Sunday, January 5, 2014

Rebuilding the Old Cabin

After Bill Nevard retired from his work at the Fort San he took on the task of repairing the old original log house at "The Poplars" where he had lived up til 1948.
In June of 1969 he wrote about it....

June 30: I drove up to the farm today. Called in at Lipton and borrowed Mrs. Goff's step ladder again and painted Mr. Badham's name on the Church sign. Then I went to the lumber yard and bought 2 bags of cement but did not pay for them as Mindrum was not there.I took the ladder back to Mrs. Goff's. She told me that Mr. Fisher was unconscious and they had sent for the doctor.
I went on to the farm and got in to the old house but there has been more rain this time. Pools of water on the trail both south and north of the house so I walked up to Silver Birches. Don was hoeing spuds. He was willing to help me get some gravel. We put the box on wheels and pumped up the tires a bit. It was getting rather late by that time so I walked back to the house and had my dinner. I didn't bother to cook spuds or even light a fire. By the time I had finished my meal Don came along with the tractor and wagon. So we went down to the gravel pit and hauled home two loads of gravel with no trouble. Don came in for a while and by then it was getting on so after he left I came home.
July 1: I drove up to the farm again and started digging under the west wall of the house clearing 3 or 4 feet ready to put in a new foundation. Managed to do this without having the wall collapse.  I boarded it up, then had to figure out how to wheel my mortar from the cement place to the house across the garden made soft by the rain. I tried it with a barrow of sand but it wouldn't work so I had to hunt up boards and planks. This did the trick so I was able to get one piece filled in before I quit for the day. Roy came along with the tractor after drinking water. He said they had quite a big rain. My two wrens are quite busy feeding their family of six. The bush gophers also have a family under the wood pile.
West wall of the cabin about 1920. Bill Nevard at right. 

2 comments:

  1. Sounds like when my dad hand-dug a basement under part of the old farm house. It's ornery work!

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  2. Bill was never afraid of hard work. A few days later he got his brother to come and help dig dirt out of the cellar which had caved in over the previous 60 years. One pail at a time up the stairs.

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