From the street, the shingled cottage doesn’t look very different than it would have some 200 years ago when it was first built. But open the front door and step into the foyer and you’re clearly in the 21st century where rooms can be defined by frameless glass walls and staircases can appear to float. Pass out the back through an 8-foot-long glass passageway into a living room and kitchen area with a glass wall overlooking a pool and courtyard and 200 years of time travel is complete.
Architect Robert Gurney kept the original exterior true to form and footprint to satisfy the town historian. The old home was jacked up from its foundation, fortified, and made level and plumb before setting it back down and dividing it into a foyer and bedrooms.
To give the owner the new space he wanted, Gurney added four more buildings and a swimming pool at the back of the home, blending the old and new by using some of the same materials, cedar shingles and brick, and warming up the glass and marble-filled contemporary interior spaces with warm mahogany walls.
