They bought their home in Akron, Ohio in 1939 and it was not sold until after my grandmothers’ death in 2001. My grandmother said that they bought the home for a little less than $3,500 and only had to borrow $1,000.There was no kitchen in the house – just a big room with a sink. They had to purchase the stove and refrigerator (my bother still has that icebox and claims it keeps the coldest beer in Chesterfield county). They never had a dishwaser (my grandmother washed the dishes) or a garbage disposal (they collected the scraps and put them in a compost pile) and they had their cabinets built by an Amish gentleman (from Hartville). The house didn’t have air conditioning until the late 80′s, we slept with fans and the windows open to the semi-fresh Akron air (at that time Goodyear, Firestone, General and numerous other tire factories produced tires 24-hours a day). It was a great home and all they ever needed or wanted. It was their American dream.

My grandparents were so proud of that home and the fact that they owned it. My grandfather took meticulous care of the lawn (he used a reel mower), grew a huge garden in the backyard (his family had a farm in Canton, so he had to grow vegetables), had a fig tree (that he buried below the frost line every year so it would survive) and climbed a 30′ ladder every few years to scrape and paint the wood siding (the home always looked perfect). The house was situated on a brick road that was built by the public works program during WWII and had a great front porch with a swing.

When my grandfather passed in 1995 my grandmother would not hear of moving, even though the one and only bathroom was on the second floor and the washer and dryer was in the basement. She loved that house and looking back so did I.

I miss not going there when we travel back to Akron to see family. After all the moving I did growing up, I think that house, on Eastland Avenue, best represents HOME in my mind. It’s a shame we don’t have those type of connections to our homes anymore.

I agree with you. I want a mortage burning party too … when my husband and I pay off our mortgage you are invited to the party, I may even ask you to bring the matches.