Demolition Day

Demolition finally happened on April 20 & 23.  There was a bit of delay due the challenge of accessing the property with big equipment.  We have a 70’ bridge you have to cross to get to our house and the guy with the dump truck didn’t want to cross the bridge.  So our neighbor graciously offered to let us cross his field, go across his driveway, then across our field to get to the house… about a ½ mile drive from a main road.

red outline is our property; pink line is truck route on a grassy lane along a corn field

 So with the track hoe in place, demolition began.  He was working very delicately because we wanted to try to salvage some of the old beams.  It was amazing to me how precise he could be with what he brought down.  He went around the perimeter and took down the wrap-around porch.   

there goes the kitchen!

 Then he pushed in the back enclosed porch and kitchen which was the only section of the house that was one-story high.  

a view into the bedrooms and living room

 Then he peeled off one of the walls around one of the fireplaces.  It was clear the house and the fireplace really weren’t connected.  

down comes the fireplace/chimney

 And then after the fireplace below the roof was brought down, the chimney above the roof still stood. 

see him lifting up the corner of the roof

 It was entertaining to see him pick up the corner of the roof and rock it until it fell … and as it did, he rolled back quickly!  With that half of the house down, they quit for the day.  

Redneck Drive-In

Our neighbors came over in their 4-wheel utility vehicle with their granddaughter.  We sat there … one of us on a tractor, a couple in our golf cart and some at the picnic table.  We decided this was the definition of a ‘Redneck Drive-In.’ 

So we got to walk in and around the half-a-house later over the weekend.  I think the guys even salvage more stuff.  In fact, that’s when they went back for the bead board out of the laundry room that is now in my outdoor bathhouse!  We noticed the 5 layers of siding and the old beams that just turned to powder when you kicked them.  The only things holding up the house were the 2x4s and plywood.

1/2 the house left - view from the back pasture

Monday, they came and finished the other side.  It was an incredibly windy day, so we huddled (again on the tractor and golf cart) in a low spot among some walnut trees to keep us out of the wind.  

But the blown-in insulation and lots of other debris was flying everywhere.  He pulled out a huge pile of beams and floor joists.  He was down to the last wall and fireplace #2.  With a last little push from the back hoe, it came tumbling down.  All gone …

Many people asked me if I cried.  No, never even had the urge.  But it was amazing to think that this house stood for over 160 years on the top of a hill in a town famous for a big tornado (Xenia, 1973).  So it was a little sad for the house.  So much so, that we are in the process of creating a head stone for the burial site in the back of the property.   

                                       “1073 Long Road House #1 ~ 1849 – 2012”