our fireplace !
3 posters
Page 1 of 1
our fireplace !
Our house dates from at least 1799 - probably earlier - but whilst it was being renovated by the previous occupant, there was a terrible fire during the storms of december 1999. The house survived in part, but, had to be re-built (again). When we bought the house it had been finished with what money the previous occupant had left, but, was by no means finished to our standards! However, this fireplace back, grate, hearth, were in situ but, the wooden front was made from beams taken out of a neighbour's barn (or so we were told) and the wood burner was bought in 2007. So, in short, it's a bit of a mixture. It is one of 3 fireplaces we have downstairs. The old Cantou exists at the opposite end of our large living room (this side of the house escaped the fire we believe). It still has the old cupboards in the back wall etc and was used by the previous occupant. It is still in working order should we want to drag out the marmite.....Last year we discovered the 3rd but probably earliest/oldest fireplace when we had a new kitchen. It was hidden behind a wall cupboard and a rather horrid hotplate affair. So, having taken out all the rubbish we had the chimney adapted and bought a new range cooker which now sits proudly in that space!
Gosh - that was a lot - sorry about that - hope you are as interested as I am about old properties and stuff!
Gosh - that was a lot - sorry about that - hope you are as interested as I am about old properties and stuff!
BLAKEVINE- Posts : 255
Join date : 2013-07-27
Location : 19 Les Charbonniers
Re: our fireplace !
We Two are fascinated by past times and would love to know more of the history of not just our house but the village and area. But we don't know how to go about it. The locals will give a little gossip, but they're not really interested. We wonder if there are any books, as they are in UK. Every place we've live there has had a book written about it's history, no matter how small.
Do you reckon your (obviously necessary) updating will eventually destroy the old character of your property?
It must be a tricky decision.
Do you reckon your (obviously necessary) updating will eventually destroy the old character of your property?
It must be a tricky decision.
twointheeye- Posts : 82
Join date : 2013-07-10
Location : western end of Creuse
Re: our fireplace !
I do not know about books about your home area, that you will have to research your self, but old maps of the area are often a goldmine. It is possible to trace through the relevant dated maps as to when your property appears. Try http://cartocassini.org as a starter.
Re: our fireplace !
Dear twointheeye, no worries - if there had been any hint of destroying anything then I wouldn't have bought the house......... Although the previous occupant wasn't as particular about "finishing touches", thankfully, he did not destroy the character of our old house. He spent all his money on building it back up and, after 22 years and "family matters" sold up and moved back to Holland.
BLAKEVINE- Posts : 255
Join date : 2013-07-27
Location : 19 Les Charbonniers
Page 1 of 1
Permissions in this forum:
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
|
|