The Read House , at New Castle , Delaware 
THE READ HOUSE 
AT NEW CASTLE, DELAWARE. 
F EW finer examples of the style of archi¬ 
tecture in vogue in the Middle States a 
hundred years ago can be found than The 
Read House at New Castle, Delaware. It 
was built in the year 1801 by George Read, 
a man of consequence in the then thriving 
town and a son of one of those who signed 
the Declaration of Independence. In 1845 
the house was bought by the Couper family, 
in whose possession it has had the good for¬ 
tune to remain even to the present time. Its 
original design has been respected, and the 
changes in it have been few and slight. The 
house stands but a short distance from the 
river bank and commands a view of the 
stretches of the Delaware, here several miles 
in width. Although of plain smooth brick¬ 
work, and very simple, in fact almost cubical 
in its general mass, the house presents an 
aspect of great dignity. 
Entering the main doorway we find our¬ 
selves in a Hallway freely provided with 
woodwork in the form of pilasters, arches and 
doorways, all highly elaborated and furnished 
with mouldings and enrichments of great 
delicacy. The hallway runs directly through 
the house from the front to the garden door. 
Its length would seem too great had not 
some such expedient as dividing it into sev¬ 
eral parts been adopted. As it is, a central 
square portion is so treated as to form a broad 
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