by John Griffin
he heyday of
the Colonial Revival style in America was the 1920s and '30s. But the mining
of our architectural origins was not confined to just English Colonial examples
like last week's Hot Property. The Mission Style, also popular, was an adaptation
of the Spanish Colonial architecture of the Southwest. The Dutch Colonial,
another revival variant, took as its model the residences of the early 17th-century
New World colonists from the Netherlands. Most of their settlements were
confined to the Hudson River Valley from Amsterdam at its mouth as far north
as Albany. Their influence in this country waned as the English expanded,
so that by 1664, after only 50 years of existance, New Amsterdam became
New York.
The
simplest sign of a Dutch Colonial Revival home is the gambrel roof. Most
such houses were built suburbanly and the roof line ran parallel to the
street, which was also true of the rural Dutch Colonist's homes. But in
urban situations the Dutch turned the roof line sideways, presenting the
narrow end of the house to the street to save on street frontage. All of
the original urban examples were on the southern tip of Manhattan Island
in an area now called Wall Street, named for the protective stockade built
by the Dutch.
Just as the thrifty Dutch turned their houses sideways in the city to save precious land, they developed the gambrel roof to get the maximum square footage out of a house since the second floor under the roof was nearly as large as the first. This week's house on the southern edge of Central Gardens is an excellent example of Dutch dexterity with both its gambrel roof line and its, less common, siding with the gable end towards the street.
The current owners have been in residence 20 years and in an equally canny manner have renovated this residence top to bottom, inside and out. The exterior wood shingles in the gable and the siding below have all been replaced. Windows also are new and here insulated glass casements were used. The front door and its distinctive sidelights are original. However, the transom was regretably removed and lost in an earlier renovation by a previous owner who lowered all the ceilings on the ground floor and duplexed the house.
Much has been done in the last 20 years to reverse the previous unsympathetic renovation. Ceilings were returned to their 10-foot height, the staircase was reopened to unite the two floors, and the oak floors on the ground floor were refinished. A two-story addition across the rear provided space to expand the kitchen downstairs and room to add a master bath up. The new kitchen has oak cabinets and solid oak countertops. The new ceramic tile floor leads out through French doors on the rear to a deck beyond. Inside, the walls between kitchen and dining were removed, and considering the large cased opening that adjoins these areas to the living room, it functions more like one grand keeping room.
Upstairs, the large front bedroom was filled with lots of built-in cabinetry both for storage and work space. A generous linen closet was created in the hall and the original bath updated. The master bedroom had a full wall of closet and built-in drawers added. The new master bath has a long vanity with lots of storage, a spa tub setting in a bay window overlooking the backyard, and a separate shower.
During this ongoing 20-year renovation the current
owners have insulated ceilings, walls, and even the floor. New wiring, plumbing,
mechanical and security systems were installed. It's now as efficient a
house on the interior as its siding and roof framing were originally, and
since everybody from the builders to the current owners contributed their
share, it remains an example to us all of the value of "going Dutch."
781 Roland Street
Approximately 1,700 square feet
2 bdrms, 2.5 baths, $117,000
Realtor: Real Estate Professionals, 725-0700
Agent: Liz McKinnon, 274-5780