Got Permission To Detect The Yard Of 117 YO House

I had passed by an old house that has been condemned, boarded up and posted with no trespassing signs in my hometown numerous times. Finally, I decided to find out who it belonged to, so I gathered up the courage to knock on the door of a neighboring house to find out. A woman with a young daughter answered the door, I introduced myself and mentioned that I was interested in meeting the owner of the old house next door. She said that she didn't know who owned it, however she said that if I spoke to the people living in the house behind it, that they probably knew who the owner is. I thanked her kindly for her time and proceeded to go to a newer home behind the house. When I arrived there, a woman was mowing the lawn in the back yard and a barking dog greeted me at the gate. I didn't know the dog, so I waited patiently outside the gate in hopes that the woman would notice my presence. I was surprised when a young man suddenly approached me and spoke. I introduced myself and told the young man that I was interested in learning who was the owner of the old house that they lived behind. He said that he didn't know but thought his mother did. By that time the woman, the young man's mother was done mowing the lawn and came to the gate to speak with me. Once again, I introduced myself and expressed interest in learning who the owner of the old house that they lived behind was. She was able to tell me who the homeowner was. To make a long story short, I was able to meet the owner and obtain permission to metal detect the yard. Moral of the story is...do not be afraid to approach people, be friendly and at ease with people and having a good sense of humor helps to break the ice too. People are generally nice and if you just take the time and overcome your reluctance to interact with strangers, it can pay good dividends.