Their New Jersey Home Came With a Tiny Brick Playhouse, and a Piano Inside

When Matt and Anna Jones bought their property in Brick, New Jersey, in 2000, it came with a second building that looked like a house in miniature. There were brick walls, windows and a proper front door. Inside were furnishings scaled for children, right down to an upright piano. The little cottage was unusual enough to attract visitors, though living beside a local curiosity eventually became a headache for its owners.

A House in Miniature

The cottage had the rooms and fittings you'd expect to find in a much larger home: a kitchen, a bathroom with a shower, a bedroom and a living area with a fireplace. Tables, chairs and cabinets helped complete the effect. In a 2015 interview with Weird NJ, Anna described a building supplied with water and electricity. It was a playhouse with remarkable detail, rather than a dollhouse you could pick up and put on a shelf.

The Stories Neighbours Told

The cottage had acquired a collection of local stories about who might once have lived there. Anna told the magazine about rumours connecting it with circus performers. Those rumours weren't evidence of former residents.

She gave a much simpler account of its origin: previous owners had built it in the 1960s for their grandchildren. The furniture's small scale made sense as part of a children's play space. No mysterious occupants were needed to explain it.

A Family Project That Drew a Crowd

For a time, the Jones family decorated the cottage for holidays, including Halloween and Christmas. Curious people came to photograph it. Anna said she didn't mind visitors who wanted a picture; the trouble came from people who damaged things or took them.

That distinction was important to a family whose home was on the same property. A building could be well known locally and still be private property. Its reputation didn't make entering it an open invitation.

Storm Damage Changed the Picture

Sandy's floodwater reached the little house in 2012. Anna later described damaged walls, waterlogged furniture and the cost of keeping it up after the storm. Theft and vandalism had added to the work.

In 2015, she wanted to see whether someone would buy the cottage and take it away. The main house wasn't part of that proposal. Moving a brick playhouse, with water lines still to deal with, was a rather bigger job than moving its little piano.