November 5, 1849
The United States of America deeds to Benjamin H. Buckingham 148
acres of farm land on the edge of Sigourney, Iowa. The lot my Victorian
house will be built on is part of this farm.
1850
Benjamin Buckingham and his wife Martha sell the farm to Amaziah Covey
1853
Amaziah Covey and his wife Elizabeth sells to Hasadiah Smith what
appears to be just 20 acres. The lot my Victorian house will later be built
on is part of this 20 acres.
1855
Hasadiah Smith sells the 20 acres to Feldon S Glandon
1864
Feldon Glandon and his wife Pernina sells the 20 acres to Owen Stevens
1880s
The estate of Owen Stevens deeds the property to his wife Anna to use for
the rest of her life. I am not sure if there is a old farm house on this
property or if the Stevens lived on a nearby farm and just bought land for
farming.
1900 to 1901
The property is sold to settle the estate of Owen and Anna Steven after her
passing. In the will Mary E. McLean is mentioned to be one of Owen and
Anna's daughters. Now Mary E. McLean and J. M. Mclean are mentioned
when the estate is settled. I believe that J. M. and Mary E. McLean are
husband and wife. Since the initials J. M. isn't mentioned anywhere in the
abstract but when the estate is settled.
1901
C C Laffer and Henry Laffer appear to buy the land on estate sale and the
lots are divided up. The lot on which this house sits is numbered lot 1 on
the map.
1901
CC Laffer sell the lots to Henry Laffer.
1901
Henry Laffer sells lot #1 to W. I. McLean JR for the sum of $400.00. Now
I believe he must be the grandson of J. M. and Mary E. McLean but I can't
find out his link to the McLean family. I believe through dates and stories
passed down to my family from peope who owned the house that he had
planned to build a house here. So the blueprints for My Victorian House
was drafted. Now I don't know if he changed his mind about the house or if
something in his life made him change his plans. Because he sold the lot
with the house that has been changed in 3 years.
1904
W. I. McLean Jr sells Lot #1 and the new house built on it to William and
Margaret Paull for the sum of $2400.00. The house was changed for Paull
family when it was built. Originally the house was suppose to have four
bedrooms on the second floor but since the Paulls were an older couple
who's two older sons Frank and Dallas were married and no longer at
home. Their unmarried daughter Mabel did live at home so since they felt
only two bedrooms were needed. So the back two bedrooms were
eliminated from the original floor plan. A flat deck roof put over the first
story rooms that would have been covered by the two bedrooms that were
eliminated. In the upstairs hallway instead of two doors leading to the two
bedroom that were eliminated a window was put in. Also needing changed
was how the back chimney for wood cook stove and a small stove in the
dining room was supported. Since it would have originally ran through
these two bedrooms and been supported by the walls. Two steel rods were
ran from the back of the house and these were tied into the back chimney
to support it so the right height could be gained so the chimney would
draw the smoke right. Also a buggy shed is built in the back yard.
1905
In the first couple of years William and Margaret Paull enclosed the wash
porch so they don't have to fight the elements to wash they clothes and
get water for normal home usage as the well is located on this porch. This
might have been planned all alon since the exterior siding on the wash
porch was old ship lap siding and not narrow siding used on the main
house. The work was done by their sons Dallas and Frank. When the roof
as tore off during the grant work an old broken tea leaf pattern plate (a
popular pattern for dishes during this time frame) was found under the
roof sheathing. Also under the roof sheathing was a old Rye bottle with the
old cork still in it. I imagine the two son's mom had sent up a snack on the
plate and it got broken and pushed under the sheathing. The bottle of Rye
I am sure the two brothers shared and when it was empty it got put under
there too. They also enclosed the open porch on the east side of the
house with windows and screens so they can be opened in summer time
as it is quite common for people of this time to sleep on a screen porch in
the summer since it was not quite as hot as the main house.
1928
William Paull passes away and his wife Margaret inherits the house and
property
1941
In January of this year Margaret along with her two sons Dallas and Frank
Paull sell the house and property for the sum of one dollar to their
daughter and sister Mabel A. Paull who is single and has lived with folks
since they had the house built. (I figure this was a move to protect the
house since it seems that Margaret must be ill and passes away just
several months after selling the house to Mabel. They must have figured
the house would be protected and could not be sold for Margaret's care if
it was in Mabel's name) Mabel now inherits the house and is the sole
owner.
1950?
I am not sure when but know it was the early 1950s when Mabel remodeled
the kitchen, bathroom and changed the coal fired furnace for a fuel oil
forced air furnace Some of the things done at this time was in the kitchen
the old sink was taken out and the window on the west side of the kitchen
was shortened to allow metal cabinets and a sink put in, The chimney for
the cook stove was taken out at this time and I believe a electric stove was
put in since I can't find any gas lines coming into the house. A lot of older
people from this era was scared of gas stoves exploding and would not
buy one for this reason, In the bathroom the old hand filled bathtub is
taken out and a modern bathtub installed, Also a modern sink and a
modern stool is put in the bathroom, The house is now hooked up to City
water and sewer system, Before this time all the water for home needs
were served by the well on the wash porch and the waste water is handled
by a underground tank just off the corner of the wash porch, Also at this
time Mabel has aluminum storm windows put on the down stairs windows
all but one window on the north side of the kitchen, I believe that Mabel
held on to the common practice of that time when you had some water to
throw out you would just open a window and throw it outside. In the
basement Mabel had a 1/2 bath put in the one corner, I think she could
have moved the washing machine down to the basement at this time.
There are some water pipes I can't figure out why they are in the area
accept maybe supply water for a washing machine. Also by this time the
old buggy shed has been tore down and more modern garage is built just
south of the old buggy shed. The actual year this is done I am not sure.
1960
Dallas and Frank Paull inherit the house after the death of their sister Mabel
1960
My Great Uncle John Warren and Great Aunt Metta purchases the
house and lot from Dallas and Frank Paull for the sum of $10,000.00
1960?
In the early 1960s John Warren and Metta enclosed a open porch on the
west side of the kitchen cutting off a lot of the view from the kitchen, they
also move the aluminum storm windows from the shortened kitchen
window to the window on the north that Mabel had not put a storm window
on
1967
Metta inherits he house and lot after the death of her husband John
Warren
1975
My parents Kenneth and Freda purchase the house and lot on a auction
held by my Great Aunt Metta for the sum of $4000.00 but some of the
charm of the house is lost when the vintage light fixtures are removed and
sold on the auction. Some of the local antique dealers want the auctioneer
to sell the stick and ball fret work in the doorway between the dining room
and living room, Luckily my father demanded that the fret work not be
sold since he has purchased the house on the auction. So this great fret
work is still there thanks to my father
1975
Kenneth and Freda has propane tanks put on the west side of the house
and gas line is ran to the gas cook stove, Metta was one of those older
people who was afraid of gas stoves and she had an electric stove. The
house is also roofed and painted after many years of needing this work,
The trim is painted a lime green at this time my Mom liked green, My father
also has me put up modern light fixtures to replace the vintage light
fixtures that were removed and sold during the auction
1977
I steam the main layers of wallpaper from my bedroom but at this time I
painted the room a light ivory color instead of the deep rich colors
Victorians would have used, I wished I had studied what color the original
paper was at this time but I was not interested in restoring the house back
to its original state I also put down a beige colored carpet over the old
painted floors
1978
Kenneth and I put on aluminum storm windows on the upstairs windows
and we also put down tiles in the kitchen and the dining room
1987
My Father Kenneth obtains sole ownership of the house after the death of
my Mother Freda
1989
My father has me put the right size aluminum storm window in the
windows on the north side of the kitchen and I put the shortened aluminum
storm in the window it came from, We paint the house changing the lime
green trim for a deep blue trim
1996
My Father Kenneth deeds the house to me Thomas in return that I provide
a home for Donnie my brother who has downs syndrome
1997
My Father Kenneth passes away and my brothers Jim, Dean, John, Joe,
Roger, Rodney and Mike and my sisters Helen and Mary uphold our
Father's wishes and I obtain sole ownership of the house and lot
1998
A strange wind storm hits and we have a wind force of 120 to 130 mph for
over 30 minutes, After coming from the basement where I took refuge
since I thought it was a tornado that hit, I find that 1/2 of the enclosed
porch that the Paull family used for sleeping has been tore off. After
rebuilding the porch I paint the house white with dark blue trim again.
1999
I steam the wallpaper off the dining room and discover that the original
wallpaper was deep royal blue with flowers plus gold silver highlights, The
ceiling paper has a cloud like design with a fancy outer border on it, Not
really interested in restoring the house back to how it looked in 1904 I
make one large mistake and a second smaller mistake, The big mistake is
when I find that the heart pine floor has stains around the edge of where
we had laid tiles. Instead of fixing the problem I put down under layment
and put a vinyl floor covering down. The smaller mistake is I paint the room
a pale blue color
2001
I find myself thinking of returning the house back to its former glory and
take up an old carpeting in the parlor and finish the heart pine floor, After
putting down an area rug I can see the room start taking on a Victorian feel
to it
2004
Having decided to return the house back to how it looked in 1904 I have
started that journey and you can follow on the website as the house
changes back
2005
The Master bedroom is painted a dusty rose color with a dark burgundy
rose border. I build a wardrobe to hide the TV and computer in my
bedroom.
2006
I open up the porch my Great Uncle John Warren and Great Aunt Metta
had enclosed. I was lucky and the hadn't removed the old original siding.
New railings are installed and now the windows that opened to the
enclosed porch make more sense and the view is much nicer.
2008
I received a grant for the house. They strip the old shingles off the roof put
down sheathing and new shingles. The old original rain gutter is removed
and replaced. New storm windows are put in. They scrap and prime the
house. The old original knob and tube wiring is replaced with modern
wiring, the old multiply fuse boxes are replaced with one breaker box. New
power line is brought in underground. When the grant work is done I paint
the house in a wheat beige color with dark blue trim and burgundy
highlights. Keep watching as more is done to the house.
The History of
My Victorian House
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