Houses have been moved around for about as long as there have been houses. Often, houses were moved as neighborhoods evolved. For example, as early as 1886, a real estate developer bought a lot at the corner of State and Anapamu streets and moved a house off the property in order to construct a commercial building. A lot of houses were moved in Santa Barbara in the 1920s as the city expanded. In 1922, the local paper noted that there had been 33 house-moving permits issued that year.
Recently, I received an email from someone who said that he had heard that his childhood home — the cute little home at 1705 Castillo Street — had been moved there from another location. I did some research and found a city document that listed the home’s original address — 811 Santa Barbara Street — when the house was moved several months after the 1925 earthquake. That location is now a group of stores on the northwest corner of Santa Barbara and De le Guerra streets.
Generally, long wooden or steel beams were inserted through the foundation under the floor. The beams were lifted by hydraulic jacks or jack screws (large screws), a vehicle such as a flatbed truck was inserted underneath, and the whole dwelling was slowly transported. Some people actually traveled in their home as it moved along.