William and Ellen Burt owned this L-shaped residence free and clear in 1920, but not the ground upon which it sat. As with many Centerville homes, the Anaconda Company kept ownership of the land, retaining the right to extract or explore for ore “in, on, or beneath the surface of the Property.” Understandably, Centerville homeowners tended to build functional, no-frill houses; leases like this one provided a disincentive to invest heavily in a home. The threat of eviction was real as residents of nearby Meaderville learned when the Berkeley Pit swallowed their neighborhood in the 1960s. Yet, despite the implied impermanence, Centerville was a congenial place for families like the Burts, who wanted affordable, single-family dwellings, compatible neighbors, and easy access to work in the mines. William and Ellen Burt, who emigrated from England in 1908, would have felt particularly welcomed by Centerville’s large Cornish population. And the streetcars that passed their house every twenty minutes provided William with reliable transportation when he was not working at one of the mines in walking distance.
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