My House Is Built On Logs
My house is old. I'm not exactly sure how old, however. On property records the city of Ann Arbor lists any house that was existing at the turn of the twentieth century as being built in 1901 so that doesn't give much clue. I did find that my house is listed in an 1892 City Directory as being owned by two laborers named Frank G. and Frank L. Schulz with a slightly different address (an additional digit was added onto the front of the addresses on my street at some point in time). It is unclear exactly when it was built but at the very least my house has 121 years of history behind it.
As an aside I am completely fascinated by how much information was displayed in that 1892 directory. You can see by the excerpt above not only is your address listed but your profession, whether you are a resident or boarder at your home, your husband's name if you are a widow and your business address if you owned a business. It is such a neat snippet of life!
Back to my house, whenever I talk about it being old in conversation I will typically say something along the lines of, "My house is so old it is built on logs." People usually think I am saying this just for effect and honestly I am a little bit because it sounds pretty cool. That doesn't take away from the fact that it is completely true. By logs, I really mean logs, as in they still have the bark on them. I remember the first time I went into the basement, looking up and and being amazed and surprised to see the log joists.
Nowadays many of the logs are obscured by the ductwork and wires running below them, but I thought I would share a few pictures. They are pretty terrible since I have about zero natural light in the basement, but I still think it is neat. Here is one of the joists holding up my living room next to one of the ducts.
Check out this cool mortise and tenon joint. (Please disregard the old non-functional wiring that I haven't gotten around to ripping out)
In the "new" section of my house there are some huge hand hewn beams. This beam is holding up the side wing that used to be a grocery store. Clocking in at about 12" x 12" it is a monster. You don't see that kind of lumber in modern construction.
My favorite part is seeing the tool marks on the wood. It really makes me think about how old my house is and what it must have been like to originally build it. I do have to say, it also makes me feel very lucky to have power tools.
I know it may sound a little strange to love the joists in your basement, but I really do. They are such a great reminder to me about why I bought an old house, even though the headaches of remodeling can be frustrating.
Do you have any quirky features about your house that you love?
Tuesday, January 29, 2013 at 8:35AM | Posted by Lisa | 15 Comments | Share Article | Email Article | Print Article 
Reader Comments (15)
Very interesting photos - those old beams have really done their job. Our house was built new for us (not custom) and the quirky traits are not that endearing. We were allowed to make some small personalized changes which now in hind sight were good decisions, I think the best one was to have the front hall closet hang into the garage space rather than take up floor space in the house - gives the front hall an open feeling. The one quirky thing I wished we had changed is the little bump out in the kitchen, sort of a bay shaped area - does nothing for inside or outside and is not really usable space and the roof line makes it perfect for wasp nests and or raccoons wanting to get in. I would have wanted the wall to just go straight.
Those are really interesting photos, Lisa. To see that the wood was cut by hand is proof of how hard people worked before power tools were invented. No gym memberships necessary in those days! And the log with the bark still on it must be a fun conversation piece!
We built our house for ourselves, so it doesn't have any more history than what we've seen happen here. We can name every bump and scratch and give details on how they've come to be, including damage and repairs from hurricanes over the years.
Mary-Lou- The beams really have done their job. When I got my home inspection the inspector commented on how sturdy it was. That is nice that you were able to do some personalization on your home as it was being built. I wish that I had a front entry closet!
Sandy- No kidding! I bet people from a hundred years ago would find it strange that people pay to go somewhere to get exercise. That is neat that you built your house so you know it's whole history. Very cool!
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