A Detroit resident is fighting to save her century-old historic home from collapsing under her own feet.

Kimberly Holt is determined to prevent her historic 1917 Jefferson Chalmers home from sinking due to unforeseen underground flooding issues that she claims were not disclosed when she purchased the property.

The Prohibition-era speakeasy home was constructed right off Fox Creek Canal at 847 Ashland, Detroit, Michigan. 

Holt explained that her house was crafted with entertainment in mind, and she often contemplates the prominent figures from history who might have visited, as she mentions on her GoFundMe page.

The 100-year-old landmark was even featured on the Discovery Channel. 

Holt purchased the home on Halloween 2022 and quickly discovered the underground nightmare.

Water burst into the basement, causing irreparable harm including mold growth, uneven flooring, and the collapse of the bathroom, which forced her to vacate the premises for nearly two months.

‘The workload has been immense,’ Holt told FOX 2. 

Kimberly Holt’s historical home in Detroit, Michigan, is seen above

The century-old home is rapidly sinking into the ground due ‘underground flood related issues’ that were apparently undisclosed to her before she purchased it

‘If I had not stayed, many people told me just leave, file bankruptcy, lose your down payment and leave. But I couldn’t do that.’

Holt did not want to leave because she didn’t want an abandoned house to plague the neighborhood, something that was not uncommon in her area.

‘I know what happens in Detroit if you leave the house – it’s empty for years. It destroys the neighborhood. It’s horrible,’ she added.

She has tirelessly worked to save the property not just for herself, but for future generations to see and experience this historical landmark. 

‘Detroit and it’s people have lost so much of our collective history already,’ she wrote on Facebook.

‘This home was a rental for so many decades with [the] back part of basement shut, I just think the speakeasy became hidden history. I’d like to share it with everyone.’

Holt invested $100,000 of her own money to hire an attorney and face legal battles to hold people accountable and save this monumental home. 

A Michigan court acknowledged the seller fraudulently misrepresented the property’s condition, according to Holt’s GoFundMe.

Homeowner Kimberly Holt, she bought the 1971 home on Halloween 2022

Holt said the awarded judgment was ‘unexpectedly low.’ On top of that, a questionable motion was recently filed to postpone the payment, leading her to struggle as the home’s condition declines. 

Holt’s goal is to restore the home and convert it into a museum that will serve as a hub for artists, history enthusiasts, and tourists.

‘This house isn’t just mine – it’s one of the oldest in the neighborhood, part of a trio of historic sister homes on Ashland,’ Holt wrote.

‘If it collapses into the sinkholes forming beneath it, the two adjacent homes may fall with it. That’s not just personal loss – it’s a cultural and architectural tragedy.’

Holt created a GoFundMe to help her with this exhausting battle. The cost breakdown for the damages included: $85,000 for basement and sinkhole repairs, $275,000 for full house stabilization (includes foundations, walls, etc) and an unknown cost to restore the basement speakeasy.

‘I have all the paperwork, quotes, and documentation. This is real, urgent, and solvable – with your help,’ she wrote. She currently has just $300 raised.

Holt has also started her dream job teaching art at the College for Creative Studies, which she called a ‘significant step forward’ in her career.

She aims to save this space as ‘a source of inspiration, learning, and discovery for all of Detroit.’

The house was built in 1917 and once housed a speakeasy, but now it’s sinking into the ground

Water exploded in the basement which led to irreparable damage, it developed mold and uneven floors

‘This home is a living archive, a symbol of resilience, and a place where history, art, and justice converge,’ Holt wrote.

‘I bought this home years ago, unaware of its profound history and hidden secrets. Now, it’s in critical disrepair and desperately needs restoration to protect its historical significance.’

The renovator has worked with historians and librarians to uncover these hidden secrets about century-old home.

In a Facebook post, Holt described the high-quality condition for the old speakeasy basement.

The speakeasy had premium amenities for its time with art-deco sinks and fixtures.

Redwood veneer arches were spread around the area- with a highly functional kitchen and bathroom.

The restaurant quality speakeasy basement has an original Detroit Edison stove, storage, gas fireplace, and even a bathroom. 

The flooding caused the bathroom to collapse, forcing Holt to move out for almost eight weeks

Kimberly Holt, pictured, has started a GoFundMe to help pay for the work that needs to be done

The home’s original address even took her and the librarian a long time to find. Detroit underwent a massive house renumbering in 1921, but this house was a ‘ghost house.’ They couldn’t find an address until after the prohibition era ended.

The Prohibition started in Michigan in 1917, the same year Holt’s monumental home was finished. 

Michigan started Prohibition two years earlier than the rest of the country. The law was officially revoked in 1933. 

Bootleggers smuggled giant quantities of alcohol across the Detroit River from Canada. 

The alcohol was distributed to local speakeasies nationwide, with some historians estimating the Detroit River crossing was responsible for 75 percent of all smuggled alcohol into the US during the time.

Holt plans to continue fighting to save her sinking historical home, so another abandoned home isn’t left vacant in the neighborhood.

In the past, Detroit has had wide swaths of vacant lots, cracked sidewalks, abandoned neighborhoods and derelict buildings have made Detroit an urban explorer’s paradise.

The city was populated by hundreds of abandoned facilities that were stripped of their former glory: churches, ballrooms, children’s centers, schools, train stations and hospitals. 

The interior of the sinking home is seen above

Modest properties that were once loved family homes in a bustling city had smashed windows, grime-covered interiors and exteriors coated in vines.  

They began to fall to rack and ruin in the 1940s when the US city became trapped in a cycle of residents leaving, loss of tax revenue and cuts to city services.

It came just years after Detroit grew rapidly thanks to auto factories and industrial jobs but when these moved to nearby states, the population went with them.

This city was once in such bad shape it was forced to declare bankruptcy. Now, it is experiencing somewhat of a miracle.

Detroit once had $1 homes for sale two decades ago. Now, it’s being reborn as an affordable hotspot with booming job and housing markets.

Restaurants and high-end shopping have followed, and long abandoned homes that lined the city’s streets have been demolished, with modern apartment buildings taking their place.

The major Michigan city, the birthplace of Motown, home to rapper Eminem and the heart of the American automobile industry, is on the up.