Have you ever walked/driven past a home that is abandoned that you cannot get out of your head? I have reserved this post for when I snap a photo of this place that is in Fond du Lac (Fond du Lac Cty). This home is on Cty Hwy K off of Hwy 23 east out of Fondy (abbrv.), which incidentally is on the way to Rienzi Cemetery.
Sadly, the town/city has been developing the land around it and it stands defiantly, daring to even think about touching the property.
This home has been abandoned for at least 25+ years. I will contact the local historical/geneology group and see what I can find out. It may take awhile as they are moving their offices, so worst case I will head down and research it myself when/if I have time. I am guessing that the owners are not local members of the community.
I am absolutely entranced by this house, and I can't say that I really want to know why it was left to rot. Standing next to an abandoned home there is a sense of waiting, a substantive lack of spirit and.....something else that I cannot put my finger on at the moment. You know you are trespassing on someone's property and in normal circumstances it would be an act of voyeurism, but at an abandoned home there is no such confrontation. You are just peeping into a shell of a home. It is the oddest sensation.
**Update**
Sally from the Fond du Lac Historical Society sent me a letter with an article regarding this house, and she was willing to dig this out for me even in the midst of a huge move to a new location. The 1910 article was about the Ledge Homestead regarding the restoration of the old farmhouse and newspapers dated 1885 were found under a rug. This is actually a long standing carpetlaying tradition, my husband informed me. Always the front page, left under one of the corners. How else can these craftsmen stamp their mark in history? I found the practice fascinating and am curious to know if it is still being used and if this is purely an American trait or was this passed from our English settlers.
***Update***
The photo above was taken the last Saturday of March,2008 and from that trip I created my own Flickr account and placed those photos in a set called Death Watch. When I first saw this home I believed there was still hope for this house, and that was eight years already. Now when I visit this home I grieve that it is still standing while the city of Fond du Lac grows around it. At some point this old homestead will be taken down, and I am interested to know if the city has held off from taking it due to it's historical value (which is what I suspect), or if the current owners are still paying the taxes on the property. Sadly I probably won't know until I pass by one afternoon to find it gone. Will the elders of Fond du Lac swoop down to take the eaves and pick through the carcass for historical souvenirs?
The final chapter of this home is not quite ready to be told.
Friday, August 8, 2008
Abandoned Homes
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17 comments:
i would like to know more about this building if you have any more information or any sites that i could go to to find out more please email me kaylala_123@hotmail.com
I have been trying to find out about this house for so long. This is the first REALy break i have had
Thanks
Kayla
thank you for your interest kayla.
What I reported on the site is all that I currently know.However, at the time of my last posts when I discussed getting an article from the FDL historical society, they were in the middle of a move. Maybe now they have time to do more digging.
I believe I have hassled them plenty and they probably would like to see a fresh face.
Also, the county courthouse the register of deeds. Many,many,many moons ago, I approached the counter and said, more or less: 'what can you tell me about the abandoned home on Cty Hwy K?', and they knew what I was talking about, so obviously they have received other inquiries on this place.
We are not the only ones dearie who have an interest in this house, as you will find on my Flickr page.
i've heard that the house is haunted and that the county of fond du lac owns the property.
i've been out there a couple times and took a few pictures of it, one of which apparently has an entity in it. i guess a man killed his kids and wife in the house then went out to the gradge/building on the side of the road and took his own life. thats all i've heard about it, if you know anything, or heard anything else about it im welcome to hear.
Let me update my post with some new information that I thought was already listed on my post.
I suppose it pays to read one's own posts from time to time, eh?
Anonymous, are you able to share your pics at all?
I grew up just down the road from this house on 4th Street Road and went by it every day for the first 18 years of my life. I have ALWAYS wanted to see the inside. Has anyone gotten close enough to take any interror pictures?
When I get back to Fondy for the holidays or such, I'm still amazed that it is still standing.
I want to say that I recall seeing people mowing the lawn in the mid to late 80's. Shortly there after, the house slowly began to fall apart. There was a back sunroom that colapsed in on itself. My guess is that it is completly gone.
If you have ANY pictures of the interror, PLEASE drop me an email. I would be very interested in seeing them.
Tony Vogds
tonyvoice123@yahoo.com
i have been to that house many times and have taken much videos and pictures of it. i have a bunch of hd videos on my video camera i would have to put them on my computer if anyone is intrested i have interier video and video of the old collapled house in the back .sadly i also have a 250 dollar fine for tresspassing. if you would like any vid you can contact me at tk3033@hotmail.com ps i also have a pic of the girl in the front window and have heard the screaming at night, also there is an motion scencing alarm system in the house so dont go in lol
I too have been at this house and around it. I have many pictures and videos. I have been in the barn out back and inside there are a lot of old old books and antiques that I'm assuming the previous owners owned. When me and a couple of friends explored, we found a noose hanging in the tall section of the barn, we can only assume that is where the farmer killed himself as legend has it. It's pretty spooky and yeah we have been constantly hearing and seeing things. We like to think it was just our imagination, but we have pictures of entities in the windows and around the property. My email is ryanschroeder@gmail.com
if anyone could send video or pics of this abandoned home i would love it. my email is greatlakesamazon@gmail.com]
i am a history buff and want to share some info on this house that i have found out.
the house was built in 1854 for a Colonel Eilhu Phillps, who was a state senater for the area at the time.
I don't have any of the interior, but I do have some on my flickr site under the Death Watch series
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wheretogowisconsin/sets/72157604424097310/
Thanks everyone for your interest!
Could anybody send pics of the inside of this house I have been interested in it for a time now and drive by often and am trying to dig up the whole story
(daisybird232003@yahoo.com) any help would be great
the house is owned by a local dr. here in fondy.he is a distant of the phillips who first resided there.. how long has the house been empty. i heard sinse the late 1980s then i also heard since the late 1880s.
does anyone know the names of the last tenants? i am facinated with the house. i have seen things that would make you cry,out there.
i had car trouble one night about 2 months ago. i was driving past there and my suddenly quit. my cell phone went dead and there was not another
car in site..
i thought i saw someone in the house.
there was a light on the front room facing the road..
i started going towards the house and saw people being shot,and the farmer looked at me and said if you are not gone you will be next.. well i walked on the place just see if a sheriff would show up. they did but only after 15 min. i got off the yard as fast as i went on. by the time i got back to my car the tires were shlashed and had blood on them. the doors were locked and there was a message on the hood that said i warned you. i almost died. just then a fdl sheriff came and gave me a ride home. he called a tow truck and had my car towwed to my house,where we junked it the next day. the car was only 3 years old. but i felt better geting rid of it..
has anyone else had the same experiences? please let me know..
ps i still go past the house but not alone and in the day time.. i still see things out there. but i am not alone..
please tell me i am not going bonkers. has anyone else had things like that happen?
yes, we have seen a shadow of a person back away from the second story window in the middle of the day. We took pics but nothing showed up on them.
Betty vb, you should clarify your story... I had a hard time following it. It sounds pretty made up if this is you talking about this recently happening...
here is some videos of the house. i will be uploading more to this channel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDLDBhzb0NI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxkAe4z6T4U
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