Long abandoned, this c. 1905 Folk Victorian farmhouse has unusually nice detailing for its geographic location, even if those details aren’t all stylistically consistent!  Though re-sided in the mid-twentieth century, enough of the siding has fallen off to reveal the original siding and details which had long been obscured.  Though the front porch has collapsed, turned Queen Anne porch posts remain in the debris.  Gable ornaments and attic window sash with borders of small panes also suggest a Queen Anne influence.  The symmetrical gabled roof, however, does not.  Exterior window casings (beneath the replacement siding) were done in the then-newly-fashionable Craftsman-style while a south-facing bay window is elaborated with Italianate style brackets!

The house is deceptively large; there are two bedrooms on the first floor and another five on the second.  The dining room is large.  The house appeared to have had numerous updates made in the late 1950’s or early 60’s and not much after that.  An interior alteration to the bay window is quite odd!  The interior is still impressive in spite of its deteriorated condition.

The interior woodwork is typical of the late Victorian era and much of it retains original finishes – some of them grained.  Some of the wooodwork appears to have never had any kind of finish at all.  A few rooms upstairs appear to retain their original wall colors and painted stencils!  Jim and I toured the house today with permission of the owner; it was an adventure we won’t be forgetting soon.   Let’s take a look!

 

Though neglected and decaying, the house still maintains an imposing presence on the land.

 

Mid-century replacement siding – banded in three varieties – no doubt attempted to give horizontality to a house that clearly wants to be more vertical!  Note the second floor window casings; the 45 degree angles at each side are a nod to the then-newly fashionable Craftsman aesthetic.

 

A bay window peeks from behind a tree.

 

The Italianate detailing of the bay window clings to the past.  I can’t help but wonder what is under that multi-colored asphalt siding which attempts to mimic stone.

 

The soffits appear to have been painted dark green originally.

 

Detail of front gable end. The Craftsman style casings are more plainly visible on these three windows. The remains of a gable ornament cling to the eaves.

 

Detail of “cottage” window with a lace pattern in the top light.

 

The front door. Note that the diagonal pattern of the two lower panels are both angled in the same direction; the back door is identical but the panels mirror each other.  I think someone at the factory goofed on this one!

 

The front door from the vestibule / hall / closet.

 

The open closet opposite the front door.  A small room is to the left; the living room to the right.  Woodwork in this entry has a grained finish intended to mimic mahogany.

 

Inside the small front room The mahogany graining on the door is more visible here.

 

The living room with cottage window and a piano that no one wanted to move.

 

Detail of piano, door and hardware.

 

Double doors lead from the living room into a spacious dining room.

 

The dining room. Note the newer window at right.

 

The window (and its curtains!) appears to date to around 1960. Hey! What happened to the bay window we saw outside?  Let’s open the window and take a look…

 

Here it is! Someone built a freakin’ wall in front of this incredible bay window and stuck a modern window in the wall to borrow light!

 

The baseboard was stolen to use on the other side of the new wall

 

From the dining room one can go to the kitchen or through the door at left which leads to an enclosed staircase to the second floor.

 

The kitchen harbors an enviable Kenmore range with glass doors.

 

Beautiful original fixtures in the bath!

 

The raised panels of the doors to this bedroom closet have a type of detailing I’ve never seen before! Has anyone else seen anything like this?

 

The other main floor bedroom.

 

Dining Room corner block detail.

 

Living Room corner block detail.

 

Woodwork here appears to have never been varnished!

 

A heater at the top of the stairs served to warm the second floor.  Note the simple and unvarnished balustrade.

 

The newel has had its corners chamfered in a modest effort at refinement.  The newel is reinforced with an iron bracket attached to the floor.

 

The wall paint and stenciling appear to be original. Woodwork appears to have received some stain, but no varnish.  The hole in the wall allows for stove pipe to safely pass through a combustible wall.

 

The pink ceiling also appears to be an original finish. A wire, presumably for a TV antenna, snakes up to the attic.

 

More original stenciling!

 

Daylight filters into the same bedroom through the rapidly-deteriorating roof.

 

Mid-century Outer Space-themed bedroom wallpaper is both fun and at odds with the rest of the house!  Time to head back downstairs…

 

A formica dinette collapses on what’s left of the kitchen floor.

 

The back door – identical to the one on the front except for the orientation of the two bottom panels.  Let’s go outside and take a quick look at some of the outbuildings…

 

The barn, too, is showing the effects of neglect.

 

This former barn received a shed addition in the past which today shows signs of wind damage.

 

The chicken coop has blown over onto its side.

 

A concrete structure of uncertain purpose has a handsome shingled gable end.

 

Detailed of weathered shingles. That’s it… thanks for coming along!

 

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