48 
House & Garden 
The original house was “Court of Hearts.” To this was added a barn. Then the owner bought 
a farmhouse on a hilltop fifteen hundred feet away and moved “Court of Hearts” up to it. To¬ 
day only an expert could tell where the original structure left off and the additions commenced 
THE HOUSE that WAS MADE of THREE 
A Barn , “Court of Hearts” and a Farmhouse Were Combined to Make a 
Rambling New Hampshire Country Home 
MARY H. NORTHEND 
T HE readjustment of a remodeled 
house through additions is not a 
simple thing to accomplish. The 
putting together of three old buildings 
to make a comfortable and livable 
home is more difficult still. And yet 
a fine example of what can be done 
in this way is found in the home of 
Mr. Prescott Bigelow at Fitzwilliam, 
New Hampshire. Mr. Bigelow was his 
own architect, though measuring and 
drawing plans is not easy where one 
puts two houses together, remodeling 
them both, as he did. 
The Original Home 
“Court of Hearts,” the original 
home, was too small, and while cast¬ 
ing about for a remedy the owner de¬ 
cided to work out a scheme of his 
own that would fit his needs. It ended 
in the purchase of an old farmhouse 
that stood high up on the hill. Al¬ 
ready an old barn had been introduced 
into the original building for additional 
space, but still more room was a neces¬ 
sity. So the “Court of Hearts” was 
moved about fifteen hundred feet up 
the hill and joined to the new home. 
The tendency of the present day is 
to specialize, and that is just what 
Mr. Bigelow did. Little thought was given to the 
exterior, though comfort and correct furnishings en¬ 
tered into the scheme. It was not in a day or a 
month that the changes were made, for right results 
rather than haste were desired. 
In viewing the house today only an expert could 
determine where the original structure ended and the 
additions commenced. The rooms at the front of 
the house were in the old structure; the barn joined 
in at the right. At the rear and on one side was the 
“Court of Hearts,” finishing out the hallway and 
forming the dining and living rooms, while an ell 
was added for the service department. 
The heart of the development was the hallway, 
originally small and contracted. Partitions were taken 
In the making it looked pretty chaotic, but the builders finally joined 
the structures together and added an ell for service quarters 
out and openings made with a view to creating vistas. 
This gave an air of spaciousness unusual in houses 
of this type. The double staircase was interestingly 
worked out, meeting on the second floor. 
With the exception of one room finished in hard¬ 
wood for dancing, the floors were left to show the 
original wide boards. An harmonious note, found in 
every part of the house, is given by the soft gray 
tone of these floors. The hall has a pastoral paper 
which is a reproduction of a foreign make, and shows 
rag mats such as were made in our grandmothers’ 
time. The slat-back furniture, the latches and locks 
are evidences of how carefully each detail has been 
conceived and worked out. 
The rise in the hallway shows where the old barn 
was introduced. Being of lower stud 
it was raised to meet the ceilings, thus 
necessitating steps between the rooms. 
With the introduction of the “Court 
of Hearts” the floors were planned for 
the same level as the older part of 
the house. 
Colonial Individuality 
Each room was carefully considered 
so that it could be finished and fur¬ 
nished desirably, keeping to the period 
and allowing no overloading, with the 
exception of the den, which is a typi¬ 
cal man’s room and so gives excuse 
for showing his collections of old 
kitchen and farm implements and rare 
old English prints. 
The practical working out of the 
fireplaces is unusual. They follow 
the old-time methods perfectly, even 
to the corner bricks which were used 
in every fireplace of that period. This 
idea is featured in each room; and 
months of exploration, particularly of 
old cellars and dilapidated houses, 
were necessary to secure the genuine 
materials. In the old days the head¬ 
stones of the fireplaces were never of 
brick, but after long searching enough 
of the original type were collected for 
the house. The stone hearths are carried out in the 
old-time style with the exception of one, which is 
of rare 6" square bricks—an unusual and yet correct 
treatment. The successful handling of just this fea¬ 
ture shows what time, drought and patience were 
given to each and every detail that it might when 
finished be an ideal example of what a remodeled 
house should stand for. 
Do not for a moment think that these fireplaces 
as they stand today were in this condition when Mr. 
Bigelow acquired the place. Many of them had been 
bricked in to accommodate that abomination of house 
heating, the air-tight stove; while others were so 
small they had to be enlarged. 
The mantels are practically the same as when the 
