking mutta).
they used to make mrs. smiths pies there. mmm, pie.
The FBI re-opens Mack Charles Parker lynching in my hood.
Third oldest town in NC, celebrating 300 years in 2009!
1906 SF earthquake killed 100s in my town 1hr north
NASA tests shuttle rocket engines here, Wernher vonBraun slept here.
Town founder beheaded by Indians. Head recovered two years later.
Under the city are tunnels from the river. They were used by pirates and rumrunners.
Town: First public library in country, books donated by Benjamin Franklin
Home of Kukaniloko Birthing Stones, where ancient queens gave birth.
Edgar Allan Poe died in my neighborhood.
Town:
Raised in OH farmtown; CNY village namesake is now home.
Continuous family ownership for 120 years. We live with history.
Town: Wal-mart Headquarters here. May be evil, but lots of jobs.
House: Nothing much. Weird bedroom has no windows. Technically a closet?
Milk compartment built into kitchen wall: before refrigeration.
White supremacists staged coup and overtook local government in 1898.
or
Town is 3rd after Hollywood and NYC for movie production.
Turns 100 this year, if these walls could talk, Oy!
Tiny village engulfed by city pretends to be a suburb.
Vancouver USA’s first planned neighborhood; homes for WWII shipyard workers.
date built unknown
last owner cheapstake
used USED material throughout
I travel fulltime in an RV. No history. No troubles!
NASA suburb–redecorating an “I Dream of Jeanie” interior design
Geronimo born in my bedroom, slaughtered dozens in back yard.
Basketball legend Bill Russell – driven out of my town. Sad.
house built on dairy farm land, cemetary in back yard
Once largest cattle ranch in Southwest. Now only 50,000 acres.
Once hideout for train robbers, villains. Now only for me.
Still no neighbors, phone, cellular, mail delivery or power grid.
Still 50 miles to nearest groceries. Better have good garden!
Charleston invented history: The “war of northern aggression” started here.
1820s: Townsfolk narrowly chose Leroy over Podunk for official name.
It’s totally true! Of course, the Governor preferred a more British-sounding name, which is why neither Leroy nor Podunk won the day. Also, my house was built on a lot that just covered up an open spring. Hence, our backyard is also a small lake every spring, and so is our basement. Ah, the brilliance of builders!
Family originally homesteaded farmhouse which now has friendly ghosts occasionally.
Cow’s here first – family farmland.
First iron T-rail! Revolutionized railroads!
Ours is one of the original thirteen houses in Sandbridge.
Californian couldn’t stand Washington weather. Good! Great house for us.
Apartment building, 97 years old, wood lice to prove it.
Couple invited priest for dinner — priest and wife now married.
Rory! I’ll be in Sandbridge next week!
nothing grows in garden. believe previous owners buried nuclear waste.
Mormons came here, some stayed, not for them now – Partay!!!
Arthur Ransome, the author of Swallows and Amazons, used to live in my building. In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, I have decided he lived in my apartment.
Former owner frequently opines: home was much nicer when hers.
House was built in 1930; same builder constructed Grammy’s house.
I knew when I walked in, energy just like hers.
LA too much? Like, head to the Valley, you know?
Just found out the land my house was built on belonged to the Grandparents of a lady I know. It was a farm and she would go over to her Grandparents house to play as a child. This lady is 97 years old and still remembers alot about her childhood.
51/wicked witch: I know Fremont (center of universe as well as Seattle) when I read it!
1. Mathews was founded in 1791, the last time I cleaned.
2. The last royal governor of Virginia was driven from Mathews.
3. Sally Thompkins-the only female commissioned in the Confederate Army.
4. In the 1800’s Mathews’ six shipyards produced over 2,000 vessels.
Summer community, plots sold with newspaper subscriptions in the thirties.
Un-zoned, country’s best arts city, unbeatable foreign restaurants, gottahavea car.
1970’s apartment, two extra big rooms, smurf sized kitchen, trees.
If walls could talk, they’d say, “Lord, you’re a slob!”
AND
Town used to be a lake, which explains my basement.
I love Bossy’s commenters. They truly do rock. Hard.
Town named after end of trail of tears. Never leaving.
Toilet faces full length window facing street. WTF?
my street was a turnpike eons ago. still no stopsigns.
Summer retreat for shoe factory workers, since it’s near trains.
2nd Post:
Horse coral for 10 horses, owned none, never will, clueless,
Miners cottage, verandahs, 100 years old, lost argument on colour.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/whitequeenbc/3259148153/in/photostream/
Built in seventy-two with six others. Bye-bye farm.
Mom left; Dad raised 3 kids here with one shower.
86/Michele P. – I’m up 495 from you on 117! You have a great library!
This house and I were both born in the sixties.
Our street is named for a water duck or mosquito?
10 year old house; city incorporated in 1989. Foreclosures abound.
Prohibition, no males in sorority houses, big tax exempt university!
Previuos bought, decorated for mom,girl,and baby,she suicided.
Grandparents arrived with dreams, parents survived with drive… now us.
Lots of people died in this civil war town.
magnificent trees honour war dead, new house on dry paddock
Built in the 1930s as Bronx summer house, no insulation
Caretaker for oldest house in town – dates from 1692. Drafty!
My arrival improved the quality of the town 300 percent.
Town was built around a slaughterhouse. Eeewwwwwwwwwwwww! Very pretty now.
Esther Forbes (wrote Johnny Tremain) grew up in our house.
No 90 degree angles in 200+ year old house.
Russian Christians ran up the hill after earthquake, built here.
County farmers took grain to George Washington’s mill circa 1780.
Cool fact: Washington also ran a distillery adjacent to his gristmill at Mount Vernon; at one point his distillery was the largest producer of whiskey on the continent. Go, George!!
Wish we’d had town names and states as bonus words.
Waterloo: 8,500 sydneysiders on what used to be one farm.
Burma Shave signs, and church bells ring on the hour.