The Dismukes House bedroom

To finish up this little mini-series on the Dismukes House, here's the bedroom.

It's small, and of course there are no closets, much less the walk-in variety that are common now. Some shoes typical of the period sit on a chair in the corner.

Inside the Dismukes House

The inside of the Dismukes House (see An ordinary 1880s farmhouse for a view of the outside) consists of this living room, the kitchen (below), and a bedroom.

The windows provide a lot of natural light, even on this gloomy day. I'm not sure how historically accurate the furnishings are. (You'll note a few 21st century items out because of this Open House event.) But regardless, they help to give you an idea of the living and cooking areas that were available to this family.

Tomorrow, the bedroom.

An ordinary 1880s farmhouse

In 1887*, Edwin Price Dismukes built a wood farmhouse for his wife Maude and his growing family. Unlike some of the large homes in Downey (such as the Rives Mansion), the house that Edwin built was 20 by 25 feet, with a living area, a bedroom, and a kitchen. The bathroom was an outhouse out back.

The house was originally located near the corner of Firestone and Paramount (then College Avenue) Boulevards. Scheduled to be demolished for a parking lot, it was donated to the Downey Historical Society and moved to Apollo Park in 1986.

Over the next couple of days, I'll show you the inside of the house.



For a more complete history of Dismukes and his house, see Looking back on - Dismukes house from the Downey Patriot.

* The 1887 date is based on the Downey Patriot article; the Herald American, above, dates its photo in 1886. I haven't attempted to resolve these contradictory dates.