Avalon Cottage

Avalon Cottage. . Hello, and thank you for stopping by!

Built sometime between 1900-1910, this wood frame building is 8'5" by 14'5" and retains its original clapboard siding. The wooden front door is original. The construction date is determined based on the use of round-headed wire nails, which were introduced about 1888, plus exposed rafter ends and 2/2 windows, which were common in the early 1900s.

Small structures like this one were used as temporary living quarters on Seven Mile Island. The design and construction is similar to houses used by the Life Saving crew members in Avalon. There were a number of these constructed and placed near 15th Street Life Saving Station, and the group of houses came to be know as "Shanty Town" by locals on the island.

Buildings like this one would serve as housing for use by laborers, fisherman and servants in the early 20th century. There normally would be no electrical service, plumbing or heat in such buildings.

While it is believed to be original to Seven Mile Island, this building's first location and exact use are not known. At some point, it was placed behind the church that was formerly located at 17th and Dune Drive, where it was used for storage. It was then moved to the History Center in the early 2000s, and was restored to its original appearance in 2015.

It is a little difficult to imagine living in a structure no bigger than lawn shed, but these were very much a part of the late 19th and early 20th century domestic architecture within resort or beach living.

[Caption:]
Small cottages were available for purchase via mail order in the early 20th century - check out this ad for a hunter's cabin, which measured 9'x12', in a 1926 Sears catalog.