History If You Look

While on a shade tree call recently, I noticed these garages across the street from each other. The brick garage is a very nice complement to a brick home with a large porch, and a tile roof that matches the garage's. I am guessing that they were built in the 1920's by one of the local well-to-do businessmen. The garage probably housed a very nice car, maybe a boat, gardening equipment, and etc., but I doubt that the homeowner ever worked on his car in this building.

This humble garage is a stone's throw away, and it was probably built by the family who lived in the accompanying frame house. This is the size needed for a Model T to live in, when you could buy a new one for around $300. There would have been things like a tire pump, Monkey-Grip tire patches, wrenches, and Model T coil points on the benches down the side of the garage. I know that the workbenches were on the side because there are doors for the car on both ends of the building. I bet the guy built it this way so his wife didn't have to back out. I saw a similar garage one time with a turntable to spin the T around. Old buildings like this one remind me of nights and weekends under a car, fixing things yourself so you could have a set of wheels. I can smell the oil and grease without stepping inside. I'm glad that the current owners like this old building enough to keep it painted and roofed.