BUENA PARK : Historic Houses Move to Their New Homes

Two of Buena Park’s oldest homes became the newest buildings in the city’s historic district last week when they were moved about half a mile down Beach Boulevard.

“It was quite a thrill,” said Nickie Jeannerette, a docent with the Buena Park Historical Society. “The Bacon House was the cutest thing. It just went down the road like it was on roller skates.”

Jeannerette joined other members of the society, City Council members and assorted residents Friday morning to watch a crew move the Whitaker-Jaynes house, built in 1887, and an even older squatter’s shack called the Bacon House to their new sites across from City Hall.

Other buildings in the district are the First Congregational Church and the former Stage Stop Hotel.

The City Council gave final approval to a master plan for the historic site during a June 6 meeting. The homes will sit on four-foot blocks until a foundation can be poured, said Thomas Lynch, director of development services. The city hopes to have the houses on their foundations and the extensive landscaping finished by late October, he said.

The council began plans for the move last year when it needed the room to expand its auto center. The city owns both homes and the historic site. Cost for the project is $568,000, said Wes Morgan, director of recreation, parks and community services. All of the money came from the Community Redevelopment Agency’s funds, he said.

The two-story Whitaker-Jaynes house was built by Andrew Whitaker, the brother of James Whitaker, who founded Buena Park. Less is known about the Bacon House, which was built as a squatter’s shack sometime in the 1850s, she said.

The houses, which were put on blocks a week ago, were moved onto three dollies with pneumatic tires about 11 p.m. Thursday, said Donald Kelley, foreman with Snow House Movers Inc. of Garden Grove. They were attached to hauling trucks and started rolling down Beach about 2 a.m., arriving at the site about an hour later, he said.

Although Kelley said the operation proceeded smoothly and according to plans, some of the observers were worried when the houses cleared wires and trees by just inches.

“We had some harrowing moments,” Jeannerette said.

Lynch added that the movers had to do some maneuvering but that everything went as planned. “It was exciting to watch such skilled craftsmen move a house without any problems at all,” he said.