The Garage
Our garage is very large, easily holding two cars. It was built between 1910-1920, we think, and originally had a sink and stove in it for the yardman and driver. The garage ceiling is ten feet high. When we bought the house, the garage was in bad shape.
Here's the view of the garage side before and after. The only way we could combat the graffiti problem was to paint the brick wall. Now the "taggers" leave it alone because they know we'll cover up their work the very next day.
The original windows were 4-over-4 sashes with frosted glass. We still have many of those panes and, eventually, we'll restore the window that looks into the yard. The window grills are original and probably date to the 1930s or 40s.
The most interesting thing about the garage is its gas pump. In the 1920s, as you can imagine, there weren't a lot of gas stations around, so the people who could affor it ,had gas tanks installed in their yards. Yes, that's right. When we saw the pump, we thought it might be trouble. But we figured the gas tank was empty. We were wrong.
After a few minuntes of vigorous pumping, gas came out. Jill said, "It's just water." I said, "Let's see." So I walked to the sidewalk, then dropped a lit match into the bucket. Vroom! It was gas. So we had to have the thing "abated," which means you have a certified expert come out and do exactly what you were going to do -- fill the tank with sand.
So I did all the work, digging the thing up, then cutting off the tank top and draining the contents. Then the experts filled it with sand and, for a lot of money, gave me a certificate that said we were no longer an EPA hazard.
>>>>You can read the full gas tank story by clicking right here.<<<<
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