Counterfeit House set for auction May 8
By
-
After 170 years of history, mystery, and strange tales, the Counterfeit House will be gone by the wayside. The storms of three years ago took a toll on the house, and Jo Lynn Spires, who owns the site, has decided that it is time to say goodbye to the once-grand old manor:
"The years have not been kind to the old place," Spires said. "I have tried so hard to keep it going these last few years, but due to my poor health and financial situation, I can no longer afford to keep it open for tourists as I have in the past. Several years ago, part of the roof blew off the house. My family and friends tried to fix it, but the damage was just too much.
"The fact that we had a lot of trouble with leakage with the old chimneys, floors that had rotted and fallen in, and plaster falling from the ceiling was bad enough, but when the water damage happened, things just got worse. We tried to fix it up for one last year, but things were so bad, I was afraid someone might get hurt, and since I had no insurance on the place, I decided it was time to end showing it. It broke my heart to have to turn people away. I have had thousands of people over the years tour the place. Children, especially, have found it interesting, as well as many groups of ghost hunters."
The house was on the History Channel several years ago on a story about counterfeiting, and that brought a lot of publicity to the place.
"I guess all good things must come to an end," Spires said. "The place has brought a lot of joy to my life because I have gotten to tell the story so many times to so many nice people."
An auction will be held Saturday, May 8, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Counterfeit House, 1580 Gift Ridge Road, Manchester. Auctioneer Sam Bolender will be doing the auction. There are many interesting items that will be for sale, including the wood, fixtures, floors, mantels, brick, etc. from the interior of the house. The hand-hewn rock the spring house is built with will also be auctioned, as will a 14x52, 2-bedroom mobile home.
For more information on the auction, contact Bolender at 937-386-2257 or at AuctionZip.com.
For more information, contact Jo Lynn Spires at 937-549-2309.[[In-content Ad]]
"The years have not been kind to the old place," Spires said. "I have tried so hard to keep it going these last few years, but due to my poor health and financial situation, I can no longer afford to keep it open for tourists as I have in the past. Several years ago, part of the roof blew off the house. My family and friends tried to fix it, but the damage was just too much.
"The fact that we had a lot of trouble with leakage with the old chimneys, floors that had rotted and fallen in, and plaster falling from the ceiling was bad enough, but when the water damage happened, things just got worse. We tried to fix it up for one last year, but things were so bad, I was afraid someone might get hurt, and since I had no insurance on the place, I decided it was time to end showing it. It broke my heart to have to turn people away. I have had thousands of people over the years tour the place. Children, especially, have found it interesting, as well as many groups of ghost hunters."
The house was on the History Channel several years ago on a story about counterfeiting, and that brought a lot of publicity to the place.
"I guess all good things must come to an end," Spires said. "The place has brought a lot of joy to my life because I have gotten to tell the story so many times to so many nice people."
An auction will be held Saturday, May 8, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Counterfeit House, 1580 Gift Ridge Road, Manchester. Auctioneer Sam Bolender will be doing the auction. There are many interesting items that will be for sale, including the wood, fixtures, floors, mantels, brick, etc. from the interior of the house. The hand-hewn rock the spring house is built with will also be auctioned, as will a 14x52, 2-bedroom mobile home.
For more information on the auction, contact Bolender at 937-386-2257 or at AuctionZip.com.
For more information, contact Jo Lynn Spires at 937-549-2309.[[In-content Ad]]