urban remains acquires salvage rights to the historic c. 1855 john kent russell house

urban remains began salvaging the historically important c. 1855 john kent russell house yesterday afternoon. any and all interior architectural components were thoroughly documented and carefully removed.

but before i begin what will likely be a series of posts revolving around the salvage of this pre-fire residence, i wanted to present a few images taken while i was exploring the attic space that was constructed during the early 1860's, when an addition to the house was added.

behind the brick chimney i discovered a concealed or hidden "time capsule" in the form of a perfectly intact and largely untouched west elevation gable frozen in time since the house was built in 1855.

taking a moment and simply admiring this assemblage, consisting of oversized pine wood italianate style brackets with "bullseye" rosettes, a small lunette window and overlapping painted clapboard siding (all dating from the time the house was built) was by far the greatest salvage "experience" i have had in a very long time.

despite being terribly uncomfortable with the intense heat, nagging back pain and exhaustion, it all seemed to just magically disappear when i sat there for a good ten minutes, pouring over all of these remarkable details. i was without a doubt, deep within my zone and utterly consumed with thoughts of a chicago in the 1850's that swirled around and around in my head. i was simply in awe.

this most recent experience, along with the ones from the past, and the ones i hope to discoverer in the future, remains the exact reason why i continue to devote my life to this line of work.

more on the salvage will be covered in future posts. in the meantime, if the reader would like to get a very thoroughly researched background on this remarkable house, please click here.