Historic Homes Part 3

At the front are four dormer windows, but the central feature is the high porch extending to the dentation in the roof and showing a pointed cap above. The Corinthian column supporting it on either side is an example of fine hand-carving, while the white trim corresponds picturesquely with the gray of the exterior. The house is panelled on the outside and painted to represent a stone house, although in reality it is wood. The entrance door is unique, lacking the distinguis.h.i.+ng porch that is found on so many colonial homes. It is framed with white instead.

Just how long the estate was owned by Robert Hooper will never be definitely known. We find that later Judge Benager Collins lived there, thus giving the name of "Collins House" to the mansion. Subsequently Francis Peabody, one of Salem's most noted citizens, occupied this residence as his summer home until his death, when it pa.s.sed into the hands of his son. During the elder Mr. Peabody's residence, the place was restored to its former dignity. The grounds were materially improved, and the garden was changed back to its original design.

Within the walls of this house have been entertained some of the most notable men in the country. Mr. Peabody was a lavish entertainer, and many important events occurred during the time of his residence. One of the most frequent visitors at the house was the late J. Pierpont Morgan.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE XVII.--Hallway, "The Lindens."]

Dignified and imposing as is the outside of the house, the interior is even more impressive. Entering the st.u.r.dy door that swings back on its long strap hinges, one finds himself in a wide hall extending entirely through the house and opening on to the old-fas.h.i.+oned garden in the rear. This remarkable hall shows some of the most wonderful wood-carvings found in any colonial home. This is particularly noticeable in the bal.u.s.trades, probably McIntire's work. The newel post and the bal.u.s.trade are of mahogany, the former most elaborately carved.

The walls are hung above the panelling with a rich old-time paper, depicting different scenes in the story of the adventures of Telemachus.

The furniture throughout the house is of either the colonial type or ma.s.sive old carved English pieces brought over centuries ago, most of them heirlooms that have descended in the family for many generations.

On the extreme right are the stairs, rising by low treads; on the wide landing is a window flanked by pilasters on either side. On this same landing stands a rare colonial chair a.s.sociated with the witchcraft times. The upper hall, practically a replica of the lower one, is wide and ample in its dimensions.

Opening from the hallway at the right is the library, finished in mahogany and showing an Oriental paper of the seventeenth century design. The mantel is one of McIntire's best, the central feature being a basket of flowers with festooned ornamentations on either side. Here, as in every room of the house, we find ma.s.sive pieces of English oak, richly carved cabinets and chairs.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE XVIII.--Dining Room, "The Lindens"; Chamber, "The Lindens."]

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE XIX.--Drawing Room, "The Lindens"; Library, "The Lindens."]

The drawing-room, also finished in mahogany, is perhaps the most elegant room in the house, with its fireplace of supporting pilasters rich in elaborate hand-carving. There is a dignity and charm that surrounds every room in this house, telling of the days when honest labor gave thorough workmans.h.i.+p. All through this mansion the woodwork is particularly impressive in its richness and careful finish of hand-carving.

The dining-room, a large room in the rear of the house, is in close harmony with the other apartments, the most notable feature here being the strap hinges of wrought bra.s.s. These show most unusual ornamentations, which differ from those on the entrance floor. Here the trim is painted white and gives a most effective background to the bra.s.s hinge. On every door is a ponderous bra.s.s lock of elaborate design. Few houses, even among the most famous found in this vicinity, can boast of more wonderful furniture and such a wealth of old-time wall-paper.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE XX.--Chambers in "The Lindens."]

No two chambers are alike. Many of the fireplaces are particularly fine, as McIntire has taken special pains to give good samples of his work.

The fireplace motive all through the house seemingly runs to baskets of flowers.

In the days of commercial prosperity, the Peabody family was among the most prominent of the Salem merchants. On the walls of "The Lindens" are many paintings of s.h.i.+ps that were at one time in the service of the Peabodys.

The house to-day is owned by the son of the late Francis Peabody, who has kept it in perfect preservation and intact as in his father's day.

Little wonder that romance clings about the place, leading one to tread reverently through the different rooms, where, during the colonial period, both American and English history were made.

CHAPTER V

THE ROGERS HOUSE

There was built in Peabody, Ma.s.sachusetts, in the early part of the nineteenth century, one of the most magnificent colonial homes of the period. It still stands, a large, pretentious, two-storied house, known as "Oak Hill" and the summer residence of Mrs. Jacob C. Rogers. The house itself is in the center of well laid out grounds, being placed far back from the road and showing at the front a wide stretch of lawn interspersed with trees, one of which, a purple beech, is among the tallest and largest in New England.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE XXI.--The Rogers House, Peabody, Ma.s.s.]

The avenue which starts between stone gate-posts shows a wide gravelled road lined on either side by magnificent trees, many of which were planted at the time of the house building. At the left, standing by itself, is a wonderful oak, notable for its symmetry and its height. It is from this tree that the house derives its name "Oak Hill." The grounds at the rear of the house show a garden that covers three acres, the garden proper being geometrically laid out with a fountain in the center and a sun-dial at the end. Back of it all are arches of woodbine that make a most effective setting for the floral display, while catalpa trees, weeping mulberry, and other varieties are found scattered through the estate.

At the left one comes upon the most wonderful feature of the place. It is a large lotus pond, where during the season are found many varieties of the Egyptian lotus, there being sometimes one hundred of these marvellous blossoms open at once. Just back of the house is a lily pond, which is laid out in a decorative manner. It shows many varieties, including the Cape Cod lily, the blue, the pink, and the white.

The grounds cover an area of two hundred acres, which are laid out at the front and sides in lawns resembling those of England. The rear gives a background of flowers, while beyond sweep to the boundary line extensive grain fields and vegetable gardens. Entrance to the grounds is through carved gateways, the boundary being a well built wall of stone.

In the early days these grounds belonged to Nathaniel West, who was a very noted merchant and the owner of the s.h.i.+p _Minerva_, the first of the Salem vessels that circ.u.mnavigated the globe. Nathan West married Elizabeth Derby, one of the daughters of Elias Hasket Derby, familiarly known as King Derby and who was one of the three merchant princes that led the commerce in Salem. The house, which at the time of its building was one of the most notable ever erected, was designed by a celebrated English architect and is a type of the Adams period. Originally it was much larger than it is now, for at the death of Mrs. West two portions of the house were detached and moved away to meet present-day requirements. The parts taken were so large that one of them to-day forms a private residence on Chestnut Street in Salem.

The Rogers house is colonial in design. It is two stories in height and was built at the time when wood-carving had reached the highest degree of excellence in the historic city by the sea, and when skilled workmen had been attracted there from every part of the land. Doubtless many of them were employed by Samuel McIntire on this house which contains some of his most wonderful work. These men, with the native ingenuity and wonderful skill in the handling of tools, took great pains to execute in wood what many of the master architects across the sea were doing in stone, more particularly as regards decorative molding. In studying the work on this house, one cannot too carefully take into consideration the tools which these men had to use, and the precision with which the fine scale detail is carefully thought out, making these workmen compare favorably with those of to-day.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE XXII.--Doorway, Rogers House.]

The house where so much fine woodwork is shown is painted white, with green blinds, and is an exceptionally good example of what the century-old architecture in and around Salem stands for, possessing character, dignity, and grace such as is seldom found. This is particularly exemplified in the front doorway, the porch being perfectly balanced, its well proportioned fanlights and sidelights giving it rare dignity and refinement. Ornamentation in the balcony shows McIntire's work in baskets of flowers picturesquely carved, while the steps are flanked with marble vases filled with geraniums, the bright blossoms giving just the right touch of color to bring out the white of the house. The flooring of the porch is tiled, and the hallway is most imposing, the stairway being lined with pictures of the old masters, including Van d.y.k.es, and Salvator Rosas, Oliver Cromwell proroguing the Long Parliament, Diogenes with his lantern hunting for an honest man, and many others. The dado here is most unusual, being fabric painted red, while the hand-painted landscape decorations show a section of the cla.s.sic Zuber wall-paper.

The front entrance displays on the inside a well planned elliptical arch over the door, with a frieze motif of reeded sections between applied rosettes tied into the cornice, the charming pattern in these sashes being brought about by iron bent against the gla.s.s. In most houses of this period, as in this, the elliptical arch of the fanlight is echoed elsewhere in the house.

The staircase cannot fail to attract notice, with its twisted newel post and bal.u.s.ters and the molded mahogany railing. The box stairs with panelled ends show decorative brackets. It is interesting to note the twisted portion of the three bal.u.s.ters on each stair, each differing, although the tops and bottoms are alike. The newel, hand-carved and turned, is a specially good specimen of its type, and with the bal.u.s.ters, which are also hand-carved and turned, represent a direct development of the s.h.i.+pbuilding industry in their likeness to the rope moldings of the s.h.i.+p cabins, so much used in those days.

In this hallway the door caps are placed above the lintel, showing no supporting pilasters. They represent different designs of McIntire, in some cases showing baskets, in some flowers, and in others garlands.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE XXIII.--Parlor, Rogers House; Drawing Room, Rogers House.]

The entire house is finished in white pine, a wood that is rather rare to-day but which shows lasting qualities. This is particularly noticeable in the drawing-room, which lies at the right of the hallway.

Over the fireplace is a wonderful old painting representing Sat.u.r.day Night. This is almost priceless in value, and shows a European peasant scene where little children are gathered around their grandmother for a good night parting.

The woodwork of this room is painted a soft brown, the carving on the mantelpiece showing Neptune with sheaves of wheat, and the whole is supported by Ionic columns. The center of the room at the rear is arched, showing wonderful carving, molded pilasters giving an effect that is fine and distinctive. Here we find, as through all the house, the marked individuality of the Adams period.

Inside this arch is a background of rich, dark red leather, on which are fastened wonderful old plates, many of them brought over by the ancestors of the owner, and without duplicates in this country. These plates are arranged to form a most artistic archway. Most of the prints on the wall are from Sir Joshua Reynolds' paintings. Upon the chimneypieces, not only in this room but also in the several others, it would seem as if McIntire had put his best work. They appear to stand out with exceptional grace and dignity, with charm of line and proportion. Here we find applied work of the most delicate nature and hand-carving that is exquisite in detail, adorning not only the moldings of cornice or frieze, but re-echoed in the pilasters of the over-mantel.

The architrave of the mantelboard proper and its frieze, the capitals of the colonnettes, the edge of the shelf, and the molding that surrounds the panel over the chimney-breast, are masterpieces in bas-relief. The architectural treatment in this room convinces one of the great possibilities that lie in the white wood finish and how appropriate it is as a background for the rare pieces of old furniture that were used in our forefathers' day.

The living-room on the opposite side of the hall furnishes a most satisfactory tone for mahogany furniture in its white wood finish, there being a somber richness in the combination of the mahogany and white that is most harmonious. For instances of that, we have only to go back to our great-grandfathers' time, for a white finish was a popular fad in colonial days.

Over the mantel in this room is "Sunday Morning," a choice picture that is worthy of its setting. The casings of doorways which are often elaborated by the addition of a beautiful cornice and frieze, are further examples of McIntire's wonderful skill. Sometimes the cornice includes wonderful hand-carved molding showing between the dentiles fine spears which are supported by pilasters on each side. There are dainty grapevines and superbly modelled fruit baskets, while the door-cap frieze often shows dainty festoons and straight hanging garlands, with rosettes between. In the pilasters we find carved eagles and fruit-filled urns.

While most of these decorations are carved in wood, some of them are made in French putty and applied to the surface of the wood with glue.

This idea is being carried out to-day by our leading decorators.

The morning-room is at the rear of the living-room, a large, handsome apartment opening on to the wide veranda, which is a feature of one side and approached by broad steps. The dining-room leads off the morning-room and is finished in English oak. The entire house, more especially in its interior decoration, is considered by architects all over the country to be one of the finest examples of colonial architecture that was built during the period of Salem's prosperity.

The furniture follows also the same period. Rarely in any private home does one find such a gathering of rare pieces of the three masters: Hepplewhite, Sheraton, and Chippendale. Most of these pieces, in fact practically all, are heirlooms which have descended directly from generation to generation, for this family has the distinction of being one of the oldest connected with Salem's early history.

It is fitting that McIntire should have put his best work into a house like this, where one finds no plain s.p.a.ces, no wide panels without decoration, and no simple pilasters, for there is a dignity and a charm both in exterior and interior bespeaking not only wealth but good taste.

While the house does not contain as much old-time paper as do many of the residences of that day, yet the pieces that are shown are exceptional and comprise subjects such as one can seldom find. It is refres.h.i.+ng to find such a house as this, where great taste has been shown in the selection of furnis.h.i.+ngs, and where there is so much harmony in surroundings.

CHAPTER VI

THE COLONEL JEREMIAH LEE HOUSE

Of the many noted colonial houses found in New England, one of the most distinguished is the Colonel Jeremiah Lee house situated on Was.h.i.+ngton Street, in the picturesque old town of Marblehead, Ma.s.sachusetts. The quaintness of Marblehead, situated on a rocky peninsula, is world renowned; and its name heads the list of patriotic towns in New England, for from its rugged sh.o.r.es went forth a larger majority of soldiers than from any other place of its size in our country.