Friday, April 19, 2013

3 of 3: Bungalow Loved and Lost: Interiors in Ruin

I walked through this bungalow during its last days. If the property tax records are correct, it was 99 years old.

It went up for sale in the fall of 2011. It sold on May 17, 2012 for $400K according to public records, demolished starting March 20, 2013.

It was a very fine house in it's day.

See 1 of 3: Bungalow Loved and Lost: Was it by Leila Ross Wilburn? 
See 2 of 3: Bungalow Loved and Lost: The Exterior and Windows.


This was the dining with a fine south facing bay, butlers pantry to the right, living room through double pocket doors to the left.

2013-04-08-Leila-Ross-Wilburn-plans-Bungalow-pattern-book-Plan-521-floorplan-original
This was close, Plan 521 in "Southern Homes and Bungalows" (1914) by Leila Ross Wilburn.

P1170750-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-parlor-ceiling-beams-east-bay-window
Living room beams and bay window.

2013-04-08-Leila-Ross-Wilburn-plans-Bungalow-pattern-book-Plan-521-floorplan-made-into-duplex
They added a master bath, a fireplace in each bedroom, and beams in the living room and den.

I don't know when it became a duplex. They closed up the doors on the south side of the hall to make a party wall. Unit A to the left, Unit B to the right.

P1170853-2013-03-20--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-demolition-front-east-side-from-across-street-plinth

I'll show you around:

P1170738-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-Rear
The back steps into Unit A. This was the southwest corner of the house.

P1170770-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-A-Unit-South-Enfilade-back-to-front
Looking in from Unit A's back door, through the enclosed porch, kitchen, butlers pantry, dining room, and living room, it's an enfilade.

P1170767-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-utility-room-laundry-maybe-enclosed-porch
From the back doorway of Unit A's kitchen looking through the enclosed porch out through the back door. This was a nice laundry room. The door to the bedroom was to the right.

P1170768-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-bedroom-fireplace-door-to-bathroom
The Unit A bedroom was off the enclosed porch. They've salvaged the mantels. The bathroom door was to the left. The fireplace shared a chimney with the fireplace in the Unit B kitchen.

P1170769-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-bathroom-is-off-bedroom
The Unit A bath, the master bath in it's day. They were salvaging the old tubs and fixtures.

I not sure that you can tell but this was a very comfortable bathroom, not so big but it had plenty of elbow room.

P1170772-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-utility-room-laundry-ceiling
The enclosed porch ceiling was rough but the trim details were nice.

P1170773-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-Kitchen-from-backdoor-enfilade -to-parlor
The original kitchen was retained as the Unit A kitchen. The doorway to the left was closed and became the party wall, the next door is to the pantry. The door to the right led through the butlers pantry into the dining room to the living room. They salvaged the paneled doors.

P1170744-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-Kitchen-from-central-hall-back-door-to-right
Looking from the central hall, this was closed off while it was a duplex.

P1170783-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-butlers-pantry
Butlers pantry, kitchen to the left, dining room to the right.

P1170765-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-dining-room-door-to-butlers-pantry-and-kitchen
Looking from the living room through the dining room into the butlers pantry and kitchen. They salvaged the door and baseboard trim.

P1170765-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-dining-room-from-parlor-through-pocket-doors
There were pocket door between the living and dining rooms. They closed the door to the right and made it the party wall.

P1170780-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-parlor-from-Unit-B-Parlor-firepllace
The Unit A living room. The dining room was through the doorway on the right.

P1170781-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-parlor-bay-window-ceiling-beams
The bay window to the front porch.

P1170760-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-Porch-Unit-A-left--Unite-B-Right-East-facing-Bay-window
I showed you back to front in Unit A. Now I'll go front to back in Unit B.

P1170752-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-North-Unit-B-parlor-front-door-window-faces-east
The Unit B front door from the Unit B living room. There was one window facing the porch.

P1170751-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-North-Unit-B-parlor-ceiling-beams-north-triple-window
The Unit B living room had a triple window facing north.

P1170764-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-parlor-beams-missing-brackets-text
They salvaged the brackets, they might have saved the beam lumber too.

P1170748-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-North-Unit-B-Bedroom-T-window-facing-north-enhanced
This was the Unit B bedroom.

P1170747-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-North-Unit-B-Bedroom-fireplace-door-to-living-room
It had a fireplace. All the original bedrooms had a fireplace. The Unit B living room is through the door on the right but I suspect that was closed off so that you entered the bedroom from the central hall.

P1170746-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-North-Unit-B-bathroom-clawfoot-tub
The Unit B bathroom was next toward the back.

P1170745-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-central-hall-to-front-A-to right-B-to-left-includes-hall
This is from the central hall looking from the back towards the front door. The wall to the right was the party wall. On the left was the bathroom door, then the bedroom door. The door to the right led to the original dining room.

P1170743-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-South-Unit-A-Kitchen-from-central-hall
Looking from the central hall into the Unit A kitchen. This was closed off.

P1170742-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland -VaHi-Teardown-before-North-Unit-B-Kitchen-fireplace
The back room of Unit B was originally a bedroom with a corner fireplace. They re-purposed it as the Unit B kitchen.You can just the see the rear foyer on the right. This fireplace shared a chimney with the Unit A bedroom fireplace.

P1170785-2013-03-19--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-before-Unit-B-North-Wall-bathroom-Ktichen-Back-door.
The back door of Unit B. The double casement windows were to the Unit B kitchen, the single window to the bath.

There are a few more last look pictures if you'd like to see them.

That's it.

P1020741-2011-11-28--1148-North-Highland-VaHi-Teardown-maybe-East-Facade-porch-exagerated

P1170849-2013-03-20--1148-North-Highland-Teardown-demolition-front-east-side-from-across-street-detail

See 1 of 3: Bungalow Loved and Lost: Was it by Leila Ross Wilburn? 
See 2 of 3: Bungalow Loved and Lost: The Exterior and Windows.

10 comments:

  1. How very sad! Last Friday we had dinner with friends in their Grant Park house and it was a pleasure to see one that had been kept up, improved and loved and not just by the present owners.

    After lunch today I drove a friend home to her 1947 neighborhood which is now being Macmansioned by builders/architects (someone is drawing up the plans) who clearly have no idea about historical architecture, a local vernacular or, judging by the two-inch thick brick veneer I saw cladding a new facade, the suitability of finishes. Where one 1947 small, one-story family house had stood, now stands a monstrosity which is allegedly, it being on a corner lot, to be accompanied to two more.

    Take a look at Sherwood Forest to see the monstrosities that are replacing the beautiful ranch-style houses.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Agreed on Sherwood Forest! I'm afraid that's what might end up next to me. Terry, you should blog about 41 Montgomery Ferry, a sadly neglected 1920's Dutch Colonial that has been vacant 4+ years. Absentee owners from the 'burbs who will eventually tear it down & build spec house. Awful neglected former beauty.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes ATD, I've driven past 1000's of times, one of several that make that little stretch so charming.

      Delete
  3. What a great floor plan that is, sad to those nice windows and beams lost, love the lighting in the first photograph.

    ReplyDelete
  4. "Enjoyed" those photos, Terry. What a shame. What is the dark wood in the beams and trim? Mahogany? My mom had a brick craftsman in South Georgia - very similar features. Love that dark green tile around the fireplace.
    -Trish

    ReplyDelete
  5. I just looked through some of Leila Ross Wilburn's floor plans on the mak-decatur.org website and found my neighbor's home! I emailed her - not sure if she realizes it is a Leila Ross Wilburn plan.

    Now I am looking through for my mom's old house in south Georgia - Brian Brown took a picture of it here: http://vanishingsouthgeorgia.com/2009/06/04/craftsman-bungalow-ocilla/
    The closest plan I see in this book http://www.mak-decatur.org/lrw/BrickAndColonialHomes.pdf
    is plan 127.

    -Trish

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Trish, That is beautiful.

      I'm wary of attributing any particular house to her plan book. The bungalow designs were a sensation and built everywhere. Still are a sensation.

      Delete
  6. My neighbor just looked at the plan and said the floor plan is identical to hers. Pretty cool.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Had a client in one of these. She said back-in-the-day the original owners had cook/cleaner & a yard man/driver.

    Nothing was large. Close to town.

    Can you imagine that lifestyle?????

    My Aunt Tillie had a 2 bedroom/1 bath similar. Cared for, never updated, when I knew the home until the 90's when she died. A perfect, elegant home.

    Hard to look at the pics.

    Garden & Be Well, XO Tara

    ReplyDelete

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