Hi there, and welcome back to the farm- pour a cup and we’ll get you updated as to what we’ve been up to.
Any project here starts innocently enough, with the simple goal of fixing something that appears small and minor, but quickly becomes an open can of worms. EVERYthing is a can of worms here! We find concealed rot, a past patch that should be improved upon, or something that we should just make right- at least in the “restored to 1782, but with climate control and indoor plumbing” vibe we’re going for. We feel like every project takes two or three times as long as we expect, but in the end, we feel good about taking care of everything that needs to be addressed, so we shouldn’t need to worry about anything but maintenance the rest of our lives. It’s been a lot of work, but we’re learning new skills, and improving on so many of these new skills, that with every can of worms that gets opened, we are getting more and more confident in getting them taken care of.
Since you were last here, we finished up the siding on the west gable end, and have moved around to the back. The gable was a challenge due to the height, but fortunately, was structurally sound, and needed little in repairs. Since the old clapboards (100ish years old) and trim (older yet) were nailed directly to the sheathing, there wasn’t a lot to the actual demo, which has become Jenny’s favorite part. Once we had the sheathing clean of old clapboards and nails, we filled the gaps with expanding foam insulation, caulked and flashed where needed, ice and water shield along the bottom three feet, then tar paper (builder’s felt) the rest of the way up, then new pre-primed hemlock clapboards. We used the same random reveal as we did on the north wall. This is not only more appropriate, as the original builders just “eyeballed it”, but it also hides how out of plumb the house is, and how uneven the windows are. We also made ourselves a “roof ladder”, so we could take care of replacing the trim, caulking, and painting the dormers.
There are so many stories to be found around this old house- one example is the variability in glass color in the windows.
Once we finished up the gable side, we moved around to the screen porch, where we were going to just replace the lower two clapboards where we removed the rotted deck stairs. Another can of worms was opened, and we ended up needing to cut out a lot of rot, and patch and replace just about everything along the lower wall, and re-frame the windows. At least it’s all sealed up, flashed, caulked, and painted- Jenny say’s it’s like Fort Knox around here!
One of our neighbors is renovating their timber frame barn, which had an old wood-fired stove that needed a new home, and we had just the place for it- our ell workshop! It’s a beauty, and it cleaned up to like-new! Can’t wait to fire it up! We just need to install a chimney, get a metal pad to set it on, and line the wall behind it with some old rusty tin we saved from the old barn roof.
This past week, we received another visit from our friend Temple, who had spent a lot of time at this house while growing up- he knows so much about the local area and our house- we really treasure our time with him. He lived in his family’s home (four generations) in the town just north of us up until 10 years ago, but has moved to Kentucky. He was close friends with one of the former owners of our house- they used to fish together, and Temple helped take care of this house when the owners got older. This time, Temple showed us the old Parker homestead up the road (which is now just a cellar hole in the woods), and took us to explore some land he had owned nearby. Between this house and the Parker homestead would have sat John and Jesse Warren’s farm, two of Daniel and Abigail’s sons. The “upper Warren” house” has long disappeared, which later was the site of Schoolhouse No. 10, which has also disappeared.
Across the street from our farm is a 35,000 acre wildlife sanctuary (that’s roughly 55 square miles!)A nearby parcel that Temple had sold before he moved away, has since been added to the sanctuary, so he showed us the waterfall he had fallen into while fishing in the middle of winter! He managed to somehow make it to our farmhouse, where the owners helped him into a warm shower- clothes and all- until he thawed. He also showed us some incredible rock outcroppings, and a very large, but unfortunately since fallen, old oak that was roughly 4-5 feet in diameter. He told us a story about some brothers who lived here back in the mid-20th century (one of which became his best friend.) While walking to school (with their rifles, as they were going to go hunting after school) one of them shot a bobcat in the head. Since they were still near home, he walked back and tossed it on the kitchen table to clean when he got home. While his mother was working in another room, she hear a ruckus all of the sudden, and realized that the bobcat was very much alive (the bullet had just grazed him, knocking him out), and was now trapped in the kitchen, and was running around trying to get out! Our time with Temple always goes by so quickly, and we try so hard to remember all the stories! Such as the giant pile of boulders (a couple of stories high) up the road near the summit of Mount Skatutakee- back in the late 19th century, they were putting a rail line around the side of the mountain, and one of the workers, Mr. Hogan, was tamping dynamite into drilled holes, but when he packed a charge with an iron rod, it detonated, killing Mr. Hogan. The pile of boulder debris is called “Hogan’s Ledge”. Temple knows the names of all the old farms around, even the ones that no longer exist. He’s truly a treasure!
We really do love this house, and living here in this part of New England! This area is so beautiful, full of hiking trails, small scenic roads, lots of farm-to-table restaurants and farmstands, there is so much to explore yet! We also enjoy stopping off at local barn sales, as you never know what you’ll find- like a “Ralph Nader for President” bumper sticker for the Corvair, or a box of antique drill bits and braces. We can’t wait to wrap up the big to-do list on our house, so we can spend more time exploring!
Well, that’s it for now. Our local historical society is having their big annual fundraiser today- a beerfest at an 18th century tavern! Thanks for stopping by- we cherish your visits here. Take care, and until next time…
As always, feel free to share or leave us a comment below! God bless!
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