3.10.22
A very long time ago, I was married to a guy who wanted to have his own business. The trouble was that we were poor as church mice; you know, patches on our already patched jeans?
I already had my horse business and it was supporting itself alright but he thought that if he could get better at horse equipment and tack repair, he could make a go of it. We talked it out and decided to give it a try. He started learning more all the time and also saving whatever extra money we had... and one day a couple of months later he came home all but bursting with his news
He had found a building for his Tack Shop!!! There was an old house there also and the deal was that he had to tear the old house down, remove it all, and the little crookedy building sitting there too, was his for free. Umm, that was a problem right away. How would he be able to do it all? I was busy with my horses and couldn't be of much help... No to worry, he'd come up with something, I was told.
Turns out he DID. He found some guys that were carpenters and out of work until Spring -many of them! These were all pals of his and he knew they were good workers, knowing their trade. They worked all through late winter on tearing that old house down, saving the old timbers, boards, and anything they could. Those all were hauled to our place and piled carefully so as not to warp or rot. We ended up with quite a big salvage pile of wood.
I stopped one afternoon to take a look and thought,
"Oh myyyyy, that dear little building - a strong wind would knock it down"
It was listing to the left, pieces of the roof gone and the old tarpaper was all but gone, exposing the boards. Broken window panes and a hole in the floor where there'd been a small fire at one time. Sighing to myself, I drove home.
Finally, it was moving day. They didn't realize they needed permits or more to move an old building. They didn't realize there were electric and phone lines stretching across some of the roads. They didn't realize how rickety that little building was. It seems they didn't realize many things when it came to moving a 100-year-old building...
Everyone was eager to get this show on the road. A fellow owned a big flatbed trailer with a truck to pull it. This wasn't a pick-up and a trailer- but one of those rigs that roll along on highways. Jussssst a little taller than expected. It was finally loaded and I remember one of them saying " I hope it doesn't die on the way"...
The truck, trailer, and little old house pulled onto a major thoroughfare, and off they went. Pieces of shingles flew off, leaving a tell-tale sign of travel. When they got off the main road, they intelligently traveled the back roads. This took a little more time but was worth it. Slower, less wind, and less traffic. Yes- this might work.
I had a late start and just followed the trail of ancient shingles along the roads traveled. It was a little funny as I felt like the story of Hansel and Gretel - following the shingle path to find my way. By the time I got home, there it was. Barely intact but still standing up. Not only was the big rig there and all of the other vehicles, but two police cars also.
Hmmmm...The little ancient building was slid down the ramps and onto the footing that had already been installed a week before. It turns out that the building would not sit level for anything. That was when the leftover electric poles were brought over. Each was measured carefully and then cut. It turns out that my husband thought ahead concerning ending up with a crookedy base. He'd put buckets in the concrete so that when the concrete was set up, there was room to add poles if needed. 'Pretty smart!', I thought. So- back up the ramps the building was pushed... I know those guys slept well that night as it wasn't a teeny little place - more like 12'x18' or so. It was big enough though. After much grunting and shoving it stayed where it had been put.
Things were all measured another time to be sure those large poles (now looking like stumps) were placed in those holes and then the little building was slid on top of them I was Amazed.
It looked quite proud to be sitting on a safe dry foundation. If I scrunched my eyes almost closed, I swore the little building smiled. More fresh concrete was mixed and stones were found and eventually? That little building was all but perfectly level and sturdy. I was sure I heard it give a big sigh upon settling in.
All this time, the police stayed. On the way to the building's new home, it took out a few wires that were across the back roads, and then there was that 'no permit' problem. Luckily the two policemen were local and not as stuffy as some could be. The husband got a fine for not having a moving permit and no signal flag on the trailer. As far as those wires went- being an electrician, he knew some guys and they got them all replaced asap. Everyone shook hands, and the police turned down the beers that'd been offered and drove away.
We had hotdogs cooked on the little grill we had, and of course, the beers flowed easily. I had my usual water and oh those grilled hot dogs tasted so good!
The next day I found the husband standing outside in the yard... just looking at his 'new to him' Tack Shop. Oh, he had a lot of plans on how to make it look like an old-fashioned shop- with a potbelly stove, and more. We worked on that little building for many months, saved money, ordered some pieces of tack that we thought people would enjoy owning, and a wonderful old wooden workbench for the repairs of bridles, and halters to create new leather pieces for customers who wanted something specially made for them.
Finally, it was all ready and some horse-oriented friends stopped by to see what it became and I think they all liked it a lot. It was still there when I sold that little place, and I wonder if it still is now? Maybe a drive to check it out is in order...
This is something similar to how it turned out but a little different. I will have to find a true photo of it and if I can, I'll add it here. Imagine the back section gone and that's pretty much how it looked. All of the leftover shingles were gone and a new roof had been installed and the front porch was on the original too/
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