Greater Chicagoland Home Inspection's new blog, "Life at the OLD Homestead" is meant as a primer for those interested in intricacies of old homes. I love old homes...I love inspecting them, I love restoring them, I love living in them. This is dedicated to that passion, and hopefully will shed some light on some of the finer points of these time capsules.
Determining the Age of Your Home, Part 4
There are certainly other ways to determine your homes age. Some are as easy as checking dates, while others are more invasive and should not be done without the help of a specialist, if at all.
The original gas meter often will bear the date of production. It is usually in the cast of the casing. While it's not possible to determine the originality of a meter, it can usually be a great starting place for date of the house.
Original toilets (and sinks) may bear the manufacturers stamp and date. Since they are installed right after construction, the date should be accurate within a year or two. Check the inside of the tank lid or under the sink for information.
Historical photographs, located at the local town historical museum, are often a great place to start. Pay attention to little details in the photographs, like car models, clothing, billboards, or other details for clues.
Old census records can accurately date a home within 10 years. Check with the census department, or the township on location of census records.
As mentioned in that last blog, newspapers found in the home, especially used as insulation or between layers of tile, can indicate when the building was present. I once found newspapers from 1912 stuffed into abandon electrical boxes behind a plaster wall.
Local or county tax records can indicate the year built. It may take a bit of research, but it is possible to conclusively date a home from this data. Theoretically, if this data is available from these sources, it should be included on various documents for the home. However, don't be surprised if it isn't.
Sewers are sometimes stamped with the year they were manufactured, which may provide an age for the neighborhood. If they are not dated, if the company is still in existence, they may be able to provide a date of production. However, due to road construction through the years, unless it is a weathered cobblestone street, don't use this as the only method of dating your home.
Other ways of dating your home are more invasive and require an investigator who can collect samples of various materials in the home and have them independently tested in the lab for trace amounts of materials known to be used during that time period.
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