Our House Is A Very, Very, Very Fine House

Tonight we had the pleasure of meeting the architect and original owner of our house, Harry G. Rowe. As I’ve mentioned in past posts, Steve and I actually know his daughter but never made the connection. Harry called this morning and said he’d be in town and wondered if he could stop by. Of course! He brought all the blueprints of the house, photos and stories of how he’d built it. He pointed out what was still original (the countertops and sink in the master bath, most of the lighting, and the floors) and showed us pictures of things that were gone (a killer built-in buffet and panels along the fireplace). It was fascinating hearing about how he built it, what materials he used, his inspirations and what he paid for it (that was scary!). The best part was that his daughter, Susan, had scanned all the photos and put them on a CD for us to enjoy. The minute we saw the original siding we knew we had to find a way to restore it to it’s original finish. Here’s the front of the house:

Here’s the side:

Although the pictures are sepia toned, it’s obvious the siding is wood and we love the effect. Harry thought the front doors were originally orange, but photos show they were wood. He must have painted them later. We’re planning to paint them orange this spring. I also love the brown trim. The garage door was also brown. I think the house looks so much warmer than it does now. All in good time. This house will be restored all in good time.