Captain Thomas J. Smith decided to head out to California to take part in the “Great Gold Rush.” The problem was that his wife loved her house so much, she refused to go.
Solution: Capt. Smith disassembled the house (post & beam construction), loaded it aboard his ship along with his wife, and sailed to California (around “the horn,” as the Panama Canal didn’t exist in those days). Once there, the house was unloaded from the ship and rebuilt at the new west coast location.
The Smith’s weren’t in California very long when they realized the gold rush was pretty much over. They had arrived a bit too late. Mrs. Smith didn’t care so long as she got to keep her house.
Capt. Smith, once again, disassembled the house, loaded it back on board his ship along with his wife, and sailed back to Milbridge, Maine (Yes: He sailed back “around the Horn”). Back in Milbridge, the house was again unloaded and once again erected in the location where it sits today.
The building is now being renovated and will become the new home of the Women’s Health Resource Library (WHRL). The WHRL hope to have the renovations complete and moved in by the end of August 2019. I’ve been volunteering my time, doing much of the demo to save some money before the contractors arrive, and I thought I’d offer a quick tour, considering the building’s unique history.
Check out the WHRL to see all the programs they run in our community at www.whrl.org
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Enjoyed the video. Just moved to East Machias from Massachusetts and very interested in the local history. Have also enjoyed your woodworking videos and plans. Spent over 40 years in the construction business and plan to get into some woodworking and woodturning projects shortly.
Thanks for your comments, Lawrence. You may see a bit more about wooden boat design & construction in the future (I used to have a wooden boat shop on Cape Cod years ago), and a bit more about attractions/history along the local coastline.