Time did not deal gently with these little houses and a few years ago they were condemned by the city council as unfit for habitation and ordered to be destroyed as they created a fire menace. Former owners succeeded in allaying the ultimatum of the council, reclaiming them from oblivion. Unaware that the story of Washington's ownership was true, the wing of one was demolished, the other is a new addition and replaces a smaller one too dilapidated to restore. The floors, mantels, much of the trim, some hardware and two chimneys are original. The uprights were found to be mortised together and numbered in Roman numerals. Handmade nails and split wood laths formed part of the original construction. Preservation of the structure was the urgent concern. In her _History of Old Alexandria_ Mrs. Powell tells an interesting anecdote relating to the construction of these houses. The mention of "Mr. La Fayette" identifiable as the son of the Marquis, fixes the period at 1797. It seems that the coach had been sent to Alexandria from Mount Vernon for repairs and stood in the courtyard of the coachmaker's waiting to be called for. Two little children, Hannah Taylor and Joe Peters, were playing hide-and-seek in the courtyard. The little girl opened the door and hid in the coach. Joe failed to find her, and she fell asleep. The carriage was called for, the horses hitched and driven to Mount Vernon, without awakening the child. Only when the coach came to a standstill in the stable yard did she awake, much frightened and in tears. She was carried at once to the house, soothed and petted. The General dispatched a servant on horseback to tell Mr. and Mrs. Taylor that the little girl was safe and would be returned in the morning. She dined with the family, sat next to Miss Nelly, and was laughed at by a young man called "Mr. La Fayette" whom she did not like. She was put to bed by the Negro maid, Caroline Brannum, in a little room at the head of the stairway, wearing one of Miss Nelly's gowns, much too large, but with beautiful lace on neck and sleeves, her sheets warmed by the first copper warming pan she had ever seen. Caroline left the candle burning until Hannah fell asleep, to keep the little girl from being frightened. She had a splendid breakfast and was returned home in the coach wrapped in a large shawl and with a piece of cake as booty. After that she frequently saw General Washington on the streets of Alexandria. "He often walked past her father's shop to the corner of Pitt and Prince, where two small frame houses were being built, and he seemed to be giving some directions to the carpenters, but he did not recognize Hannah who stood in too much awe of the great man to make herself known."[169] Hannah was all of seven years old at the time of the visit. Her trip to Mount Vernon furnished her with conversational matter for the rest of her life.