Through salvaged lumber and doors, recycled material and original doors and hardware, our design-build team honored the origins of this 1882 stone house that represents a classic example of pioneer architecture by George Maenius. The owners wanted to renovate and restore their ancestors’ homestead, preserving the historic integrity while providing modern amenities and ample room for entertaining and family.
The goal was to restore the “Rock House” for many more generations to enjoy and call home for a lifetime. Limited budget and end-use in mind, care was taken to respect the historic elements while adding the comforts of today.
The structure was in great despair with a crude kitchen and makeshift bathroom, a freestanding gas stove in the central room provided heat and no sewer treatment existed, requiring us to gut the home, leaving only massive stone walls and the second-floor platform intact.
All spaces were designed to respect, rather than overpower, the vernacular building style. Antique pine flooring, from an abounded church, was used to replace the original floor which was beyond restoration. Pressed tin, from the home’s Victorian era, was removed to expose the original wood beams and then cleaned and incorporated as risers in the new staircase and a backsplash behind the kitchen stove.
The new staircase was relocated and constructed to access the open second floor that once slept the family’s 11 children. The space was divided into two separate bedrooms, a second-floor bath and a mechanical room. Care was taken to conceal mechanical systems and plumbing in attic spaces and chases. False floors were created to hide new second-floor plumbing and air conditioning ducts.
Arched openings were introduced into the original 18” thick solid stone walls, opening up the renovated kitchen to the adjacent dining and family rooms. A new wood-burning fireplace was constructed in the family room and faced with stone salvaged from the newly created openings.
Period light fixtures give the project a historic feel. Original doors and hardware were refitted throughout the home, with a rolling bard door used at the on-suite bath of the master.
Beyond repair windows were replaced with high-efficiency clad wood sashes that reflect the historic lines of the originals.
The home’s cellar and cistern are original. Timber and stone, from a dilapidated barn, were used to construct a new L-shaped porch to expand the family’s living space into the outdoors.
A new standing-seam roof was applied in traditional style with hand-turned ridges on the upper portions of the home, wood shingles were laid on porches and outbuildings to provide an authentic feel while reducing the glare into the second-floor windows.