In Cambridge, Mass., residents of a certain vintage can vividly recall the day in 1965 that a Greek Revival-style house rolled down Brattle Street.

For years, the circa-1850s structure served as faculty housing for the Episcopal Theological School, until the seminary decided it wanted to use the home site, just outside Harvard Square, to expand its library. Encouraged by conservationists, the seminary wheeled the roughly 150-ton house about 11 blocks to its current location, shutting down Brattle Street for two days, according to historical documents. Parking meters and street poles had to be moved—and dozens of elm trees were trimmed—to make way for the house, the late preservationist Roger Webb wrote in 2015. In its new location, the house was renovated and rented out for several years.