Living in the 60's, 70's, or 80's

[classiccaprice]

In recent months articles have been posted about people choosing to live like it's the 30's, 40's, and 50's... The thought occurred to me yesterday. Does anyone know anyone out there who lives in the 60's, 70's, or 80's?

Bell Bottoms?
Parachute Pants?
Shag Carpeting?
Mop Tops?

Just curious.

 

[jeffg]

You should visit Boulder Creek sometime. The whole town is stuck in the year 1966. It's something right out of the Twilight Zone, but it's also why we choose to live here.

 

[ptcruiser51]

North Carolina

My sister and BIL visited there seeking a place to relocate. They looked at several houses for which they had made appointments in advance. They remarked that every one looked like it was frozen in time, the 1970s. All very well-maintained, but in drastic need of updating. And these were places in the $400K range.

 

[rp2813]

Bolinas, CA is another 60's time capsule from the aspect of demographics. The homes are much older but the people are all stuck in the hippie dippy days and prefer not to be disturbed. They routinely rip down highway signs directing drivers to Bolinas.

For overall 60's lifestyles I think you'd have to hit places like where Heather's grandmother lived, Sun City AZ or certain Las Vegas neighborhoods. You might find a few surviving 60's scenes in Palm Springs as well.

 

[danemodsandy]

Updating:

"They remarked that every one looked like it was frozen in time, the 1970s. All very well-maintained, but in drastic need of updating."

Ah, that dread word, "updating," sometimes expressed as "dated," usually by a Realtor. I personally do not understand why a well-maintained house should need updating for the purposes of making it look more in line with current fashion. I have seen many a dynamite midcentury kitchen ruthlessly ripped out, its high-quality fittings tossed in a Dumpster or nearly given away on Craigslist so that they might be replaced with today's chipboard cabinets and weird-science appliances. The result usually looks out of place; no one had granite countertops and foofy carved cabinetry back in the day.

A well-maintained vintage kitchen or bath is usually much easier to live with and care for than today's "designer" extravaganzas. What I really don't understand is that today's home buyers often profess to be interested in historic styles and periods, but when it comes to actually living with yesteryear's amenities - well, most people today consider themselves muuuuuuuuuch too good to live with the shame of Formica countertops or a bathroom that someone else - horrors! - has actually made use of before them.

Ah, well. Let the rest of the world discard nice things for the sake of fleeting fashion if it wants to. Nearly everything I own is something that someone else did not want any more, and every bit of it is of a quality level that is all but unobtainable today.

 

[alr2903]

those damn suspended ceilings

So popular in the seventies, yeah we had a energy/heating crisis back then too. So many old buildings and homes, have had their very essence ruined by these "erector set" ceilings. sometimes i think a update in a true vintage house, looks so much more tacky than if the owner would of just left it alone. Gasp, i did give up a cabinet to upgrade my vintage 50's kitchen, a tappan/electrolux tall tub, darn near killed me to cut out that Real wood cabinet.

 

[oldhouseman]

Hows this

for living in a specific time period. Restoration was underway when the owner died last year. No kitchen or baths were installed yet so the buyer can put whatever they want in. Sadly it will sit on the market for a long time because the sister who inherited it wants way to much for it. 375K. No way it will fetch that price. A similar house sold recently for 32K. Yep, I said 32 thousand. Several houses sold recently for well under 50 thousand. With the economy in a dive right now real estate has really hit bottom. Although I got mine at what I thought was a great price (60's) I will have to hold it a while to realize any real money out of it but then again I don't have any plans for selling aftfer having spent the past 3 years restoring the place.

This particular house was built around 1820 and retains original features inside (never "updated"). A back porch was enclosed around 1900 and a kitchen and bath put in but the last owner ripped all that out and restored the porch back to the original appearance. This shot is the front of the house.

 

[oldhouseman]

This 1870

Victorian cottage sits next door tome and has been up for sale for a while (54K). Needs a bit of work but retains the late 1940's kitchen (no appliances). The kitchen used to be apart from the house and after WWII the owners decided to install a kitchen and bath so additions were added.

 

[oldhouseman]

Oh yes,

here is the back porch of the first house picture I posted. The copper downspouts are still inside on the bottom floor. That was the project was about to get underway when the owner died.

 

[oldhouseman]

This house

was actually built in 1918. The current owner bought it and gutted it out completely in the early '80's. Not one trace of the original house interior survives. Plaster walls were replaced with paneling like one finds in a mobile home. They could have restored it for less than was spent on the update but to each his own I guess. Just not my taste.

Will, in my line of work and house taste I have to ask what century when someone asks what I think of a specific decade such as the 50's, 60's or 70's!!

 

[sudsmaster]

Although I gave up bell bottoms long ago (they were hell to bicycle with!), I still have longish "mop top" type hair, so I guess part of me is still stuck in the 60's-70's. Lately I've been driving the '67 Chevy van around playing hits of the mid-60's, which fit it perfectly.

And yes, I like to show up in Bolinas now and then at the local pub to catch whatever band is playing. Hmmm... might be time to take the van there... About 10 years ago I met Maria Muldaur there and gave her a brief ride in my '50 Plymouth. She was cool, and she loved the old car.

 

[perc-o-prince]

I want the 1820 house AND the cottage you pictured. Great houses!!!

As anyone who's been here knows, we're slowly turning back the clock on at least the lower level of this house. Kitchen and laundry are all older apps except the washer (I'm sure it won't be long before the turquoise FL in the shed is coaxed in here). DR is all but there, LR is getting back to its '60's roots, and the BR we're turning Rich's work shop into will be retro as well.

Rich has been into several patients' homes that are a step back in time. There is a section of the next town over that is still all slab ranches, and probably original inside too!

Chuck

 

[classiccaprice]

lol, I see your point Greg...

Beautiful homes. I especially love that Victorian.

I personally am stuck in ~1962. Which is ironic, because I was born in 1983. I love that mid-century style. I respect all time periods, but that post WWII-pre-hippy era is my favorite.

The house is slowly getting there. I just need to undo the stupid house flippers updating or find that rare house that hasn't been altered in 45+ years. According to the neighbors that was my house only 4 months before I bought it. Sigh...

I'm getting there. One of these days I need to post pictures, maybe over the holiday from school.

If I ever make it to your respective areas, Rich, Rich, Greg, and the rest (man I love Gilligan for that phrase) I'd love to see these vintage homes.

 

[polkanut]

Greg (oldhouseman),

Would the house you posted be considered Federalist?

 

[oldhouseman]

No Tim

The 1820 house is early "Empire". My house is Federal. The Federal period runs from the very late 1780's to about the mid 18teens. I know houses were built later that may reflect an earlier style due to the taste of the builder but in general the grand Empire style homes started showing up a few years after the War of 1812 when the cotton money really started to roll in. Actually many of the homes in Sparta were built from the wealth of the cotton plantations. Most of the old homes in Sparta are actually the "town house" for the social season for all the big plantations that used to be here. Many of the plantations still survive but cotton is no longer the main crop. Most have converted over to growing pine trees for the paper industry. They rent the land to the paper companies and get a percentage of the value of the trees.

Here is a Federal style house a few blocks from me. It was vacant for about 30 years. Last spring it was pruchased and is currently under renovation. Much to my dismay the current owners gutted the inside. Now the interior is completely modern. The exterior is now being put back in shape. This is a case where someone wanted an old house but it had to be like new inside. The exterior is being returned to the original 1807 appearance. It's a bit odd to see the outside and when you go inside its like you have just stepped into a brand new house. This is a case in point for personal taste and how it can affect a period structure. The guys that own this house are taken back when they visit my place because I kept my interior as it would have been about 1805. I don't have any interior furnishings that are made after 1860 and that goes down to the everyday dishes on the table. Sure the baths/kitchen are modern but done in a taste to reflect the style of the house.

 

[oldhouseman]

Here is

another Federal period house around the corner from me. I think it was built about 1805. A little bit of Victorian scroll work was added to the porch but otherwise it's pretty much in tact.

 

[oldhouseman]

Another shot

of the house from last spring.

 

[oldhouseman]

Not a good shot

this is looking out my front hall catching a glimpse of the 1957 Ranch house directly across the street from me. The lady who lives there is 92. Her husband built the house using bricks from a house that was built in the 1850's. The inside is still all original. She replaced her kitchen stove about 1970 and everything else is still in tact. I love to visit and see the mid 20th century interior. I know when she passes away her daughter will sell the house. A neighbor has an eye on the place and wants to buy it and update the kitchen and baths. I'm trying to convince them to leave it in tact because it's better quality than installing stock cabinets and fixtures from Lowes.

 

[polkanut]

Jeff,

At least they didn't tear down the Federal completely. One of the co-owners of the Pepsi distributorship here in Wausau bought an immaculate 1960's split-level adjacent to the country club here a few years back. Well, to make a long story short, they tore the old house down because they didn't like the way it was situated on the lot. They replaced it with a McMansion instead. Granted, they have a better view of the lake now, but it was a shame nonetheless.

 

[classiccaprice]

AGH!

Tear out vintage 50's rancher... Oh my aching heart!

If your neighbor changes his mind, maybe I can get a summer house in Georgia!