New England Colonial home tour today.

We toured a local historical home today that was built in 1688. It was frontier land in New England at the time, and there was not much else was in the area. This was built well before the Revolutionary war started.

This is an original fireplace circa 1688. I am not sure if the tools may are original to the home.




The above fireplace was to the right in this picture. The pine floor is original to the home.




This was an area of water damage to the ceiling in the same room from a fire in the early 1900's. What fascinated me was that this is accordion lath with plaster. Accordion lath were wood planks about 3/8 of an inch thick. They were hand split at each end of the plank and pulled apart across the width. The gaps of the splits made spaces where the plaster could adhere to. This type of lath is found in colonial homes and was used before the common cut lath and horsehair plaster. This is most likely held in place with hand forged square nails.




This is the fireplace in the sitting room that was added on. On the right side there is a beehive oven in the small upper square opening. That is a iron bread peel sitting in the oven opening. The back of the oven was about 3 feet from the opening. The lower opening was a brick chamber to add coals if more heat was needed. Behind the spinning wheel is a rocking chair that was originally believed to be a ladder-back chair.




And of course I had to get a picture of the oven dome.



This flintlock, powder horn and watch once belonged to one of the occupants of the home.




This bedroom was added on and a root cellar was dug below it. The builders encountered a large boulder that could not be moved. The built the room over it two steps up.




Beautiful hand cut dovetails on this writing desk.

 

Very cool!

 

Thanks for sharing the tour with us. I am glad I don't have to cook in that fireplace but it still must have been nice on a cold winter nice to have it going.

 

No easy task for sure. It must have been difficult cooking in the summer heat.

 

Now that's interesting !! Thanks for posting

 

Yes, feel free Scott. Our area is rich in colonial era history. There are quite a few first period homes in our county and we have at least one brick home in town that pre-dates 1700.


But yes, nothing was perfect. The paneling in some rooms you could tell were hand-planed. Much of the home was built from the stone in the ground right on site, the wood cut and milled locally by water-powered mills. A self -sufficient time.

 

I'll put a few more pictures up.

A small pantry with items that would have been used in the house.



One of the writing desks. The front folds out to store quill pens, paper and ink wells. The bottom half held clothes in the drawers when the owner travelled.



A nice drop-leaf table that overlooks the orchard up to the family burial plot on the west side of the home.




Another view of another writing desk. It is a stunning piece.

 

What a awesome area, so rich in history. Thanks for sharing...........

 

Very cool! Back in the day when they made things to last by hand and firelight. You have to respect how they lived.

 

We have square hand cut nails in our house, c. 1880, nothing is square and nothing is level. where were you fishing pol? Haverhill, or somewhere close? I love your tour pics, Thanks.

 

Yeah, you know!

 

I love our colonial history, people worked so hard, now so much is just given, accepted, and taken for granted. Our ancestors worked and suffered to give us this great nation. We have to pass it on the same way. We have our work cut out for us.

 

NH Mountain man, yes, Whittiers birthplace. I haven't been in years, but now I have a greater appreciation for colonial history and early homes.

 

Thanks for the reply, my wife was right. She guessed Whittiers' Birthplace. I just drove right past it 45 min. ago on 110. There is so much rich history in our area. Have a very Happy Thanksgiving neighbor.

 

My house was built in 1960 and it sounds similar.

 

one of the good things about this area are the almost countless historic homes,sites,museums and even living history places ,we need to be reminded of it now and then,almost every day i pass the spot where the revolution began,we are very fortunate to have history all around us.