QotD: An Unforgettable Home

What's the most memorable building you've lived in?
Submitted by Shelly.

The house I grew up in was a beautiful 1890's Victorian. As a kid, my favorite feature was that it had a secret safe built in to the staircase — if you looked hard enough you could see a hinge in the wood paneling. Find the keyhole on the other side and use your fingernails to pull that panel (that key was your classic skeleton key and was rarely used). When you got that opened there was a heavy heavy steel door and a huge dial. I used to use it to stash my baseball cards, autographs, bottlecaps, and other childhood treasures. Although the door opened and closed, the lock mechanism didn't work any more. When my folks moved out of that house recently, I had a good time going through my safe stash. Some of the things I remember were still there: baseball cards in lucite, a Larry Bird autographed photo, a Celtics scorecard signed by a whole bunch of team members, a baseball signed by god knows who, some vintage band-aid tins.

I was always creeped out by the basement. it ran the length of the house and had something like 8 rooms, complete with a creepy bathroom, lumber stash, and area formerly used for coal storage.

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