I live in Sussex County, DE. It is a small town near the East Coast beaches. I ride bike for exercise every day.
I pass my neighbors’ houses to take pictures of their gardens and flowers so I can paint.
Today, I went to the to the area which I normally don’t go so I can find new flowers to take pictures.
A whimsical chair.
His cottage is 16 x 20 .
It has a full loft but today was hot, so I didn’t ask to see up there.
This is the history of this tiny cottage in Milton.
Governor David Hazzard’s Law office.
Long identified as the law office of The Hon. David Hazzard, this one story, one room building was built before the Civil War, probably in 1840’s. It belonged to Governor David Hazzard and was used as his law office. He was a prominent Milton, resident who was involved in starting schools in the town.
The office is framed with both hand hewn and sawed white oak lumber. The roof and three-sides were covered with 30 inch (wide? Square? Can you tell from the photos?) cypress shingles. Wide cypress boards covered the building’s front.
David Hazzard was born in 1781 and began law practice here in the early part of the 19 th century. In 1829, he was elected Governor of Delaware and later served as a judge. He is buried with his wife in the Milton Methodist Cemetery.
The building was originally located across Federal street on Hazzard lane, the building may have been used as a store after Hazzard ‘s death in 1864. By the end of the 19 th century, neglect had taken over.
Charles Fisher bought the structure in 1920 and moved it to its current location on Marshall street where it was used as warehouse/storeroom for the Fisher family most of the 20th century. Restoration began in the late Spring of 2010 and was completed during the Summer of 2012.
The thirty-inch cedar shingles are from British Columbia and the 1-3/8 inch thick vertical boards in the front were made from cedar utility poles that ran along the Lewes-Georgetown Road (Route 9). The front door and all shutters are original. The large marble stone outside the law office with the name Hazzard on it was a “carriage step” for people as the arrived .
What a nice man to show you around. Lovely all around. 🙂
Yes . He is VERY nice . Because of my Asian look ( Vietnamese ) and since he was there for a few years , that was why he noticed me . His wife told me a day later , that her husband was VERY excited when he talked to me ( because I was too young to know the VN war , so he told me all about the troops and battles ) We talked about more than half an hour and he tried to show me EVERY thing about that tiny place , including some old pictures BEFORE that tiny was fixed . However , the weather was so hot that day , so I just wanted to take some pictures and went home . He lives about 4 blocks from where I live . Nice neighborhood too . TM.
I was not expecting before I made it to the pictures for something that old and with much history. The house is simply beautiful and I wish it could be converted to a “true” tiny house (with plumbing and electrical).
Yeah , too bad zoning didn’t let them do that . His wife told me …Their son LOVED to do it with electric and water to make it into the guest room , but the town said NO . I would have thought since this tiny cottage had a ” grand father ‘s clause …( since it is so old , almost as old as the town ) they could let them do it , But NO , they said NO . So the elderly couple just turn it into the place for decoration . TM.
By the way , the history of the cottage was printed on the paper and Mr Don Fisher gave me that paper . I took it , came home typed it and sent here . ( I am becoming an elderly too and so forgetful , I could not remember half of what Mr Don Fisher told me . ) …lol…TM.
Big Brother Government, our elected officials, at its best, having control!
That 16 x 20 is a keeper, wow. Could make a wonderful little cottage type home.
Also a very nice story. Nice People
It is 16 x 20 but the ceiling is VERY tall . ( Can make half loft if wanted ) plus it has a full loft above . Then I notice when I took the picture all around the cottage …it DOES have a full basement too . Too bad the town didn’t allow bathroom . TM.
you can if you want too, by getting a small portable pot which camp world sale’s no need of plumbing and occurs u take a shower were you could reuse if collected in a fifty gallon droom which thath water is coded as=grey water. Hope you can use this info.
I admire this blog and love the tiny houses, but please…. a little editing before stories go to post! This one is painful to read! I normally do not nit pick a grammatical error (or even two), but this one is loaded with errors! Even if English is a second language, no excuse for bad journalism.
Relax. It’s NOT journalism, it’s a story shared with generous spirit. The meaning is clear, the story is enjoyable and this is not English class, thank goodness.
Thanks Alice . You are RIGHT . This is NOT a journalism .
Ch Paquette . Sorry that you can’t understand my writing ( and you don’t need to read it either ) I just happened to see this tiny cottage , out of my time and my effort , I took time to up load the pictures and typed so I can share with SOME people in here , that was it . I didn’t ask to rate or grade my English . For some one like me an Asian who can understand , speak , and write SEVERAL languages , this is the best I can do . Good day . TM.
TM, don’t worry about your writing! The rest of us have no problem with it.
This is a lovely story about the kindness of people and the beauty of an old structure with historical roots. Thank you for sharing it in your own words – many of us appreciated it!
Thanks so much for sharing your story and pictures , I enjoyed it so much .
This is a wonderful story, with good photos, and a beautiful recycled chair. I’m grateful to TM. Aren’t you?
Thanks for the compliment . These nice compliments will give me incentive to drive around my town to take more tiny cottages ( as business ) pictures to up load more …for some to see . The place I live is a small quiet town with lot of history near the beaches ( It is a tourist area ) I just want to share some of the cute stuff that I have seen … . All of us live in USA , but USA is a big country and no places are look a like . TM.
Dude!!! WTH!!!! TM is taking time out to provide us with some photos and interesting info. So what if he isn’t grammatically correct. We all speak the language of tiny homes. Keep on posting TM!!
Hello Mike . TM is an elderly Asian female …lol…Thanks for the kind words . TM.
C H Paquette, If you bothered to focus on the interesting mutual history of the two people who met because of a tiny house, perhaps you wouldn’t fret about TM’s personal speech pattern. This is a blog, and all are welcome, even you. Why not enjoy the unique personalities here instead of grinding them beneath your grammar boots?
For some reason the first picture won’t show up in my browser. I don’t know if it is a problem with Google Chrome or what, but when I opened the image URL in another window it is a nice picture of the front of the cottage.
I am also interested in the last picture of the shed with the corrugated tin siding. That could be an interesting tiny house as well.
Well . In this property ( as long as the road by the side , the whole road which I took the pictures with several old buildings ) belongs to the elderly couple . Their son lives somewhere in NC and their son only comes back once in awhile . So really , the elderly couple ( in their 70 ) don’t have much a desire to do anything any more . They have a big house ( the house the end of the picture , facing the front road , and that is the main road in town ) so they told me they don’t have the need to do anything any more .
In Milton and some other small towns near here , as I told Mr Kent … they have lot of tiny cottages which it used to be the post office , then it turned into the barber shop , then some other tiny places turned into the tackle bait shop …I promised I would take some more pictures of other tiny places as business , but I have not had a chance because my place is only 7 minutes from the beaches , and traffic in this month is so unbelievable therefore I have not had a chance to do so . But I will . Thanks . TM.
So exciting to see a tiny house in our tiny state…
I take it you live in De too ? TM.
I live in central DE. There is a tiny house in Bowers Beach. Its a code walk from JPs Wharf headed toward Main St. It needs renovation though. Milton has another tiny house on the mls. Please email me as you find tiny houses. I’ll send you pics of the ones I find.
TM, thank you for the great story and wonderful pictures. I particularly enjoyed reading about the history of the tiny house. Good job.
Thanks for the compliment . TM.
What a fine thing when a walk to take flower photographs turns into a living history lesson, plus meeting good people! Thanks for sharing this with us.
I really enjoyed ever facet of this story. The photos were wonderful. The older, smaller houses were very efficient for their day. Personally, I would like to see more stories and photos about this area and the smaller homes that were built there back in the day. Great Job!
Several years ago after traveling through Delaware and Maryland I made a study and found that many of the towns have very strict minimum housing size standards. This remains a major impediment to the advancement of the tiny house industry. We can never mass produce them without places to put them and personally I don’t care if I heve see another house on wheels! I would just as soon buy a used Airstream or similar product, recondition it myself and save a lot of money.
As some of you may know . Delaware is a ( small ) FIRST state . I have been here for 10 years . I have seen plenty of small cottages that people use as business . They might use as living spaces long ago , but then when the housing booming a few years back , they followed as the rest of the nation and built bigger houses ( specially by the beaches ) Therefore , tiny cottages ONLY can use for small business . The governor law office may be tiny , but the house which the governor lived in , it was big . ( Now they turn it into BED & Breakfirst inn ) The town of Milton has so many houses that are colorful ( just like any old town around the East Coast ) But since those houses are not small nor tiny , that was why I didn’t take pictures . Unless Mr Kent request . Mr Walt Barrett is right . The town is very strict . That is why I have 5 acres just sit there and I can’t build anything yet , because I have no money after I installed the well & Mount septic in it . ( The rule said …5 acres ONLY can built one house . I don’t want to build one small house and loose the value of 5 acres , but then I can’t afford to build a big house ) TM.
Such a sweet place! Thank you for the good story and pictures. It was a nice morning read for me.
I loved your post. The little cottage is so cute and quaint. I, too am surprise with all the history linked to it. What a treasure.
Loved this house (so sad that they can’t turn this into a guest cottage–did they say if they were able to fight this?) and the story you told.
Thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to share your adventure and photos with the tiny house community 🙂
No . The wife told me that they no longer bother to fight ( they are in their 70 s ) Besides , their son lives in NC . I guess no one would help them to do any labor work . Their own house is big already for the 2 of them . So she told me …She no longer bother to fight the town ‘s rule . TM.
Perhaps it is time for a major court challenge to the minimum house lot size and home size regulations nationwide. The current rules are not very kind to low income families. Our company was looking very hard at mass producing micro homes on a production line basis and has the cash to do the project, but we think that local building officials would cause such a business to fail very quickly. It’s too bad because mass produced micro homes can sell for the same price as a compact car and still be profitable. I made a complete study and built a model home that is good for two people. I would like to double that size and mass produce it. With millions of people needing homes and many of the willing to live in a micro home there will have to be changes made in the building and planning codes. Think of the jobs involved.
We never had such oppressive codes in the 1930’s when I was brought up in a 20′ X 24′ home with a sleeping loft and a small stairway to the loft. It certainly didn’t kill me. Some people say that the minimum home sizes are really about collecting the most tax dollars from each home owner. I would like to see the American Civil Liberties Union take on these rules nation wide. After all, what is the justification for these rules when you think about it fairly? Everyone deserves a decent and affordable home.
It may be time to go to court. Maybe these cities and towns should stop spending more money than they can take in. Another thing is that building permits here. The economy is so bad here that many people are just walking away from our state and moving to the south and south west.
This is a serious problem that needs solving and soon.
Walt Barret:
Are you still interested in challenging the codes in Delaware? I would like to help in any way that I can. Where did you start and where have you left off? Please let me know.
Reggie
Hi Reggie, Walt passed away in the last couple of months so I’m afraid this probably is not going any further with him unless his son pursues it. Sorry!
Kent, Thank you for your reply. Condolences on Walt and his family. I’ve just retired and ready to pursue the effort. Any clue where I should begin.
I am fortunate that Union County, here in East Tn has very minimal building codes, including size. We have to pass the electrical code ( state) and the health dept has the pass the septic. That’s about it! Size, on my land has a restriction of 1100 sq ft but can include 2nd story, loft, basement & was set by the neighborhood assoc. So I could do smaller if I asked. I can’t wait to build my tiny house. ( Barn is done) I have my claw ft tub, recycled kitchen, oak barn wood for flooring & cedar trees to cut for siding. My biggest problem right now is where on my 5 acres to place it. // Thank you TM for sharing your inspirational photos & story. It’s too bad that restrictions have limited the use of such a wonderfully restored piece of history. I love to take pictures of gardens & architecture when I travel, people are always so nice when I ask permission.
Yup . People are VERY nice when I approached them asking permission to take pictures of their flowers ( of course I showed them my paintings pictures in my i phone and they seem to like it well enough . By the way , my paintings won some blue ribbons ( first prize ) and yellow ribbons ( third prize ) at Delaware community college . Now I am getting to compete with Delaware State Fair Art exhibit ) I have my disability , so if I make some mistakes about my writing , you all have to excuse me . ( Thank you ) And because I am an elderly with disability , I can’t build anything on my 5 acres land all by myself . I just need to save some money …may be to put a camper or trailer there in near the future ( I already have septic and well in my land ) TM.
Hi, I live in Newark DE! Thank you for your post. Very nice to read about the history of the building. Love those Tiny Houses!
Hi .
When you drive to Rehoboth beach or so , please stop by Milton town so you can see the colorful of my town . Very cute town . TM.
There might be a solution. We had a large old (1840’s) house in Delaware. It was built in sections, starting w. the first one room and loft portion, w. fireplace and winding stairs. Then a building, even older, was brought to the property and added, probably for sleeping, but later used for a dining room. Finally the large, two-storied part, with upstairs and downstairs porches was built on. It might be possible to use the little house if they moved it and connected it to their larger house. They could still keep a seperate entrance (for B&B customers). Of course, at this stage in their lives they might not want to go to that expense.
I loved every single word of this post and all the wonderful photos… I saw a comment on another blog today that complimented the writer for ‘listening with heart’. I think you did this as well, and it turns your words into living history…
Please write more…
Thanks for kind words . I just sent to Mr Kent some pictures of the tiny business around my town . Hope you all can enjoy them . TM.
This is a lovely little home, and should be able to be made into one I loved hearing the rich history!
I may come see it one day, when I go cisit my father in Delaware. I am living in an old (1976) mobile home, all I could afford, but would just love to one day have a tiny home on my on site, however humble. The repurposed, colorful chair is very cute! Have a Happy Summer!
Thanks for the history!
TM I enjoyed the way you write. Through it I can hear the way you probably speak and imagine your accent and this makes the story more colourful knowing that it is told by someone with a very different background to mine… All part of the wonderful texture and flavour of life! Thanks for taking the time and effort and care to tell the story.
Thanks for your kind words . Yes , I DO have an accent , but my accent is FRENCH since I learned French from Kinder Garden to elementary schools . My husband ( Caucasian ) teased me that my accent is V_english ( Vietnamese _ English ) lol . TM.
TM, I too enjoyed your narrative. More importantly, I felt it. Just a few FYIs. You say you were post Vietnam, then that would put you in your early 40’s—–I don’t consider that elderly. You also use the phrase “Asian like me”. I’m going to assume you are now a citizen which would make you an American like me. Race does not define an American. Thanks for the pictures and story
Yes . I am an American for nearly 30 years and I am 53 years old . I used the word Elderly , it just because I have been disabled for 10 years therefore , I feel OLD ( and sick ) But thanks for your kind word . In Delaware . When I first came here 10 years ago , in Milton, there was NO Asian lived here . People stared and looked a lot . I was THE ONLY one Asian in town …but THANK GOD they didn’t say anything bad . I feel good living in this small town . TM.
I love this house! Looks like something you’d see in Massachusetts, or Maine. I’m actually researching building my own post and beam in the style of the colonists out east, in the 1600’s. Great book I’m reading is:Home Building and Woodworking in Colonial America by C. Keith Wilbur. Get a copy of that and be amazed! 🙂
Nice story, and nicely told, both the story of the house and TM’s story of how she found it. I also want to compliment the owners who went to significant trouble and expense to restore a house that will never pay them back financially (at least unless those codes change). That is a sacrifice few of us could afford in order to save a historic structure. Hats off to them, too.
This is a wonderful description and illustration of a most perfectly sized cottage. Cottages from 16×16 to 18×24 are most comfortable dimensions for two people to live in. The story expresses wonderfully TM’s sentiment and love for architecture and detail. I agree, this is not journalism, this is a blog and is consistent with the grammatical expectations of a blog. Bottom-line, this generation has changed the acceptable grammatical rules. In summary, the content is probably more important, compliance with standard grammar rules is great but no longer expected in this time and age.
Thank you TM, for featuring this lovely little building on your blog. My ancestors were from Milton, and include the Hazzard family. One of the Hazzards was a farmer in the 1750s whose name was Habakuck. His nickname was “Hap”. Apparently he was a little slapdash and careless for his name has become a byword for a person who does things in a careless way, “Haphazard”.
I believe the town of Milton’s objection to modernizing David’s office was probably in the interest of preserving the integrity of its history. You find that all over, buildings over a certain age are subject to certain restrictions, in order to protect their historical value. In another 100 years it would be nice for our great-grandchildren to see that little building just as it was built in 1820, with restorations sensitive to its age, and not with modern conveniences just banged on and into it so it can be used as a few extra square feet of living space.
I think it’s time for towns and cities to get with the times and realize that half of America, and the Earth, can’t afford for us to go on living in 1000 sq ft per person. When I was a girl, in the 1940s, we lived in a 300 sq ft house my Dad built. That was my parents, my grandmother and me. Grandma slept on a fold-out sofa in the living room, and I had a trundle that slid under the sofa during the day. It was a pleasant little house, with butter yellow walls and black and white tile floors in the kitchen. I’d not mind living in it today, but I’ll bet 90% of the municipalities in the USA wouldn’t let Dad build it today. Sad that.
As we look forward to building what will be our final home we will build the smallest home the village will allow. I wish all the young people well in their journey.