More Great History and Corrections

I got an exciting email this morning from Peggy, daughter of Dick, niece of Dale, and granddaughter of the Johnson's who bought the Zeller House in the 1930's. I am pleased that Peggy corrected some of the family names and relationships that I posted earlier. I would really like to get all the history right, so please don't hesitate to let me know when I am off, thanks Peggy! The Johnson's were Joe, which I had correct, and Kitty, not Betty, which was short for Mary Kathleen. Remember Fred? He bought the house numbers and mailbox at our garage sale, because he was married in the Zeller House living room in 1972 to Dale's daughter Trish. Peggy also included a number of great photos of the Johnson's and the Zeller House through the years. This photo is of the back/side porch on the house before it was enclosed. This photo shows Marian, Peggy's mother and wife of Dick, one of the Johnson brothers. Kitty can be seen in the doorway on the right side of the photo.

Also, Peggy has a blog of her own (pjsplanet.blogspot.com) and I was excited to see that we got a mention and a link, check it out:

My grandparents lived in a Federal-style house in Lewisburg, Pa. All the kids and grandkids loved the house; we'd imagine ourselves in the miniature cabins Pa-Pa built around the fish pond; we'd toddle down to the kitchen each morning, summoned by the aroma of cantaloupe and toast; we'd laugh at Nana bustling around the dining room table, never content to sit down and enjoy what she had prepared until all her family was taken care of. It was home.

After my grandparents died, the house changed hands a couple times. The subsequent owners had big dreams for remodeling -- but no real plans -- and the house fell into disrepair.

Until recently.

A young couple just bought the house and they're documenting their remodeling on a blog (see the last entry of my blogroll). They're planning to use green materials and methods to bring the home back to life. I love everything about that. Not only is it a blending of the old and new, it's responsible, and it's... well, just the right thing to do.

It doesn't matter to me if they cover the entire place in baby-poop-brown shag carpeting and hang disco balls and black velvet Elvis paintings in every room -- the house has a heart again, and once again, it's home.