Here is a gallery of the former Beale home at 3991 Green Valley Drive. I plan to put up photos of each of the 18 houses on the street, though I won't have as much detail for most of them.
From the street, the house looks much the same, but take a look around the back.
The last owner, George somebody, who also owned the grocery at the corner of Harts Run and Middle Roads (not Geil's but across the street), made some unusual additions. According to Don Seidel, he also had a scheme to open a drive-in theater somewhere in the vicinity. I guess he is a dreamer, but he went broke and the house and store were both foreclosed.
Here's the new owner with his daughter. He is in the midst of renovations and expects to move his family in by the end of May.
Inside the addition is George's bizarre idea of an indoor swimming pool. Because the structure was not built to code, the new owner was required to dismantle the back wall of the pool.
Here is the kitchen in its current state of renovation.
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ReplyDeleteGreat story and great pictures.
ReplyDeleteMeagan and I were devastated by these pictures. I had peeked at the house once or twice on Google (showing it to my Dad last fall), so I knew that Mr. Walsh had expanded the house. But who could have imagined this mess? An indoor pool? What was he thinking? Meagan and I miss the blue spruce trees in front of the bedroom windows, though they probably did get too tall and were too close together. I'll be interested to see what the new owner is able to do with the property.
ReplyDeleteI can’t see the interloper swimming pool installed by the recent, unsavory owner or the barren landscape that exposes their bedroom window and breaks Wendy and Meagan’s hearts.
ReplyDeleteBut, I do see a very familiar door beckoning me to the right of the garage. It is a steamy, hot July day and I know as soon as I open it, a blast of naturally cold air will transform my wilted, humid self. Quickly energized inside the family room, I grab the huge square floor cushions and arrange the lemon, lime and tangerine pillows in a circle. In the middle we,(Meagan, Ellen, Nancy, Joanne and Shelley) begin our game of Life. We are perched Indian style-two squeezed to a cushion.
My left leg is forced off the pillow and beginning to freeze up as it presses against the cold linoleum floor. It is wonderful to be chilled. I don’t say anything but patiently wait to see if Meagan is going to sneak a couple of Mrs. Beale’s Frescas; It tastes kind of strange but it is the closest that I ever get to pop.
If we are really lucky, Meagan’s big brother, Peter will walk through the room with his friends Tommy and Walter. We won’t say anything to them and they will ignore us too; but it will be exciting. Or maybe Wendy and Trish will be upstairs in the bedroom and sometimes they actually talk to us. But either way, I will stay until my cat allergy sends me wheezing home. It will take the whole evening to clear my bronchial airways, but it will be worth every breath.
Linda: That was beautifully written. I felt as if I were back in that chilly gameroom.
ReplyDeleteI remember watching Jeopardy in that gameroom. Mrs. Beale seemed to know all the answers. I also recall watching the funeral procession for JFK in that gameroom. I seem to recall an awful lot of books there as well.
ReplyDeleteI do remember watching JFK's funeral in the gameroom. Also, strangely enough, Winston Churchill's...hmmm. As for those books, there were a whole wall of them, though we kids didn't typically pull from those shelves. (Let's face it--Mom and Dad didn't read Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, or Trixie Belden.) But there was one that I did take down one summer morning, and that was an original edition of Gone With the Wind. There went several weeks of the summer for me. I was totally enthralled. When I took it from the shelf, it still had its paper dust jacket, but by the time Meagan and Shelley and I assume several other kids made their way through it, the spine was very pliable and frayed--the signs of a well-loved book.
ReplyDeleteAs for Jeopardy (which in those days was a day-time game show), yes, that was a favorite. And perhaps you remember the treat that went with it...M&M's from the fridge--crunchy and cold on a hot summer day.