The 1806 plat of St. Michaels identified three squares, one of which was named “Braddock’s Square, with a design of a thirty six lots arranged around a central public green space of St. Mary’s Square. Today’s feature is located on one of those original streets. The house began its life as a two-bay, two-story, one-room deep structure with a 16×20 footprint. Subsequent alterations made in the 1880’s and again in the 1920’s included the addition of a third bay and a full front porch. The prized gravel driveway is edged in brick to match the Town’s brick sidewalk and the grass area includes a mature tree for shade.
The front porch is a delightful outdoor room aligned with the other front porches along the street that creates a great vanishing perspective. The plaque from the Historic St. Michaels Bay Hundred, Inc., displayed on the front wall of this house, states the date of the construction as 1870 since the house appears on the Lake, Griffing and Stevenson Atlas of 1877.
The exterior color palette of the German shiplap siding, trim, flooring and the front storm door and entry door creates great curb appeal. I especially admired the turned columns and the long arched brackets springing from each column.
At the end of the driveway parking area is a fence to define the private area of the grounds. I admired the arched top arbor entrance that perfectly frames the vista to the shed at the end of the property. Just past the gate, the fence juts out to discretely surround the trash and recycle bins that are close to the curb for pick-up days.
The gate below the arbor opens onto a meandering path of large stone pavers set into gravel that led me to the rear garden. I especially admired the path’s edging of bricks angled into the ground as edging for the gravel. As I walked along the side elevation of the house, the telescoping architecture provided more clues to the house’s history of past additions.
My visit was at midday and when I reached the end of the path, I stood and enjoyed the drop in temperature of this shady, verdant oasis. The delightful private outdoor rooms of the screened porch and adjacent brick terrace reach out to the garden for great indoor-outdoor flow.
I followed the sound of water that led me a pond across from this outbuilding set against the rear property line. The structure may have originally been a boat house and the carriage house addition may have been added in the days of horse powered transport. The interior is finished with a concrete floor, drywall walls and ceilings, plumbing and electricity for myriad uses.
The interior of the shed is partially finished and is a blank slate with myriad uses-artist studio, home office, etc. The owners also commissioned a set of drawings for a guest house that have been approved by the Town for another option.
The front door is detailed with unequal panels with arched top panels. The door opens to reveal the open plan living-dining area with the stair at the side wall opposite the piano. The dropped beam marks the location of the house’s original side wall and the door’s center location creates two areas-one for sitting around the gas fireplace and in this case, a music area. The long windows with Plantation shutters filter daylight into the room across the beautifully restored original narrow plank oak flooring.
When the house was first expanded, the original stairs were demolished and new stairs were built at the side wall to maximize the floor area for furniture arrangements. The unusual stained molding over the fireplace mantel was reclaimed from an old organ. The drop in the ceiling is another historical clue that defines the first addition.
I was intrigued by the framed area of the side wall’s vertical joint between the living and dining rooms where the original exterior wall had been. A previous owner had removed part of the wall finish to reveal the juxtaposition of the wall’s timber construction from both the front 1805-1820 original wall and the major addition in the 1870’s, based upon the historical register documents, the 6/6 windows and the machine hewn wood.
Another reclaimed treasure is the stained oak door from the house next door when it underwent a renovation. I admired how the door has remained unpainted through subsequent owners, all the better to admire the wood, salvaged hinges and hardware a former owner also added. I admired how the shadow cast upon the ceiling above the light fixture creates a pattern similar to rosettes found above pendant lighting in historic houses.
The dining room’s doorway opens into a short hall connecting the kitchen to a full bath with a vintage fixtures of a pedestal lavatory and toilet with an oak wall mounted tank. The shallow corner cabinet is a clever way to provide storage for necessities without sacrificing floor space. Opposite the toilet is an alcove containing a tiled shower.
The “U” shaped kitchen has just the right space between cabinets for opening the doors of the appliances without wasted space. Recessed lighting , light colored cabinetry and upper cabinets that rise to the underside of the ceiling keep this space bright. I admired the backsplash’s diagonal pattern above the veined granite countertops and the stainless steel appliances that break up the lengths of the cabinetry.
The dropped beam defines another wall of the 1920’s renovation and the wide wall opening offers a panoramic view through the adjacent two-story family room to the garden beyond.
As I walked into the two-story family room, I noticed the countertop was deeper than usual to accommodate bar stools. Behind the stools are doors to shallow cabinets for additional long term storage. The quarter circle balcony’s slender white railing disappears into the spatial volume.
The spacious family room has ample room for seating that takes advantage of the landscape views of the side yards and the rear garden area. Sliding doors lead to the screened porch.
The screened porch’s easy care brick laid in a basket weave pattern and the stained beadboard ceiling highlight the white framing of the screened porch. The horizontal rail is set at just the right height to maximize the views of the garden from the seating. The brick continues through the single door to expand into a terrace with both seating and dining areas.
To reach the second floor, I went back to the stair in the living room and admired the simple yet elegant detailing of the pine newel post and the bare treads and risers. The stair ends at a short hall connecting this front corner bedroom, a hall bath and the rear bedroom with its balcony overlooking the family room.
I would choose this spacious room for my primary bedroom for its interior architecture. The exposed wood ceiling rafters float under the pitched ceiling and the accent window in the side gable and three pairs of double unit windows provide ample daylight. I especially admired the cushioned window seat that my cat would claim for her bed.
The window seat wraps slightly around the corner of the room to two walk-in closets. The front closet has a window at the front wall and bespoke millwork with a variety of storage options. The recess in the ceiling frames the access to the attic.
The very large hall bathroom’s design cleverly takes advantage of the offset in the side wall that creates a sloped ceiling over the long shower. The shower’s glass door and glass panel above the tiled wainscot expands the space and the two windows with plantation shutters add daylight. I especially liked the earth toned multicolored polygonal tiled flooring.
The rear bedroom has ample space for sleeping and sitting areas. The built-in millwork contains a TV as well as books and other items. I admired how the beautiful oak armoire is a reminder of storage before closets were added to a bedroom. Opposite the armoire is a large laundry room and I noted the small arched opening at the bottom of the door that must be a cat’s access to its litterbox.
The rhythm of the exposed roof framing floating below the sloped ceiling portion of the room juxtaposed with the flat portion of the room is another clue to the additions to the house. French doors lead to the balcony overlooking the family room.
The balcony is definitely a bonus for a panoramic vista through the upper and lower windows of the family room for bird’s eye views of the rear garden and the Historic District’s houses and landscaping.
This beautifully restored circa-1870 gem nestled into the heart of St. Michaels Historic District combines charming architectural character with modern updates, while preserving original architectural details that were seamlessly integrated by several extensive renovations over many years. These additions created both open plan areas of the living-dining room and the gourmet kitchen-two-story family room with three sides infilled with windows for year round daylight. The house telescopes down from the two-story family room to a one story screened-in porch and finally to a brick patio, for easy indoor-outdoor flow to the lush gardens and the pond.
The bonus of an accessory structure with Town approval for the renovation of the building into a guest house, combined with the main house’s two bedrooms and a bathroom, would provide ample accommodations for family members during holidays or other celebrations. All this, including off-street parking and a move-in ready location in the heart of St. Michaels’ shops, restaurants, Muskrat Park and nearby Rails to Trails-this historic gem is hard to resist!
TTR Sotheby’s International Realty at 410-745-2596 (o), 410- 310-0225 (c), or mpenwell@ttrsir.com. For more pictures and pricing, visit monicapenwell.sothebysrealty.com “Equal Housing Opportunity”.
Photography by Ted Mueller, www.TedMuellerPhotography.com , 443-955-2490
Guest house design by residential designer Suzanne Brigham, www.sbresidentialdesign.com ,410-745-6877
