The Historic District

Hi Everybody,

I am buying an historic old house with attached carriage barn on the Main Street in the principle village of a small town in rural New England (closing mid-January). "Historic Old" here is another way of saying "needs a lot of work!" (especially the barn). The house was built in 1862 in the Greek Revival / Vernacular style of the region and time, and has had a succession of colorful characters and prominent town-folk who have lived in it over the years. The barn appears to be later (1880's?), with an even later barn addition (1900's?). I am looking forward to getting in there and getting to work, and am glad to have found this forum (the Old House Web seems to be pretty dead!).

Tim

Cleaves house welcome to the district. Your home still looks to have some of its original character still intact, thanks a very good start for an old home restoration. That bay window off to the side gives just that bit more charm I think. The barns, are they full out barns o larger carriage houses? If larger carriage sheds that would make sense, it was very common for there also to be a pasture type enclosed for the horse, the shed would have hay storage on the top floor.

The bay window may have been added between 1907 and 1914 if I believe the Sanborn fire insurance maps (there are other aspects of the depiction of this property that are clearly not accurate, so I don't fully trust them). In any case it is clearly not original. But yes, it does add something extra to the house. The porch isn't right, imho (somebody extended it out to the bay window, and it's got a weird connection to the barn), so I expect to re-do it at some point.



The carriage barn is three levels, with a low basement that opens to grade in the back and a full loft for hay above. All together with the addition (which extends off the back as the upright of a "T" formation, the original barn being the top cross bar of the "T"), the barn has a footprint of over 1200 square feet! There's a horse stall, and I suspect that back in the day the residents kept a cow and some poultry as well (the current tenants have chickens, a turkey, and some ducks). The back yard behind the barn could certainly have been used to turn out the horse or the cow.

Tim, the extension from the home to the sheds is not uncommon, I once spent a summer in an old Victorian farm house still with an out house. The space between the house and outhouse was filled in with a long shed like extension so there was no need to go for a walk outside when the need required. In this shed there were several rooms built to one side of the hall, first a room to store the firewood, then a small work shop and a third room I can only guess may have been for the tack. At the end was the outhouse, two seater no less. Are there any signs that rear extension to home also had such an arrangement?
Ron

I don't recall seeing anything like that (outhouse in the extension) during my tour and inspection (I don't take possession of the house until mid-January). The connector currently houses the kitchen, a "mudroom," and a "pantry."

Do you think it has always been a kitchen extension and original to the house?

Looking forward to following along with your adventure!

Your place brings back fond memories of the many Greek Revival vernacular houses in Eastern Connecticut. I love the simplicity and dignity of that style.

Congratulations on your new house, you got yourself a beauty. Please swamp us with photos once you're in!

Congratulations!! Can't wait to see more! I love that you have that gigantic barn on the property, can't wait to see what you'll find in there. I worry that I won't have much advice, but I'll be following earnestly to watch and learn from your progress!

The closing on the purchase of this house has been moved up a week to this Friday 1/7 - Yay! Can't wait to get in there and really start assessing what I've got!