HISTORY OF OUR HOME

Snohomish was founded in 1859, just two years before the US Civil War, as a ferry crossing over the Snohomish River between the military posts of Steilacoom and Bellingham.  The first record of the property this house was built on was the 16th of December 1874 when Mary Sinclair sold to the Snohomish School District lots 1-8 of Snohomish Block 8.  When it was declared surplus property by the Snohomish School District on March 7, 1890 N.S. McCready, one of Snohomish's earliest doctors purchased Lots 1 & 2.   He sold to Thomas F. Thompson, who was a naturopathic doctor, on February 28. 1891.  During our renovation process a catalog for the Fall and Winter 1893-94 for D. Jacobs & Co. Snohomish, Wash. was found in the attic   The Great Panic/Depression occured in the United States in 1893-94 while the house was being built which was then listed as 121 Cedar. The address of the has changed over the years even though the house has not been moved. The two lots the house was built on was plotted off of what is now Pearl St but was then First Street as the our current First Street was Front St.  Getchell sold the house when it was constructed to Dr. Thompson on July 5, 1898.  It is not surprising that Dr. Thompson lost 1/4 of each of the lots on which the house was built on March 23, 1900 to J.M. Davis in what was called a forced tax sale. It was a difficult 15 years of ownership for one of Snohomish's earliest doctors as several people had an interest in the property.  The records show that on March 23, 1900 the Thompson's were foreclosed on by Jane and Neil Spithall who apparently at the time were going through a divorce. J.A. Pounder received an interest in the property from Samuel J. Nerdrum. on December 22, 1905.   Dr. Thompson sold his interest in the house to Ira Serene on February 27, 1906 who sold the house to J.A. Pounder on October 6, 1906.  He held the house for 3 years before selling it to Minnie Bushfield and her husband, James on December 17, 1909.  The house was purchased on April 5, 1920 by George and Elizabeth Danser who turned it into a boarding house.  The Danser's niece who lived here in the early 1920's said that what she remembered most about the house was washing the windows.  This house has 58 windows where as the average house has 18-20 windows.  Just prior to the Great Depression on March 16, 1928 a mortgage was assigned to Helen R. Ladd and Julius Zellmer for $1400. The Danser's turn it into apartments at this time and when we bought it in 1974 it was still known as the Danser Apartments.  More and more apartments were added over the years.  It was mortgaged on January 29, 1938 for $1500 to First National Bank and a second mortgage for $138.20 was given to Montgomery Ward for bathroom fixtures on December 19, 1939.  John Horace Danser and his wife Lucy Jane purchased the house on December 7, 1946 from his parents for $8,000.00  The mortgage was held by Otto Faulstich.  Harold B. & Helen King bought it on August 20, 1956.  They sold it ten years later to their son, Melvin L. Torgeson on May 22, 1966 for $9,000.  It was sold by his wife, Maryann Torgeson to the Countryman's as a six unit apartment for $16, 500.  It closed on the day they had their fourth child, April 16, 1974.

RENOVATION OF OUR HOME

Most people who were looking to buy our house were going to tear it down because of its condition and the fact it was on commercial property. Sandy's Mom cried when they bought the house because when she was a child they lived in an old farm house and could hardly wait to move into town into a new house and Sandy has cried ever since.

The Countryman's moved from a new house in the country that they had built into a house with no plumbing and no electricity.  It was heavily vandalized shortly after they purchased the house.  Every interior door, light fixture, sink, toilet, mirror were broken including the main water pipe into the house.  They had to disconnect the eight meters to the house and install a temporary power pole while they rewired the house. They thought they could stay in their former house in the country until they had finished the repairs on the house in Snohomish but they were required to turn it over to the new owners.  Also no insurance would cover any damage to the house if they were not living there. When people talk about the good old days they simply do not know how difficult it is to live without running water and electricity especially with four children one of them being a newborn.  We used to greet people with our kerosene lamps.  The bathroom were at the nearby library, gas station or Larry's Mom's house which was six blocks away.

The renovation is a life long process.  At first we would go so far and then have to get the house refinanced.  Some of our more ambitious projects have been having a house mover hold our house up while we dug a basement under it which allowed us to earthquake proof our house by tying it to the new basement walls.  We used the more than 3,000 bricks that had been the foundation for the footings for the old pillar and post foundation to do the outside of our 38 foot three story chimney for the three fireplaces that were added to the house.  We realized after our first wood fence that wood fences do not last very long in this climate so we added a brick and wrought iron fence which cost more than the original house.  Recent additions include a 50 year roof, two balconies and front portico.  We have plans to add a conservatory, gates to our wrought iron fence and a new garage for Larry's new Porsche.  He has been complaining for over 32 years about his Porsche he sold when we bought the house.  At the time it was worth more than the house.