Wilson Homestead
Tucked away on a side road in this small Appalachian community is a gem in the rough. Constructed around the turn of the 20th century, this two-story clapboard-sided house features folk Victorian architecture, a style which was employed between 1870 and 1910 and noted for their relatively plain all wood construction with some decorative trim.
Inside was a house full of antiquities and relics of the past, including an enamel-coated Home Comfort stove, an enamel-coated Maytag Wringer Washer 2NL, a traditional wood-burning stove, and some furnishings stashed in a handful of rooms. Most interesting was the extensive use of newspapers wheat-pasted on walls for thermal insulation.
I could look at pictures of old abandoned homes for hours. I always wonder what the state or nature of the residents were as they were leaving. Did they know they were leaving for good? Are the pots and pans that are in the sink from the last residents or more recent squatters? It’s so fascinating.
I think that when you’re emptying stuff out of a house, you generally make multiple trips out to the truck, or assign someone to come and get the rest and haul it to Goodwill Industries. Occasionally that last trip to the truck doesn’t happen–perhaps the truck was already too full, and you planned to come and get the rest of the artifacts later.
Of course, all of those dozens of children who used to visit and play in the yard are gone now. Where could they have gone? Do not look in the basement.
One layer of newspaper provides approximately zero thermal insulation. Up until the 1940’s Sears sold a heavy paper for draft-proofing and insulating walls somewhat. But I don’t have any other explanation for the sheets of newspaper. The house looks somewhat older than ours here in Lancaster, Ohio, and we’re pretty sure ours was built in 1888. The windows of your house look a bit small, and the ceilings are lower than ours. But I really appreciate your fine photography and your entire project. Have you visited the abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike tunnels in Breezewood, Pennsylvania? They’re huge and immeasurably spooky.