Once a magnet for urban explorers across the province, London's 'Nazi house' is being demolished.

Built by Martin Weiche, a notorious Canadian Nazi, the house once known as 'the Berghof' had iron eagles perched at its gates and a swastika emblazoned in the back field in its heyday. Locals say Weiche invited Ku Klux Klansmen to burn their crosses in his yard decades ago.

A demolition crew could be seen through the property's overgrown trees Monday and Tuesday, pulling the structure down.

The property has become famous among Ontario's community of urban explorers, who delve into ruins to take photographs and then post and and share the images online.

Notorious “Nazi house” that once belonged to Martin Weiche is being demolished. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ldnont?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ldnont</a> <a href="https://t.co/CvPfhfE17y">pic.twitter.com/CvPfhfE17y</a> —@ColinButlerCBC

Arnie Marsman, the chief building official for Middlesex Centre said town officials issued a demolition permit for the property last week.

He said the house's renown among the urban exploration community was likely the reason it came down.

"Without speculating with facts, the area has been known for trespassing so they may have wanted to deal with that issue by removing the building."

'The place was built like a barracks'

The company hired for the demolition is St. Thomas-based Rail City Recycling.

"It was a creepy-looking place," said a company spokesman. "The place was built like a barracks."

"The ceilings are concrete. The walls are concrete. Everything is concrete. That roof above, if it ever burned down, it wouldn't burn inside because it's encapsulated in concrete."

"You don't see houses like that by any stretch of the imagination."

The property has been the subject of local lore for decades.

Amy Forget grew up in London and, before she was married, had a Jewish last name. She remembers deliberately avoiding the house during her days as a student, even though taking Gainsborough Road was the shortest route to her parents' house in Komoka.

"I was always nervous the car would break down," she said. "My father would tease me and say 'if you have to go to that house you better make up a different last name if you go to the door. You better say you're Amy Smith or something."

"So I used to actually go out of my way to find a different way home so I wouldn't have to go by that house."

The home has also made national and international headlines. In 2012, Google satelite images captured a swastika burned into the back field.

When Weiche died, his family waged a pitched legal battle over his estate for years. The property was recently purchased by a new owner, who decided to have the building removed this week.