In 1920 the Bissells sold the property to a real estate investor, J.J. Wall, and two brothers in the undertaking business, John and Francis Ahern for $55,000. Two months later, a notice appeared in the Hartford Courant announcing that the new owners proposed to raze it and build an apartment building. Protests emerged from the community to save the Mark Twain House and a campaign was launched to do just that. Eventually these efforts fizzled but the owners, remaining cautious of the publicity, converted the rooms of the house into individual apartments, rather than demolish it. They noted that the walls could easily be removed “in the event of its being desired to restore the interior to its original condition or as a memorial to Mark Twain.” In 1925, Wall and the Aherns sold the house to new owners for $82,500. Katherine Seymour Day stepped in soon after to acquire the house and save it permanently. On April 29, 1929 a charter was issued to the Mark Twain Memorial and Library Commission. The price of the house was reduced to $150,000, with a mortgage of $55,000. To help pay the mortgage the Hartford Public Library rented the ground floor and the Memorial continued to rent the upper floors as apartments.