What’s Missing? At a glance, this lovely Federal style house in South Freeport, Maine looks very intact to its early 19th century period of construction -with a modern garage and breezeway obviously added at some point in the later 20th century.
Its age is seen in its granite foundation and steps and six-over-six double hung windows. Its identity as a Federal style house is established by its entry door with sidelights below an elliptical arched fanlight. While largely intact, one major character-defining element is missing from this house.
The external chimney is a clue to what is missing. In a northern New England context the external chimney is obviously not original. Early Southern houses often had exterior chimneys, but they were almost never used in Maine during that period.
A closer look at the roof of the house shows us that, in fact, this house had a large center chimney – removed recently enough that the patch in the shingles is still visible if you look for it.
Identifying how a house has changed over time is important when planning a restoration/rehabilitation and is explored in depth in Chapter 2 of “Restoring Your Historic House, The Comprehensive Guide for Homeowners.”
The 720 page award-winning and best-selling hardcover book is now available in bookstores nationwide and from online retailers.
Signed and personalized copies are available directly from the author in our shop, https://yourhistorichouse.com/shop/.
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