HOUSE AND GARDEN 
December, 1910 
The living-room now extends through the full depth of the house, taking in the old 
parlor and the inevitable first-story bedroom, originally separated by a huge chimney 
A new chimney was built out of the old 
bricks for the centre of the living-room 
when the two rooms were thrown into 
one. The dining-room and kitchen were 
transposed in order to have the former 
open out upon the rear porch instead of 
the latter 
kitchen, with its large fireplace, chimney cupboards and old-time 
hrick oven occupying one whole side of the room. Opening off the 
kitchen was the “spaceway closet," used in the old days for storing 
With the exception of the door itself and the flanking seats, the front 
entrance, with its hand-carved entablature, stands much as it did 
a hundred years ago 
home-made soap, cheese, sugar, candles and home-cured meats. 
The plan of the second floor was just like that of the first. 
Four large square rooms open from the central hall. These 
chambers had spacious closets on both sides of the chimneys. 
There were ten fireplaces in the house, one in each of the eight 
rooms and two in the cellar. I must not forget to mention the 
delightful old attic, in which we found a spinning-wheel, a reel, 
a hatchel, a crane, some broken andirons and the remains of a 
brass knocker. 
Such was the old house as it stood. We found that few 
alterations were necessary to fit it to the family needs. The par¬ 
lor and bedroom, thrown together by tearing out the wall and 
chimney which divided them, make a delightful living-room. We 
built a new fireplace with an outside chimney in the center of 
the west wall of the living-room, constructing the new chimney 
with the bricks from the old- — in perfect condition after ninety- 
six years of wear. We used for this fireplace the hand-carved 
mantel which was formerly in the parlor. Since the adjoining 
bedroom did not have the hand-carved wood cornice and casings, 
we were obliged to have the parlor woodwork duplicated, in order 
to fill out that half of the living-room. The original parlor and 
bedroom doors lead from the living-room into the hall. 
The broad old hall, with its Colonial staircase of cherry, with 
polished hand-rail and severely plain posts, spoke eloquently of 
the years that have passed. Afraid of dispelling its charm, we 
did not venture on 
any changes, except¬ 
ing to install a small 
lavatory under the 
stair. The front 
hall door opens on a . 
small stoop with a 
narrow seat on eith¬ 
er side. This stoop 
takes the place of 
the original stone 
steps. It has no 
roof because we did 
not wish to hide the 
hand - carved entab¬ 
lature over the front 
door. The rear hall 
