custom furniture, kitchens, and baths by fineartistmade

blog : local history

<< prev - page 2 of 5 - next >>
Samuel de Champlain's 1613 map, Isle de sainte Croix. Red beach Cove upper left

The Cottage (part 1)

July 31, 2019

We celebrated the start of summer with the completion of our latest project; a kitchen/pantry renovation in a 100+ year old cottage, in the sleepy Calais suburb of Red Beach. Situated on the St. Croix River around a sheltered cove and first-rate mill stream, one would never suspect driving through this quiet residential district today, that it was once a vibrant, prosperous, self-sufficient community.

 
Our Perry house was built by Nathaniel & Mary Golding c.1893. Their youngest son, Jim is pictured in the foreground c.1898.

Restoration Tales

September 7, 2018

This year our 1890's restored farmhouse was really starting to show her age. After all, it's been nearly 15 years since her last paint job. So, following a relaxing spring sojourn in our old stomping ground, Sag Harbor, we decided it was time to 'pencil her in.' And what better time to 'pretty her up' than to coincide with the celebration of our adopted hometown's 200th birthday.

 
Historic photo of our home with members of the Golding family.

Wrap-up

December 1, 2017

This year we were fortunate to work with clients whose goals leaned strongly towards preservation and restoration. These are special opportunities for us. Successful hunts for antique hardware, lighting and appliances; plus following the home's ancient 'tells' made these projects especially authentic. A bit of magic always happens when a room or project comes to feel as though it has always been that way.

 
The historic Holmestead circa 1856.

Summer Newsletter

August 19, 2017

Our latest kitchen and pantry project in the historic, circa 1850, Benjamin R. Jones home in Dennysville and detailed in the blog, 'Square Nails and Tells', now has its finishing touches. Our clients took a trip down to historic Little Compton, RI and the Antique Stove Hospital to pick up their freshly rehabilitated kitchen stove.

 
Looking into the kitchen from the restored pantry.

Square Nails and Tells (part 1)

May 28, 2017

It's good that our current kitchen restoration is almost finished, as we have nearly depleted our stash of assorted antique square nails. For the sake of authenticity, they've been 'driven' into a new home; the historic c.1850, Benjamin R. Jones house, in Dennysville, on the town road leading to the Narrows.

 
View of Boston Common c.1750, sampler by Hannah Otis with the beacon on Beacon Hill and the stone mansion, built in 1737 by merchant Thomas Hancock - it is thought his nephew, John Hancock, is depicted on horseback.

The Old Hancock House

July 23, 2016

For the past year we've been on the hunt for an antique door for a restoration project. Our search through architectural salvage yards and antique shops down the coast of Maine came up empty, so we placed a want ad in a local newspaper.

 
1st Lt. John P. Sheahan, Company 'E' 31st Maine, ca. 1864 - promoted from Private 1st Infantry.

The Narrows (Part 4)

May 19, 2015

Benjamin R. Jones passed away in December of 1858, preceded by his wife, Mehitabel, just a year before. Three months after her father’s death, Amelia would remarry, a 36 year old farmer, Gilbert D. Foster.

 
Lincoln house and dock on the Dennys River c.1890 - project house on the Narrows Pennisula, in background on right - the Narrows far right

The Narrows (Part 3)

May 18, 2015

The untimely death of Captain Bela Reynolds in the spring of 1853 must have been devastating for his second wife Amelia. Six months pregnant with their sixth child and left alone to raise a fledgling family;

 
View of Dennysville and Edmunds from Edmunds, circa 1890 - photo by John Parris Sheahan

The Narrows (Part 2)

May 16, 2015

We know from deeds that Nathan Preston built a home on his ‘Narrows’ property, probably the standard fare in those day and that place, a simple log cabin, 16 feet by 20. When he sold to Ezekiel Prince in 1810, for 280 dollars, the deed read, “…the same lot of land that I live and dwell apon.”

 
An 1810 map of Township # 2 we found in a deed book - Lincoln's estate #38.

The Narrows (Part 1)

May 13, 2015

One of our winter projects, the restoration of nine over six windows in a circa 1850s cape, piqued our curiosity. This venerable old structure is located in the town of Dennysville, on a peninsula that pushes into the Dennys River, on its journey to the Cobscook Bay. This ‘pushing’ forms a topographical feature, a bottleneck in the river, known simply as, “the Narrows.”

 
<< prev - page 2 of 5 - next >>

fineartistmade blog
A journal about home design, gardening, art & all things Maine. Read more...

FAVORITE POSTS
 
 

contact us

Join us at Facebook Join us at Pinterest View our Houzz profile
 

© Copyright fineartistmade. All rights reserved. Website by Barnstormer Design Group.