 |
That Old Book |
| |
 |
Dear Edith: I purchased a home in 1984. I remember at the closing an old book with the history of the house. The previous owners were listed; land description and interesting facts were in it. I was told when the house was paid for this book would become mine. The bank was sold to another and the lawyer I used has since passed. I re-mortgaged about five years ago. I have asked at both banks about this book and no one can find it. Any suggestions? |
| |
| |
 |
It sounds as if you're remembering an abstract, that thick sheaf of papers containing excerpts from the public records concerning that particular piece of land. I agree with you; old ones can be fascinating. You can trace ownership, mortgages, division and subdivision, all sorts of records, sometimes back for centuries. You can glimpse stories about former owners, family secrets and the like. Unfortunately, many old abstracts get lost in the shuffle. They're bulky to store, and as you realize, banks do get changed around a lot these days. In some areas modern title searches often go back only 40 or 60 years anyhow. I suppose some of your old abstract could be re-created if a professional abstractor -- or you yourself --spent enough time digging through the county's public records. Even so, a new abstract won't have the appeal of that elegant penmanship on the yellowed papers from before the days of typewriters. You’d also be missing old surveys, wills and other material that might have been included.. |
| |
|
Edith
Originally published on October 2, 2005 |
| |
| |
|
Back to Summary
|
< Previous | Next > |
| |
|
|
