A house in this shape is not terribly uncommon in Skidmore. There are several buidings that are in much worse shape, and little seems to be done about them. In the town’s defense, the tax base has declined substantially with the loss of businesses and residents. This house is not far from where Pete Ward lived when he stood up to McElroy and signed an affidavit seeking to have his bond revoked after McElroy had been convicted and set free. McElroy was seen creeping down the alley behind Ward’s house with a pistol in his hand. Pete handled it all right, but his wife, so I’ve been told, became hysterical and never quite recovered. Pete’s was one of the names mentioned as a possible killer, but I never found anything to substantiate it.