We're Having an Open House!

Many of the people we've told about our purchase of the Caton House have expressed an interest in seeing the interior before we start working on it. So we're having an Open House (or Before Renovation Tour) on June 10 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. We hope lots of folks will bring a friend or neighbor to see the house before we start our work.

We've met with the City inspectors to get an idea of what they'll require, and we're starting to put together the information we'll need to meet with the Historic Resources Commission. Brian is taking the bottom of the siding off in preparation for fixing the foundation problems. And they are many! First there are the rats - yes, rats!! They've been living under the house and in burrows under the blackberry bushes. We've set some traps, but eventually we may hire an exterminator. I've called several to ask questions about how they do it; we don't want to just poison the whole place! We're looking for an environmentally friendly solution which some of the companies offer. More on that when we get to that point. Brian also discovered that the 1941 addition just south of the carriage house has a foundation under only part of it. We can't figure out what's holding it up! There are apparently no headers above the windows or doors, but there are long turnbuckles stretched across the room in 2 places from wall to wall. Brian explained that they're holding the walls up. It's going to be a real challenge to restore that part I think!

I'm posting a photo that will give you an idea of the number of additions this place has had. Some of the dates are guesses but they should be close to the real date.

Wood rain gutters

I promised a photo of the old wood rain gutter I found. Apparently they were made from either cedar or redwood. They would have been oiled in the center where the rain ran through, and had a piece of tin nailed to the end.

Yardwork Day

We spent most of today doing more yardwork. We rented a chipper to take care of the piles of blackberries and limbs - that's Brian in the photo feeding the hungry chipper! We got it almost all done so now it's time to get back to cutting blackberries. A BIG thanks to our friend Shawn who spent the morning helping us and getting skewered by thorns! We got a lot done.

We take possession in a month and Brian has been creating a "chain of events" checklist. He has submitted plans to the city; they called with some questions so we know they're working on it. The other photo I'm attaching is the CAD rendering Brian drew - doesn't look like the same house! Last week while cutting blackberries I uncovered a section of what we're guessing was the original wooden gutter! I'd heard of wood gutters before but I'd never seen one. I'll post a photo of it soon, it's pretty cool!

Corvallis has a Spring Garden Festival tomorrow where folks can buy & sell plants, planters, and other garden supplies. I always get there early and buy plants for home but this year I'll want to buy things for the Caton House as well! But until I have the landscape design finalized I guess I'd better not buy too much. I had a landscape contractor walk around the house with me last week - he had lots of great ideas! We're also considering hiring him for long-term maintenance. He's starting a new company as soon as his contractor's license comes through so I can't share the name of his company until then. Stay tuned...

Several people have asked me how to pronounce Caton. Without a TARDIS (time machine) we can't ask the original owners! We've been saying it to rhyme with payton, and hope that's right.