A Personal Insight on Preservation

A friend of mine reminded me that everyone has an opinion and this is mine.

This is addressed to those of you who presently own or are planning to buy a historic home. Whether it's rock, brick, frame, big or small, a certain status symbol seems to be attached to the more advanced age of a home.  People talk about the oldest house in town, county, state or country. It does not really matter if your house does not fit this category, just be proud of it for you are living in history and are, hopefully, preserving it for generations to come and I sincerely applaud your courage, for it's not always easy to live in an older home. Please, don't be ashamed of your house because it is not totally restored, rehabilitated or renovated.  It takes a long time and a lot of money to do it the way you think it should be and, for most of us, we have neither the time or funds nor the hope that it will ever be totally finished. You have something very, very special and I truly believe you should share your home with the public and open your house occasionally to it. There are people who truly have a genuine interest in your old home and would love to see it. You now have the opportunity and the honor to be the good-will ambassador to the past. Share the pleasure that you have in the ownership of a historic place and take pride in the fact that you are an educator as you explain its uniqueness and genealogy.  This is also the time to be thick skinned and not be influenced by the few nay Sayers you will encounter who say things like: " how can you live this way", "that wall needs new paint ", etc.  In my opinion these "commentators" just don't get it; but take a moment with them and try to explain why you live this way and why you have not painted. Educate them.  Thank God for the differences in people for it would be a boring place if we were all the same.  On the other hand your ego can be boosted tremendously by people who say: " look how well this is built compared to today's construction", "this place is absolutely beautiful", " I wish I had a place like this" and " I have always wanted an older home". These people get it because they understand and appreciate what you are doing. Let me tell you who I think you are: You are intelligent, individualist, have an artist mentality for you can see the beauty in what you have, a historian, a preservationist, a teacher and a custodian of the past.  You now have the rare opportunity to broaden the public's knowledge of historic places.  For you see, the statement "out of sight out of mind" is true.  I believe by opening your doors and letting people "see" history, that you "open" their minds and this will be one more factor, which could increase the needed interest in history and preservation.

            What degree of historical significance do you want your house to retain? There is no doubt that changing a historical room to a kitchen, bath room, sanding floors, sheet rocking the wall, replacing the window frames etc. all have negative effect on preservation. Please do as I suggest and not as I have done. I have rationalize many changes by saying things like "but the floor did not look this way when it was first built" to justify sanding floors or painting over the original paint because it was worn and the color was too dark and I felt the room needed to have lighter colors to brighten it up.  Believe me, we all end up doing some wrong with major renovations and changes; just try to limit these revisions to a minimum.  I know I have heard this said 1000 times: "but I must live in it".  The question I ask is " how close to the original can I retain it and still live comfortably? For the sake of everyone now and for future generations, retain historical artifacts. Think long, hard and carefully before you make any changes because once they are done, you cannot retract history.

          Over the last few years I have become even more appreciative of the very few people whose basic philosophy is "do nothing to the original" except in cases where the integrity of the building is in jeopardy. The reason for this is two- fold:  first, which is the most important, is that there is a minuscule number of old homes that retain their original wear and tear caused by generations living in it. These homes exemplify history and "antiqueness" and they should be preserved for future generations. The second is self-serving and also beneficial in retarding the changes one makes in the historical home. If you understand antique furniture, you know that original unfinished pieces with their cracked wood and extremely worn exterior are extraordinarily valuable. Whereas, if want to dramatically reduce the monetary value of the piece of furniture, just refinish it. Oh, it's more presentable to the masses with its clean look but it just lost most of its history, antiqueness and value.  Maybe in the future old homes will be valued the way antique furniture is today, and the more that any historic home is not refinished or rehabilitated will make it more valuable. If this phenomenon happens, and we all know that money talks, the repercussions will be that more preservation will occur. Please remember to try to retain as much of the original as you can for the future generations. You see, we are not the first to live in this home nor will we be the last. One thing's for sure, you are now part of the saga of your historic home and you will be remembered by what you did or did not do to it.  We cannot take it with us; therefore if you consider when we are alive, we just borrowed it for a time and called it our own. So, take a moment and reflect on this concept and please decide to be the best caretakers you can for history's sake. As the National Trust for Historic Preservations says "you are protecting the irreplaceable".

       So in review, could it be by showing your home and doing less to the original is beneficial for all? It actually sounds too simple to work but maybe, just maybe...............

 Other views

The assault on older homes

      As the population increases and newer homes are built the percentage of older homes prior to 1900 is getting smaller. Nature has a way also in destroying older homes with floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, forest fires, mudslides, lightning etc. Business pursuits have always played a tremendous role in the destruction of our history but a relatively new growth industry that is playing havoc on old homes, barns, bridges etc. is the salvage business. In rural areas the "timber people" and land speculators are still contributing to destruction and neglect. The general apathy of some owners is also prevalent. Another major continuing contributor is the house fire. The older homes are being attacked in every direction at an alarming rate. 

      As the number of these properties diminishes, it brings with it a ray of hope for the remaining ones. Rarity brings increased value. Increased value brings more interest. More interest brings more preservation.

To consider

    To better appreciate the monetary value of your historic property, you need to consider what would it cost to replace your home with like materiel (reconstruct)? It is said to build a normal home today (2004) that the cost would range between  $45 and $150 per square foot depending on any number of variable. The cost of older homes is between $175 and $350 per square foot, again depending upon numerous factors. What this means is that to replace your house with similar materiel that you have in it presently could cost three times or more than the same size house built with modern materiel and construction techniques. When you are finished you will have only a facsimile or resemblance of what you had. The point that I am trying to make is that besides having something that is historical significant, you have something that is monetarily significant also. So preservation can also be an economic incentive.

A national historic home day

      What would happen if we had a "National Historic Home Day" where, on a certain day each year, everyone would have the opportunity to open his or her historic home to the public free of any charges?  I, for one, believe this would ignite and be the catalyst that is needed to create an interest in older property that has never before been seen.