'Tis the season for haunted houses, and this one—which recently sold for the whopping sum of $1—is downright spine-tingling.
Photo: @PhilipJacob/Twitter
Known as the Ouerbacker-Clement House, this Romanesque-style mansion was built for a prominent coffee merchant named Samuel Ouerbacker in the late 19th century in the once-fashionable Russell neighborhood of Louisville, Kentucky. Over the years it was eventually transformed into the offices of a tax business, before it was ironically taken over by the city in 2005 because of unpaid taxes, according to the Courier-Journal.
Photo: John J. Miller Photography/Flickr
The formerly grand building fell further into disrepair, suffering from partial structural collapse, water damage, and vandalism. In 2008, The Louisville-Jefferson County Land Bank Authority sold the property for $1 to architect Scott Kremer, who had plans to restore the building and use it for community purposes, but his plans fell through, and he eventually returned the building to the city. But earlier this year, the bank once again sold the property for $1 to Oracle Design, which wants to restore the mansion and turn it into apartments.
Photo: John J. Miller Photography/Flickr
According to the Courier-Journal, a representative for Oracle said that the Ouerbacker-Clement House is among 14 residential properties in Louisville that the firm is targeting for a historic residential rehabilitation project.
Photo: Louisville Images/Flickr
(h/t ALL DAY)
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Lauren (she/her) is the digital content director of the Hearst Lifestyle Group, where she oversees online content and strategy for Good Housekeeping, Woman's Day and other Hearst titles, including SEO, video, social media and e-commerce efforts. She has almost 20 years of experience writing and editing beauty, lifestyle, home, health, entertainment and product review content. She graduated from NYU with a degree in journalism and history.
