Diana Breit Wolfe
As a young married couple in 1967, it felt strange to be just the second owners of a big house built in the previous century. But we had sold our first, much smaller house for twice what it cost and were in the market for another good deal.
The writer and her husband bought this home in south Wichita for $7,500 in 1967.
The house we found, near Lincoln and Main and the Arkansas River, certainly presented challenges. Its front porch sagged badly and thick ivy climbed a trellis into the windows of the upstairs bedroom. It had 10-foot high ceilings and no air conditioning, heated by a pot-belly stove in the dining room.
Why did we want the place? The asking price was $10,000 and our offer of $7,500 was accepted. There was a small rental house in the backyard to provide extra income. And its entrance way was unlike anything we had seen, featuring a beautiful, curved stairway to the second floor, a smooth dark wood bannister and French doors leading to the living room.
The house had been built in 1887 by German immigrants who raised their big family there. It was strong and sturdy except for the sad kitchen and bathroom, which had obviously been added after plumbing and electricity became available. We bought it from the family’s youngest son, a bachelor in his 70s who was moving to live with his sister and didn’t need to take much with him.
Some of the things he left behind included a wind-up Victrola that still worked, a few cane-back rockers, a dining table with inserts to seat eight people, a four-poster bed, a Jenny-Lind bed and another with a huge headboard and footboard that looked like something Abraham Lincoln might have slept in. There were dressers and a washstand with marble top, a corner china cabinet I still use, clocks and pictures on the wall, rugs on the floors, curtains in the windows, a rack of men’s ties and an old trunk with curved top that contained a World War I uniform complete with medals.
What were we going to do with all of that? Have a garage sale, of course.
Unfortunately, collecting antiques was not as popular in 1968 as it is now. But we were quite satisfied with the $1,000 we made and used it for work needed on the house.
Fortunately, my husband was an excellent do-it-yourselfer. He rebuilt the front porch, remodeled the kitchen and bathroom and put in central heat and air downstairs.
Our two children were born while we lived there. We hosted many family get-togethers and a few New Years Eve parties there, leaving us with lots of good memories of the place.
It sold for about $80,000 in 1989. Recently, I looked it up on the city’s tax records and learned that it had sold for $127,000 last year.
I still drive by it sometimes. Now 138 years old, it still stands tall and proud.
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The Active Act will turn 46 years old in December and it’s still standing proud, too. But like an old house, it needs care, and that costs money. If you enjoy this publication, please consider making a donation to The Active Age so that it can “house” great content for many years to come.
Diana Wolfe is a former board member of The Active Age. She can be reached at dcwolfe2000@yahoo.com.
