November, 1909 
AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 
Notable American Homes 
By Barr Ferree 
“Villa al Mare,” the Country Home of George Lee, Esq., at Beverly Farms, Massachusetts 
S94 NLIKE many homes on the “North Shore,” 
=a Mr. Lee’s house is not directly upon the 
water. It is, however, not far distant from 
it, and occupying, as it does, a picturesque 
site on a hillside that rises sharply above 
the road, it has the advantage of a fine 
situation, the more remarkable because the 
garden and most of the grounds are not visible from with- 
out, and the great beauty and skill with which these have 
been laid out offer many surprises to the visitor. “Che house 
itself is in full view of all beholders, its main front rising 
high above the roadway, banked, on the inner side, by the 
giant rocks and forest trees against which it is built. “These 
natural features entirely surround the house, as seen from 
without, and give it an unusual setting. As a matter of 
fact, the property lies at a junction of two roads, which 
cross at a rather acute angle. 
In a somewhat rough sense, 
the house is built across the 
farther side of a triangle. 
It is entirely surrounded 
with a wall of faced stone, 
surmounted with a latticed 
crown. ‘The entrance is a 
simple little gate cut in 
the wall. 
A graveled path rises 
steeply within and conducts 
the visitor to the entrance- 
porch. This is built against 
one end of the house, the 
longest side overlooks the 
garden. The house is faced 
with cream-white plaster, 
with white window-frames 
and green shutters; all the 
roofs are of red tile. The 
entrance-porch is a simple 
and charming ‘“‘lean-to” 
built before the door. At 
each end is a wall, in which 
is an opening with a seg- 
mental arch; they are se- 
verely cut through the wall 
without moldings or orna- 
ments of any sort. On the 
side of the path the raf- 
ters are upheld by two white 
columns. The door is 
square-topped, with a frame 
of narrow moldings painted 
white, and the door is 
solidly paneled in small 
square panels with rounded 
studs; it is painted green. 
The ironwork is limited to 
a knocker, the bell-handle 
and a lantern on each side. 
There is a small square 
window in the upper part of 
the wall on one side, and bay trees and evergreens in terra- 
cotta pots and tubs form the essential parts of a very 
delicately handled color-scheme. 
The ornamental front of the house is that overlooking 
the garden. It consists of three parts; a slightly recessed 
center, and two slightly projecting ends. Its basic idea 
is, therefore, quite rigid symmetry, but the architect, Mr. 
W. G. Rantoul, of Boston, has allowed himself a very con- 
siderable latitude in the developments of the parts. The 
three great arches in the center of the lower story are sup- 
ported on columns contained within the surface of the wall, 
but are without outer moldings. The string course above 
them is carried only from the farther wing around to the 
great chimney on the entrance front. That there is a series 
of rectangular windows in the second story, and a small 
central gable in the roof seems sufficient for the symmetrical 
e 
The approach to the entrance porch 
