The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
A 200-year-old gem
Home in Saybrook gets more than a face-lift as historical restoration brings together local designers and craftsmen
OLD SAYBROOK >> When Barbara and Wayne Harms made the decision to buy The George Pratt House, circa 1813, overlooking the entrance to North Cove, the Connecticut River, Saybrook Fort and Long Island Sound, they not only purchased a home, but a piece of history too.
Once a center for coastal trade and for trans-shipment from river boats to coastal ships, this home’s grounds and surrounding shores once housed general stores and wharves in the 1700-1800s. The Pratt and Hart General Store foundations, along with a second foundation, can still be seen down the bank from the property. When a previous dwelling burned (lore suggests by the British during the War of 1812), George Pratt, Justice of the Peace and House member, built what is today the Harms’ home.
At 203 years of age, this 3,240-square-foot classic Federal style home with nine fireplaces has been undergoing a restoration, both inside and the grounds outside, by a host of local designers and craftsmen who came together to preserve its historic integrity while embracing the 21st cen-
tury. It didn’t take long for architect Denise Von Dassel of KV Designs; Tony Brodeur and Dave Martel of North Cove Construction; Chantal Lawrence of Total Design Source and Karl Kaufmann Jr. of Kaufmann Masonry to bring all of the possibilities to life in this riverside gem.
All based in Old Saybrook, except for Ivoryton-based Kaufmann, these professionals had never worked together before. “Our realtor recommended Denise and we had already seen a lot of her work when house hunting,” said Barbara Harms. “Tony and Dave worked on our boat house at our other home and we forged an immediate relationship with Chantal and Karl when they came on board.”
With the home’s wiring and plumbing overhauled, heating updated, and air conditioning added, Brodeur said they reinforced where they could, especially in the front living area. “We saved as much of the original horse-hair laced plaster over accordian lath as possible and replastered rather than use sheetrock to keep with the period of the home,” he noted. “The floors are original ‘vertical quarter sawn heart pine,’ which is very rare. Only a select few floorboards can be cut from a tree to create this type of lumber. This floorboard still exists in two of the four bedrooms upstairs.”
A 1960s renovation, which moved a center hall stairway to its present position by the dining room, created this large living area. The Harms use one side as a parlor and the other for music — soon to be a haven for their family piano. “We uncovered a ninth fireplace in the music room that was previously used as the flue for the basement heating system,” noted Martel. “Karl got it working again and we were able to replicate the mantel to the one on the other side of the room. He not only did all of the stonework on the grounds, but all of the fireplace restoration too.” Functional and presentable, the new fireplace mantel is perfectly symmetric to the other. Trim work was reproduced to match the rest of the original work in the room.
Above the original front door, which opens out to the porch overlooking the river and Sound, is a semicircular fanlight window — a hallmark of Federal architecture. A new window was made locally to resemble what might have been there.
An arched doorway, also distinctly Federal, was created by Lawrence as a transition between the living and dining rooms. Brought in to offer a fresh perspective on the renovation, “Chantal knew exactly what needed to be done,” noted Von Dassel. Lawrence created hidden storage in the cased archway and her detailed interior finishing is exemplified in the millwork in the living area and builtins in the study . “I took traditional elements with an approach that makes them feel right for today,” said Lawrence.
During the renovation process, the chimney foundation in the basement indicated that the original kitchen was most likely housed where the dining room now sits. The fireplace between the parlor and dining room was once larger and home to the original cooking fireplace and baking oven. “Underneath plaster, we discovered several burned areas in the ceiling joists and roof beam above the fireplace from a past fire,” said Brodeur. “We replaced the beam along with the chestnut ceiling rafters for structural integrity.”
“You never know what’s going to be underneath,” noted Martel. “When we removed red quarry tile and layers of flooring in the dining room, we came upon the original red pine floor. We refinished it, but it was already in good condition.” Floorboards were patched in the area and small 1-by-6 inch tiles made by the American Encaustic Tiling Company in the mid to late 1800s were discovered under a newer hearth and salvaged.
A reverence for the past did not keep the homeowners and designers from completely updating the kitchen. Added in the early to mid1800s and having undergone many prior renovations, it was brought down to the studs. “We needed to strengthen the foundation and replace many structural elements,” said Brodeur. “The chestnut flooring was reinstalled and patched where necessary. A countertop and mantel were made from the chestnut dining room ceiling rafters.”
“It was challenging to create a functioning kitchen layout around the existing fireplace in the middle of the space,” said Von Dassel. “However, it ended up working to our advantage. We created ‘stations’ for ample workspace and a lot of storage, a couple of cozy sitting areas, and added a new large boxed bay with a large picture window for gorgeous views of the river and Baldwin Bridge beyond.”
“There was poor heat in the kitchen and no heat in the mudroom before — just a dirt floor underneath,” said Brodeur. “The mudroom didn’t have ridge beams or a foundation. It was poorly cobbled together — so weak structurally that we had to rebuild it completely from the ground up.” Designed with Barbara’s love for gardening in mind, the mudroom serves multi-purposes from coming in muddy from the outdoors to TV watching and housing guests.
Between the mudroom and the kitchen, a small bathroom was added behind the fireplace. Its door is one of 20 that Wayne Harms stripped of eight layers of paint and reused. Most were repainted, but some, like the bathroom door, show the original grain and milk paint. Barbara Harms repainted many of the original door fixtures too. “They were both hands on and took active roles in the entire design process,” noted Von Dassel. “That’s always my goal.”
This impeccably restored home was “made to last another 200 years,” said Wayne Harms. Completed in September after about 15 months of renovation, work continues on the grounds outside. After removing a tennis court, the slope to the river has been restored and will soon be home to native grasses and other plants. “We wanted to respect what has been here for years,” said Barbara Harms. A 100+ year old American elm tree — one of nine of its kind in Old Saybrook — stands a majestic watch as living proof of this property’s deep roots and storied past.