A Shadow of History

Horse-drawn carriages were common in the 1900s, and Dr. Masser may have had one that looked like this:

“Most were made with a storage area below the drivers seat where the doctor would store his supplies and medical bag.

These buggies were used during the time that doctors actually made house calls. If a settlement was even fortunate enough to have a doctor residing within a day’s journey, settlers expected the doctor to come to them. The buggy was a necessity. Frontier doctors were typically always on call. The doctor with his black bag and buggy was a common site in towns large and small. Traveling in the frontier the doctor might have to take his supplies and buggy along very primitive trails. Treating the ill was one challenge. Getting there was often times just as difficult.

The truly professional physician was a treasure for any frontier settlement to have. The doctor of that era knew his or her patients and patients family quite well. The doctor was a pillar of the community.”  (source)

The Masser House has a carriage house, presumably built when the house was and most likely stored the carriage, related tack and possibly a horse.  As years went by and cars became more prevalent, carriage houses were no longer needed.  The carriage house on the Masser property is in the process of falling down, fading into the shadows of history.  Rather than letting it crash in on itself in a snowstorm, we plan to take it apart carefully to salvage what we can.

Bill has been busy removing shingles the last week or so.  (Even though he’s been told to not be up on a roof without someone else there!)  He says he’s being careful, using a broom to remove snow before climbing up.  Snow has made the process a bit more challenging, but as you see in the progression of these images, Bill is making quick work of the shingles!

As always, if you’re in the neighborhood and one of us is there, stop by for a tour or feel free to lend us your muscles for a bit of work!