Two nights ago, I got a text message from Tina Lee who, with her husband Ray, own the old Shrum home in Salem which I wrote about in an earlier post. I had left my name, email address, and phone number with a lady who was sitting in the driveway waiting for them for some reason.
Tina said they bought the house from the estate of Carol Jean Shrum, (Mom's cousin, Guy and Lillian Shrum's daughter). Since the house was built in 1888, they are only the third owners. Tina said she grew up wanting to live in this house and they finally got the chance to own it. The unfinished third floor is now two additional bedrooms and a bath and they added a three-car garage to it.
Interestingly, Tina said when they bought the house, in the contract it stipulated that the brick outhouse was not considered part of the sale. There was a plan to donate it to a local museum but the cost of re-locating it has been prohibitive. So it stands in the back yard in all its former glory.
Tina said that the second courthouse had construction faults and was scheduled for demolition. The Shrum family bought it, demolished it, salvaged the materials and built the house with them. And she said her understanding is that the Shrum construction company built the third courthouse, the one still standing in the square.
I told her about old Alfred firing a shot through the living room ceiling to prove the rifle he was holding wasn't loaded.
The best news is that her husband Ray is establishing a protective covenant which will prevent the house from being demolished in the future. Old Alfred and Mary Jane's house will outlive all of us and all of our grandchildren.
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