History of a House: New Owners

When we last left our hero...I mean house...development of what was then called the Perkinson Tract was just getting off the ground. In 1924, the area of development was limited; encompassing only Carolina and College Avenues. It was also the year that the old farmhouse on Carolina had its first new owners in nearly two decades: J. W. and H. J. Keeling.

The Keelings presented me with two invaluable pieces of information regarding the history of the house. One was a building permit, and the other a series of newspaper articles. The building permit, submitted in 1926, listed the addition of a porch with tin roof as well as repairs to the dwelling. Through this building permit (though several years later), I was able to find newspaper articles documenting the sale of the house. One of which stated that the house was "believed to the be the first built in the area" other than the house at 120 College Avenue.

The Keeling Brothers, like J. E. Perkinson, dabbled in real estate. Also like J. E. Perkinson, they seemed to like the area enough to ultimately buy several lots in the neighborhood. Do you know what goes well with the sale of land and property? Insurance. Yep, that's right. They began to sell insurance as well as real estate in the 1920s.

The Keeling's ownership of the house lasted into the Great Depression. In the 1930 census, the house is listed as having seven occupants: J. W. Keeling; his wife, Minnie; two nephews: James Garner and Norman Faylor; his mother, Susan; a nurse/servant, Eula Foster; and a lodger named C. Ashbury Allen. All were employed, however, except Minnie and Susan. J. W. was a real estate agent, James was a salesman, Norman was a filling station attendant, and C. Ashbury Allen was a jewlery engraver.

Perhaps the most amusing thing I saw in my research on the Keelings, however, is that the census referred to the mother as an invalid. She was indeed quite ill, however, as she would die in the home shortly thereafter.

Despite the west end experiencing a housing boom in the late 1920s and early 1930s, the Great Depression still reared it's ugly head. In 1931, the Keelings defaulted on a loan and lost the house they had occupied for the past seven years. I can, obviously, only surmise that it was the Great Depression, but I still hate to think how it felt for a real estate agent to lose his own home.

Of course, as one person leaves, another follows. In short order, a new chapter would begin for the old farmhouse on Carolina Avenue. One that has an interesting twist...