Hidden behind a luxurious growth of privacy hedges and various plants, the house evokes an air of ancient, dignified, mystery and intrigue – an atmosphere rarely experienced in this corner of southwestern Nebraska. A break in the hedge for the walkway reveals what appears to be a rather staid house of the Colonial Revival persuasion; Tuscan columns (with exaggerated entasis) support a wrap-around porch and its pedimented entry. A modest “tower” defines a corner. But, wait… what’s that lurking behind the columns?
The porch, entry door with sidelights and corner “tower” all appear to be circa 1900. What’s going on behind the columns?
Ah; there are more of them! Tall windows with segmental arches and beefy hooded crowns…
From the driveway more of the house is revealed. In addition to the Italianate windows, a bracketed cornice can be seen above the porch roof. Complete with drop finials, the brackets are further proof that this house began as one styled in the Italianate manner, and is a bit older than its c. 1900 porch. A boxy dormer window is also a later alteration.
A closer look. The corner porch pedestal has been replaced with smooth-faced concrete block. I can’t help but wonder just how elaborate the original front doors (likely a pair) must have been! Many of the brackets have lost their drop finials; some still survive.
The bracketed cornice is more visible from this perspective. Image courtesy Google Street View.
Houses like this always jar me.
Love the updated porch.
Love the house.
Just not together.
I would feel compelled to remove the porch.
Me too! I’m fairly certain that this house was even more lovable when first built; I’ll take an Italianate porch with chamfered porch supports over a Colonial Revival porch any day! Of course, that would also necessitate the removal of the adorable “tower” (and reconstruction of that corner), but I think it would be worth the trade-off. Happy to know I’m not alone in my perspective!
I would build a new “old” house and attach the porch to it.
Then restore the exterior of the Italianate.
My magic wand, of course, would come in handy.
NOTE:
I am normally OK with houses evolving over time.
For example, if an 1890s Queen Anne had a great 1950s kitchen or even 1970s, I would keep it. The operative word being great.
If a 1920s Colonial-Revival had a late 1940s knotty-pine basement rec room, I would keep that.
However, what I dislike about the house in this post is the obvious disconnect between the original house and its exterior updates. Like I mentioned, it’s jarring.
May I borrow your magic wand?
No, silly!
But….I will use my Magic Wand to create a Magic Wand just for you!
I love a good mystery when you see one historic style attached to another older one. The desire to modernize is certainly not new.
Agreed; the desire to modernize is certainly not new – but our culture has taken it to ridiculous and wasteful extremes. The rest of the world has more tolerance for aging (in both buildings and people). No other country has historically beaten the U.S. at the “keeping up with the Joneses” mentality. So very, very, shortsighted.