 In 1850, he bought the adjacent lot with a small house built by Alsatian immigrants Michel and Rosine Simon in 1847.John and Rowena Vance purchased Monod's property in 1853 and added an ell wing to the general store to better serve travelers on the Old San Antonio Road that passed through Castroville on the way west to Eagle Pass, El Paso, and points beyond.In 1859, the Vances added a personal residence, which was the largest in Castroville at the time, and converted Simon's small house into a wash house for use in both bathing and clothes washing.