Tag: house

Octagonal Houses Were A Fad

Around 1850! Who knew?

The words Hendricks House on the historical marker caught my eye as I was a passenger in the back seat. We were at the New York Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck a couple of weeks ago and staying in Red Hook where this landmark is located. It’s the town’s Public Library.

Built in 1865. Randi pulled over so I could capture these pics.

“The Hendricks House is a rare surviving example of the octagonal concrete form of house construction popularized in the mid-19th century by phrenologist and author Orson Squire Fowler, whose book A Home for All (1850, 1854) launched a nationwide fad for octagonal buildings. Between 1847 and 1856, Fowler built his own octagonal concrete house in nearby Fishkill, which may have provided inspiration for local builders in Dutchess County”

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Built in 1900 But Looking Brand New

People at Work. Hard work.

NIcholas Karam leads the team at Karam Restoration of Natrona Heights. They can definitely take pride in their excellent work.

You can see from the photo below how  bright and clean looking the brick is now that it’s been restored and new mortar has been put in. They are good at Brick Pointing for sure.

They would arrive before the sun was up and worked in cold temperatures, long dark days.

Today they came and took all the equipment and cleaned up the place. Rinsed the brick again.   It’s a pleasure to pull up to the house and see it looking rejuvenated.  Plus the porch roof won’t fall down from the missing mortar in the columns. I was thinking the house was built in 1920 but went and looked again and it says 1900.

(Now if only my carpenter would finish the wood that needs to be replaced)

Thanks to Nick and the team for a job well done.  See below for the Before and After comparison photographs
Before photo/

Our first photo was four members of the team

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I used to watch the curtain blow in the wind

I used to watch the curtain blow in the wind. Someone left that top right window open.

For years.

Last week I photographed the window with the moving curtain, wishing I’d had time to video it. Red lights don’t last long enough.

Then last night, the window is gone. Steve was driving. I photographed the missing window with the eerie curtain. And I photographed it again tonight as I was driving over the RD Fleming Bridge again and got a quick shot. Just like that, it’s demolished.

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Tuesday Morning This House Will Be Moved Up the Street-Guest Blog

Guest blog today by my friend River Watcher on Neville Island.

Thanks Deb for sending these pictures today.

Their whole neighborhood is planning to come out and watch this entire house be moved to the waiting lot up the street. The foundation will be dug AFTER the House is moved. My plan is to go document the actual moving of the house on Tuesday morning.

I’m amazed this can be done. When Mark was little in 1978 we watched a house be moved down the street in Philadelphia.

ready to roll

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Wing Chair Garden

After breakfast with my friend Donna, we saw this pink chair in the front garden.

I shot it through the windshield.  We were stopped at the end of the alley where it was time to turn into the street.

The wing chair didn’t look as if it was put out for the trash?

Wing Chair Garden

A bit of reflection in the street puddle.

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