Cheers to a new life! - We Bought a HOUSE in a Historic District!

I disappeared for a little more than a week because we bought a house and we were moving!

This move took a lot longer time than expected. I did not realize until now how much sh** I have. Sorry for my language, but seriously after living for almost 4 years in 2 bedroom apartment so much stuff was collected that I don't even need.

So, let's talk about the house and the neighborhood. Yes, I am bragging here :) because I am truly proud of the place we got.

Our house is located in Rockwood Historic District, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on 4/14/1997. Also, this neighborhood is considered as one of the most, if not the most luxury neighborhood in Spokane.

The nationally renowned Olmsted Brothers landscape architects of Brookline, Massachusetts designed the layout of this distinctive neighborhood, with its steep slopes, basalt rock outcroppings, and curvilinear streets connecting a series of pleasing green spaces. It is home to a variety of architectural styles that reflect the evolution of the preferences of residential designers, builders, and their customers during the first half of the twentieth century. The men most instrumental in the development of the neighborhood, Jay P. Graves and Aubrey White, played major roles in shaping the character and form of the city as a whole; Graves through his investment in railroad and real estate development, and White as the great champion of the Spokane park system. Architectural styles bridge the gap between the waning days of Spokane’s “Age of Elegance” and the new generation of designers and builders who left their imprint on Spokane’s built environment during the 1930s and 1940s.
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Olsmtead brothers and their father is actually one my favorite landscape architects. I really love their parks around USA (especially Central Park in NYC) and Canada. I will definitely write more about them in my future posts.

Our house was built in 1948. While our house is not on the historic registry (because it was build several years later after the project), it is still in the Rockwood Historic District and some of the most famous historic houses are next to us! So it is kind of like living in a museum and I love history, so it is very exciting!

My house is not perfect (YET! - a lot of things must be remodeled) and not very big compared to the ones on the street nearby but it has a lot of cool things that I like and I think I can make it look no worse than any other house in the neighborhood.

First of all, I love the entrance to the house (I will have to show you the picture of it next time). It has those basalt rock outcroppings that Olmstead Brothers designed.

I like that we have a lot of land with beautiful nature and Basalt fountain.

Original from 1948 vintage staircase.

Vintage lighting , but I think I will replace them with something more modern.

Kitchen with a lot of light.

Patio!

It will be a long and hard project to remodel this house, but I can't wait to start! This kind of adventure is no worse than travel adventures :)

P.s. I will show you the front of the house and some other cool things about the house in my next post. I need to take more pictures.

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