Historic House Blog

I’ll add this one to my growing wish-list.  ”West End” is a beautifully restored and fully furnished historic estate c.1790, and includes a main residence, guest house and multiple accessory buildings on approximately 32 acres of lush landscape and formal gardens.  According to NYC-based Concierge Auctions, the property will sell at a live auction on [...]

It’s no surprise that “This Old House” chose Wellington, Ohio as one of its “Best Old House Towns” in 2010.  Wellington is a “quaint and quiet northern Ohio town” with a small population of people (4,700), but a large population of beautiful historic houses.  The town features an impressive spectrum of Victorian era houses — [...]

In less than a month, the impressive “Bleak Hill” Estate, in King George, Virginia, will be auctioned.  Original portions of the house were built in the 1790s by historically renowned architect, Dr. William Thornton — the designer of the U.S. Capitol building.  The estate offers an incredible panoramic view, so it’s not surprising that it’s [...]

If you’ve never been to Woodstock, Vermont, it’s one of those beautiful New England villages that is a big tourist spot because it is widely-heralded as “quintessential” New England.   It has an old town green with lots of classical-revival houses surrounding it.  There are ordinances to protect nice views of the village and its surroundings.  [...]

I rarely use the term, “museum-caliber” when describing historic properties.  This house is museum-caliber. In my mind, museum-caliber means several things: exceptional architecture, a large amount original (or early) details, accurate historical information, and perhaps most importantly, the house must feature a lot of early period furniture & decoration to make the house “feel” the [...]

This property just drips with historical significance!   Now offered for sale (at just $159,000!) is a log cabin that was constructed in 1790 — just 7 years after the American Revolution.   So it has withstood the test of time and witnessed a lot of history — including, of course, the famous Battle of Gettysburg [...]

Quick — what do all the following things have in common?:  Susan B. Anthony, exotic animals, a U.S. ambassador, 1960s hippies, and Stephen King.  Yep, you guessed it . . . they all have connections to “the Gilbert Mansion,” a unique Victorian home in Hampden, Maine. The history I was able to dig up about [...]

The owner of this house told me that this house was “a preservationist’s dream,” and it’s easy to see why.  Located in a quaint town nestled between the Green Mountains and Lake Champlain, and just a half hour from the super-hip city of Burlington, this Federal style colonial includes some truly impressive original features.  Touted [...]

I’m a huge baseball fan, so I had to feature this one: Babe Ruth’s former suburban home outside of Boston, in Sudbury, Massachusetts just hit the market with a $1,650,000 asking price.  Christened “Home Plate Farm” by The Bambino himself, the house was apparently built circa 1800, replacing another old house on the site (circa [...]

There is a common misconception that most historic houses are “dark” inside . . . but this listing caught my eye as an example of why that misconception is, well, a misconception.  The “Henry Cherry House,” built 6 years before the U.S. Civil War, is a perfect example of a 19th century house that mixes [...]