The best way to learn about historic houses is to look at them closely, and the most fun way to look at them closely is to do a puzzle showing a wonderful historic house! So, we made a unique and interesting collection of Historic House Puzzles for you to enjoy!
This lovely Queen Anne style summer cottage at Sorrento, Maine, enjoys a gorgeous view across Frenchman’s Bay to Mount Desert Island. It was built in 1895-96 for developer Frank P. Jones, a successful Portsmouth, New Hampshire, brewer. Jones invested in the development of Sorrento as a summer cottage colony as well as in a steamboat company that served this and other communities along the coast.
The house is “Design 1972” from “Shoppell’s Modern Houses,” an illustrated architectural quarterly, which was first published in January 1886. The publication contained articles about landscaping, the placement of a home on the site, rules of color, furnishing ideas and one-page descriptions of homes. These one-page layouts contained a perspective view of the home, floor plans for the major floors, and a description with specifications for interior finish, interior and exterior colors, accommodations, and cost estimation.
Thanks to my friend Brad Emerson for identifying the design source. Understanding the style of a house should be the first step in planning a restoration or rehabilitation project. Chapter 2 of “Restoring Your Historic House, The Comprehensive Guide for Homeowners” will give you the information you need to do this.
Click on the dashed box at the top-right in the puzzle box below to open the puzzle to full screen. In the top left, you can change the number of pieces (100 pieces is the default), toggle piece rotation, and change the background color. Then hit “OK” and have fun!