Researching an Old House: Hidden Chambers

This post is somewhat of a subpost of the previous entry. It's along the same lines, but didn't really fit into entry.

For years books, TV, and movies have depicted a scenario: someone moves into an old house and finds a secret passageway or hidden chamber. The house in Clue, for example, is full of secret passageways, hidden doors, and concealed chambers. It's fascinating to think that it could happen, and unbelievable when it (almost) does.

In the summer of 2006, Ms. Gott, Cat, and I were cleaning out the cement basement. It's become somewhat of an annual task, and somehow the mess always seems to end up being my fault. I really need to stop agreeing to take stuff down there from the house...but I digress. It was during that cleaning that something absolutely amazing happened, if only for a brief second. I'll get to that shortly.

The cement basement has always had a bit of mystery surrounding it. Between the faux stained glass window, odd paneling, and writing in crayon on the walls its previous uses are relatively indeterminable. There are names written into the wall in crayon, obviously done by children. Almost as if it was a little clubhouse at one point. The son of a previous owner, Robert Grasty, carved his name into the paneling. Worst of all, during the cleaning of basement that summer, a swastika was discovered carved into the paneling as well.

Betty R., Tom B., Susan G., Sandy (?) W.

No idea what any of that is supposed to mean.

Betty, Susan, Mommy

Robert Grasty

Plastic sheet mimicking stained glass

 In the midst of that summer cleaning, something amazing happened. When it came time to rearrange the shelves that were in there when Ms. Gott bought the house, I was tasked with physically moving them. I pulled a tall, white, metal shelving unit away from the back wall. As it moved, there was a collective gasp from all three of us. Followed or preceded by a "holy crap" from yours truly, I'm sure. The shelf had completely blocked a large, rectangular hole in the wall. We all seemed to think that we must have uncovered something amazing....but only for a brief second. For once the shelf was completely away from the wall, there was a resounding groan and probably followed or preceded by a "damnit!"

The shelf to the left once obscured that hole in the wall.

Sadly, there was no secret room or anything amazing in there. Just the brick that once supported the rear wall of the house, a pipe, and some interior shutters. Ms. Gott and I later determined that was probably where the water heater was once kept, given that there is a pipe in it. I'll always remember, though, the way my heart seemed to stop beating when I saw that gap behind the shelf. In the years since, I've occasionally made references to "my little hole in the wall," but for now, it sits empty and useless. Although I'm sure many times over the years (and probably now, too) Ms. Gott and Cat have wanted to put me in there and find a way to close me in. But, *knocks on wood* as of yet, it still hasn't happened.