Quote Originally Posted by JRB View Post
Robert, being a history buff, I find the pictures of your home to be quite extraordinary. The U.S. has very few extant homes from the 18th c. that are still occupied as private residences. My parents live in a very large farm house built in 1849 but both the interior and exterior has been updated a bit to conform to modern conveniences (i.e. the carriage house is now a 2 car garrage). It looks like your home has been very well preserved in it's original state (high ceilings, tile hearths, etc.). Am I correct about this? Are there a lot of homes like that in France? I'd love to see some pics of the outside.
Ah ha ! Another history buff !
OK. Take a city like Paris for instance (but it's a fact for hundreds of Europeans cities and towns), the foundations easily go up to the Roman Empire.
Today, most blocks are from the 19th century. Thousands of houses and appartments are from the 18th century; hundreds from the 17th, dozens from earlier back. In France, many families live in 16th century houses, so our 18th century house is no big deal.
We live in a very small mountain village. The records mention a population around 400 ha. since the 17th century. The area we live in is called Savoie. It has been part of France only since 1860. Before it was part of the kingdom of Piemont-Sardaigne.
Our house is indicated on the "Mappa Sarda" , dated 1725.
The house had NO WATER (no plumbing) and hardly any electricity when we visited it for the first time in 1999.

Here are some outside photos:












Best,

Robert