If These Walls Could Talk: It’s Old House Week!
Kandy Harris | August 24, 2015My love of old houses blossomed when I moved to upstate New York. When I was growing up, I lived in various places around Alaska, including a suburb just outside of Anchorage, where buildings and homes are seldom older than the 1950s or 60s (the Alaskan Earthquake of 1964 had a bit to do with that, along with Alaska’s status as a relatively young state). While there are plenty of things I miss about Alaska, architectural aesthetics isn’t one of them, so imagine my delight upon moving the Hudson Valley back in 2000 and discovering a place where the history of the state and the very nation existed on every corner in every town.
Stone houses that date back to the 1700s are a particular favorite of mine, given my love of wandering around historic sites and museums. “If these walls could talk” is a common refrain in real estate parlance, but I’m genuinely interested in the events that took place not only inside of these houses, but in the areas in which they reside. Some walls could talk at length about winter hardships in the cold climes of upstate New York. Some walls could talk about the families who built these stone houses, stacking stone upon stone with bare hands, without the conveniences of power tools. Some walls could talk about the Revolutionary War raging practically just outside the front door. They could talk of loss, birth, warmth, our country’s fight for freedom. The walls of these old houses could talk at length about anything and everything, and I will listen intently, ears pressed to them, straining to hear every whispered word.
Let’s listen to the walls talk together this week, as we explore the old houses of the Hudson Valley and Catskills. Stay tuned….
Read On, Reader...
-
Jane Anderson | April 25, 2024 | Comment The Jan Pier Residence in Rhinebeck: $1.25M
-
Jane Anderson | April 24, 2024 | Comment A C.1845 Two-Story in the Heart of Warwick: $524K
-
Jane Anderson | April 23, 2024 | Comment A Gothic Home in Hudson: $799.9K
-
Jane Anderson | April 22, 2024 | Comment A Ravishing Renovation on Tinker Street in Woodstock for $849K