1955 house perfectly preserved

[cadman]

I heard the stories about this house last month and apparently the first realtor the sellers went to recommended they gut the entire main level including replacing that stove. As I understand it, the stove has now been brought back into the kitchen. This started an interesting thread as others commented that they remember families leaving the upstairs pristine for guest and company and living in the basement. I guess this was common practice, especially with first generation emigrants in this country. As it was said, the upstairs oven in this house was only ever used 20 some times I believe; only for thanksgiving turkey.

 

[launderess]

House Proud

Guess many of you youngsters didn't grow-up during the 1950's through 1960's or even 1970's.

In many homes the family hardly ever used the living room and or dining room except for company and special occasions. Televisons were located in bed rooms (for those wealthy enough to afford more than one), or in the "family room", or "rumpus room" which is where most of the activity of day to day life took place.

Children were especially kept out of the formal living room and used the rumpus room or finished basement. Indeed one could always tell when company was coming over because we children got to sit in the living room and or go into the dining room. Even today on major holidays, in homes that have finished basements, often with complete kitchens, that is where most of the activity is going on.

It was either the above or the dreaded plastic covering over almost every surface in the living room. You don't know uncomfortable until you've sat on a sofa or chair covered in thick plastic wearing a short dress/skirt or shorts,on a hot day. One had to get up very carefully, usually peeling a layer of skin off in the process.

 

[customline]

I Don't Believe It.........

There is no way a family, individual, or whoever lived in this place resided solely in the basement. It is clear that the upper part of the house was resided in regularly. I have been through 1950's houses where nothing has been replaced due to a number of reasons. Mainly because the owners were just too cheap to do so, but this place is a treasure. Somebody else's thrift is another person's gain. The only problem is that some unwitting fool will buy this time capsule and not realize what is in front of them and gut and destroy it. Mid 50's modern will not be fully appreciated until decades from now. Victorian, "Country" and that garbage they call arts and crafts are the norm right now and the masses decorate as they see. I hope the right owner finds this treasure and keeps it the way it's suppose to be.

 

[retro-man]

We got to use the whole house. My parents built the house themselves and made sure to use the whole thing all the time. We had breakfast and dinner in the dining room every day. Lunches were served in the kitchen. We always had a 27 inch color tv after the 25 inch black and white tv in the living room and thats normally where we hung out, with the fireplace going in the winter. Another one of my jobs keep the wood box full and the fire going. We had a finished family room downstairs which was for parties and when my friends came over we hung out down there. Had a tv, stereo and all the usual stuff plus my grandmothers wood stove/oven from an early Sears catalogue.
Jon

 

[whirlcool]

Laundress:

You got it right how people used to use their living rooms and dining rooms back in the 50's.

My parents house was designed so that the kitchen was in the center of the house, the formal rooms were on the south side and the bedrooms and den were on the north side of the kitchen. There was no reason to ever go into the living room or dining room. When you went in the formal living room, you had to take your shoes off, the carpeting was off white. The dining room was only used for holiday meals when relatives would come over. We had an eat in kitchen for daily meals.

Our den was very comfortable compared to the formal living room (we just called it the living room) so we migrated to the den anyway. The living room was used mainly when salespersons and people who you didn't want to stay too long came calling. We used to joke about that. And there was no television in there either.

My parents always had a television in their bedroom. It was black and white until the early 70's when they bought a Zenith 17" color luggable. I always questioned them why they would want a television in the bedroom. To this day we don't have a television in our bedrooms. To us, bedrooms are for sleeping and other things ->!

In reviewing the photos of this house again, the one my aunt had was all brick, instead of siding. She had hers built in 1956. While the upstairs wasn't so big, the basement was huge. They also had a stove and a refrigerator down there too.

 

[spankomatic]

Living room rules...

We were never allowed in the living room as a child of the 60's. It was "out of bounds". Adults only! All the good breakable stuff was in there. It was only used when adult guests came over. It was the same for all the kids I grew up with. If I went over to a friends house I did not dare go into the living room.

Jim

 

[rp2813]

Yes, a couple of rules permanently etched into my brain are, "no food in the living room" (it was our only room that had a TV in it) and at the neighbor kids' house it was "use the back stairs." A mischevious lot they were; some chose to use the laundry chute instead.

 

[sdlee]

wow some of you guys....

Yeah Id say staged for sure but what a beautiful staging. Kudos to the one who pulled that off. Really the modern stove was the only real thing that was unforgivable.I loved the sofa, my garandparents had exactly that same one, only thiers was in the corner, they were fircely proud of how that thing wrapped the corner.

Well wow did I learn something from this thread.I didnt realize so many of you lived in such luxurous and esay times, the den? The Basement? seperate rooms for company or sales people?

Wow the house and/or houses I grew up in we all (all 7 of us) (and useaully a cast off cousin or two) had to live in every square inch of it. We lived in mostly two or three bedroom houses with a combined living room and kitchen. My family are kitchen crittters, you could put them in the Carrington Mansion from Dynasty and youd likely find most of them in the kitchen with butts on availbe chairs, counter tops or slunked on the floor.I am amazed.

Now we did end up with a big house which we promptly guttedand remodled but it had all the amenities, livng room, Den,formal dinning room. My parents put in archways so these three rooms all flowed into each other.

Thier bedroom was on the main floor next to the only bath which was utility and not luxury and then us kids were herded to the three bedrooms upstairs for sleeping arrangements
Still we were kitchen people.

I did catch the one rule that made me smile...no food in the living room. This was followed sometimes except on nites we had pot pies or tv dinners. And ofcorse durring the ABC movie of the week we were allowed to have popcorn.

Well Id like to be more jealous of you guys who seemed to have it all but I wouldnt trade my cramped memories for all the China's in your closets.

not meaning to offend anyone here, just offering another perspective

 

[jeffg]

In 1968 my mom went out and dropped $2000 (which was a lot of money back then) on a beautiful couch and loveseat, then proceeded to cover them with butt ugly off-white sofa covers. In 20+ years living there, the covers were taken off just two or three times, and I think one of those occasions was a visit by the Pope.

We kept asking her, what's the point of buying beautiful things if you're not going to use and enjoy them? It was so typical of that generation.

 

[toggleswitch2]

The outside portion of the central-air unit (in a residence) didn't exactly reek 1950's to me.

The gas "console-style" unit heater in the basment may indicate the basement was indeed inhabited. If both floors/lelvels of the home were used, it would be more likely that someone would have added vents in the basement to tap into the warm-air heating system. A separate heater MAY imply that the top floor was not heated much. [Or that they just wanted a non-electric gas heater for blackouts!]

The Mary-on-the-Half-Shell statue in the back was very much in keeping with the "style" of newly-arrived immigrants one seens in the boroughs of New York City.

The old stove may NOT pass inspection if the oven is match-lit.

 

[launderess]

No Eating In The Living Room!

Oh, that takes one back a bit! *LOL*

SDLee:

My parent's house wasn't large or even "Tara" sized by any standards. Just your typical surburban home, however my mother was determined to keep it clean and orderly, something which is hard to do with children and a husband roaming about.

Husbands and children are best confined to limited spaces (nursery,rumpus room, and or family room for children, den, his study or his shed/work-room for husbands),this way not only can one keep an eye on them, and one knows where they are, newpapers, toys, and god only knows what else stay in one area, much easier to clean (or rather have them clean), when "play time" is over. Both species tend to spill and drop things as well.

The tradition of not using the front parlor for anything but important guests or company has long existed in Europe and the UK, and grew as the middle class expanded into property ownership with homes of their own. Parlors were where one put the best one could afford in terms of furniture,knick-knacks, and such;all of which would be quickly worn out and or ruined by hard daily use. And nothing uses things harder than children.

 

[whirlcool]

We didn't have a mansion, just a typical tri-level suburban house. the den was downstairs, the bedrooms were upstairs and the living room, dining room and the kitchen were on the center level.

This was very common late 50's-late 60's architecture. We didn't think anything fancy about it. At least it had plaster walls!

 

[sdlee]

Funny

Well I havent changed my view...It still sounds like most of you had it pretty good. Reguardless of what Europe did way back when the houses I grew up in were lived in. Were they dirty? Hardly. Did mom clean them continiously, No we kids did.

We had chores, we were taught to clean up after ourselves, maybe cruel in todays age but back then it was second nature.
Our house was never really our folks house as it was all our house and so we all took care of it. My dad was never sent to the garage, most often he was sent over seas on some Naval mission. Us kids sent to a rumpus room, never coz we never had one. Sent to our room, maybe if seperation was needed but more than likely on a stool in the corner.

It is really cool to see how a lot of other people lived but I grew up with a lot of people living just like me.Its also hard to generalize in this forum coz we are all so of different age groups.Ill start another thread about that just sos we dont hi jack this one.

you guys should all post your childhood homes if you have pictures. Thatd be kinda fun to look at.

 

[launderess]

One has to also understand every family, no matter how mean their circumstances, wanted at least one "good" room for guests, formal occasions and if need be, laying out the dead. The front parlor was usually that room.

One put the best furniture and such one could afford there, and a woman's handiwork in terms of knitting and crochet (dollies and the like), went to make it comfortable.

Things aren't like they are today, when people throw away or otherwise get rid of perfectly good living room furniture because they "redecorate" or some such. Good things cost dear, and were expected to last, something again, hard use will soon put an end to.

Also having at least one "good" room meant if unexpected guests arrived, one could show them into the living room/front parlor and receive them there, even if the rest of the house looked like who did it and ran. You simply closed the doors! *LOL*

 

[toggleswitch2]

Oh Edith get me a beer, wouldja , ha?

In mother Toggle's house, one could receive guests at any moment, except perhaps a cleaning spree. Yet, the living room had its vinyl clear plastic slip-covers. Oh hush it was allowed! We were in Queens for heavens sake. And the fabulous rust wall-to-wall carpeting (read "Bozo" orange), with the lime green furniture was painful to look at. LOL The "custom valance" that was orange and green, frilly and pom-pom-ed would have made any respectable family hurl. LOL

I must say this. I never knew anyone could live in dirt and filth and muck and chaos. Mother Toggle's toilet was so clean one could perform surgery at any given moment on it and not catch anything. *LOL*

My own house had a dinette that seated four. By necessity, I had a kitchen and dining area in the finished (centrall air-conditioned and heated) basement so I could seat 16+/-. Never again will I have two kitchens. OMG the dulpication! The stuff! If I absolutley must, the smaller one will remain empty save for a box of baking soda in the refrigerator!

 

[oldhouseman]

I believe

this house was taken very good care of but it is obvious that it has been spiffed up to be sold. I have a neighbor in Sparta in her 90's that lives in a house she and her husband built in the late 1950's. It's pretty much all original. Of course the stove and refrigerator were replaced sometime in the early '70's. The kitchen still has it's cabinets and the bath fixtures are great shape. The original furnace is in tact also. Sadly when the time comes that she passes away I know her children/grandchildren are ready to part the place out.

Having formal rooms for company is great. I find we don't really use our parlor unless we have visitors. Both the parlor and dinning room are the most formal rooms for us and I like having everything in place ready to entertain. Our bedrooms are large enough to have a respectable size table and chairs so we don't have to use the dinning room. That is very convenient especially in the winter. And it's great for the guestroom because I can give company the option of coming to the dinning room or having a tray sent to their room.

I hope whoever gets this place takes good care of it. It looks like a great little house.

 

[turquoisedude]

Like a time capsule

What an amazing house. This is the sort of place I had dreamed of finding when we were house-hunting back in 2006-2007. I can't believe how much of the furniture is still the original, too. If they don't use it for a movie set, I hope whoever does buy it will preserve it...

 

[whirlcool]

Our last house had a formal living room and dining room in it. We only used the formal dining room for candle light dinner parties and holidays. I think I read a newspaper in the formal living room once the entire time we lived there. It had a large den with fireplace and everyone seemed to congregate there. It also had a huge kitchen that was always filled with people when we entertained.

Based on this, the house we live in now has a formal dining room, but no formal living room. It does have a nice sized den in it. We felt why pay to heat/air condition spaces that aren't used?

 

[petek]

Allen were you known for your candle-light dinner parties?

 

[danemodsandy]

Petek:

"Allen were you known for your candle-light dinner parties?"

Oh, my dear. You mean candlelight suppahs, don't you? Of course you do.

And it's Bouquet.

R-R-R-I-I-I-CHUUUUUUUUUD! ;-)