In the summer of 1992, Carol, Linda and Les Heen were invited to salvage wood and trim from a house which was going to be demolished.  The beautiful five bedroom home had been vacant for many years and had never been “modernized.”  Since the house, which had been built by the Ellefson family,  was structurally sound, it was an ideal candidate for preservation and restoration.  The Heens decided to save the entire house.

In the fall of 1992, Thein Moving Company moved the house three miles to its new “home” on the Heen farm.  The building was driven into the newly excavated site, where it would await the construction of a new foundation and basement. 

The new basement would contain the “modern” conveniences:  new bathrooms, a complete kitchen, and a utility room.  By placing the modern appliances in the basement, the rest of the house could maintain its Edwardian appearance and features.

Structurally, the house was very sound.  In order to keep it that way, the Heens replaced the original wood shingles which had been on the house for decades. 

The house has two wonderful porches; both the kitchen porch and the front porch needed new fir flooring.  The front porch had beautiful pillars which needed repair.    This challenging job required the skill of a local craftsman, Dwight Speh.  The pillars were made of tongue and groove slats, which tapered from top to bottom, and required precise milling in order to fit precisely.  Whew.  That was a difficult job but he did a beautiful job and the pillars were re-installed upon the new fir flooring. 

Next came the painting.  Ray Miller came with his “team” to begin this job.  Ray, who was the local wrestling coach, had recruited many of his wrestlers for his painting team, and they spent most of the summer painting the outside (10 colors), and the inside.  They also repaired windows and storm windows.  The results were beautiful, and it was a memorable experience for the team!

The Ellefson house was one of two identical houses in Wang township (built by brother and sister).  The other house, owned by Christopher Dalager, and his son, Gary Dalager, had a stained glass window that matched the stained glass window which was missing from the Ellefson house.  One day, they drove over and gave their window to the house project, and it was installed in the front room.  Many thanks to the Dalagers.