South Elgin Sadness

I love older homes with history and character, and I believe preservation of these living testimonails to our past and the past lives of others need to be cherished, maintained, and enjoyed for years to come.  It is devestating to me to watch some of these beautiful homes fall to the wayside due to the economy and tough financial times.

Case in point: 265 Gilbert Street in South Elgin, Illinois

No Trespassing?  Um, right.........

According to the rusted plaque attached to the front porch, this home was built circa 1852.  It is the Cox-Lloyd home - or sadly, what's left of it.  This home was not kept in the best repair for many years and has always looked so sad to me.  It was condemned by the City of South Elgin, IL on 2/10/2010 and has completely fell to ruin since.  I'm not sure if it's partly to vandalism, or just years and years of neglect, but it absolutely breaks my heart to watch it crumble away as the days pass by.

At one time, this was a beautiful home.  It has a gorgeous covered front porch, now completely overgrown by foliage.  In my mind, I can see a farmer and his wife sitting on rocking chairs, drinking lemonade at sunset after a long day's work farming the fields. The front porch has intricate latticework and woodworking, as does the covered front door entrance.

The overgrown front porch - look at the intricate woodwork!

At some point this house was blue with red trim

It has had work done over the years, and still has a somewhat current looking deck built on the back, and someone at some point in it's history added a two car garage in the back.  The whole home now is crumbiling away, and I wish I had disposable income enough to save this home from what appears to be eminent destruction by it's current owners and/or the city of South Elgin.  I would love to see this home, and so many others, be cherished for the local historical landmark that it is and see it rebuilt to it's original glory for many generations to come to enjoy.

Here are a few more images I took - it was a cloudy, drizzly, overcast day when I took these - kinda perfectly reflecting my emotions when I think about what will probably happen to this home.

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