1956 – 1983

Long before I came into the picture the house on Hopkins belonged to my great grandmother, Elizabeth Rockefeller Beck.  Yes, she was somehow related to that other Rockefeller family back east but I am not sure of the connection.  Elizabeth was married to John A. Beck and together they lived in the house up to and beyond John’s passing.  The house was originally built by them in the early 1880’s.  As she was getting on in years she asked my father to live next door so he could help care for her.  At the time my parents were living in a trailer house up by the original Lift One.  The move would be a simple process and set the stage for more moves of its kind in the years to come.

With the trailer located on the lot next door my father built a nice entryway, a boardwalk from the street and it was “Home Sweet Home.”  This move took place in 1956 not long after my oldest sister, Cindy, was born and less than a year from the birth of my older brother.  The family dog was a German Sheppard by the name of Archie. He, too, was the start of a very long run of Sheppards we would have as pets over the years.

The original house had an “outhouse” as well as a second building on the lot that served as a wash room and coal shed.  Inside plumbing to include a laundry room and bathroom was still a few years off.  Wood and coal burning stoves kept the house warm in the winters and the one in the kitchen served as a stove for cooking year round.  The house provided all of the necessities of life and was comfortable to say the least.  The front entry had two doors at the time, one for entry into the living room and a separate door directly to the left for access to the formal dining room where most of the family gatherings took place.

A few years later, my father purchased the home from his dad after Elizabeth’s passing.  By then his family had grown to three kids with another one, me, on the way.  He added an addition onto the back that provided a full bathroom and mudroom.  With three bedrooms upstairs there was plenty of room for his growing family.

Eventually, the trailer next door was removed and the lot was sold off.  A house was built on the far side of the lot that was home to the McTarnahans and later a temporary home for Peter and Barbara Guy while their house was under construction.  The Molly Gibson Lodge was eventually built on the property next door, sometime around 1968.

I came into the picture in 1960 and lived in the house until my graduation from college in 1983; although, it was not always on Hopkins Street. (See related story)