USA Historic Preservation

Godfrey House 

Photographs and Drawings 

This page is dedicated to the physical investigation of the structural elements and architectural details of the house, which became possible during the construction works of Spring-Summer, 2003.  The historical research was included in the Preservation Plan and Feasibility Study prepared by the Westfield Architects & Preservation Consultants in April 2000 and is not the goal of the present work.

The scope of construction work included structural reinforcing, mechanical, plumbing and electrical renovation, accessibility adaptation and required partial removing of plaster and creating new openings in the existing structures.  This work gave us an opportunity to see in depth the original structural elements and finishes and provides more precise dating for some of them. However, this research cannot be considered a comprehensive one due to the limited construction budget.  In the future, at possibly better financial situation, the investigation shall continue.  Current report can serve as a base for the future work, which will undoubtedly update existing and discover new historical details in the house.

All the construction attributed to the Victorian age is grouped in one time period. The same applies to the construction and various minor renovations of the 20^th c.  Our investigation concentrated mainly on two original time periods of the building. Better understanding and dating of the later architectural history of the house is one of the tasks of the future research.

At the present time we have very limited information on the space organization and architectural details of the very original building.  It is definitely known that the original structure was one story, four rooms framed house with the basement and was built approximately at the end of the 18^th – beginning of the 19^th cc.   We do not have certain knowledge of the location, sizes and shapes of the doors, windows and stairs to the basement or to the original attic.  Discovering them is one of the main goals of the future research.

Much more information we have about the second construction period, which is dated by 1820s. During that time period the second floor was added and the first floor undergone multiple alterations.  The available data allows reconstruct the house for that time period with about 60% accuracy.  It is reasonable to estimate that additional investigation will find much more architectural elements attributed to the 1820s and the possible graphical reconstruction for that time period can be approached up to 90%.  However, the stylistic restoration of the General Godfrey House is not desirable and not recommended.  The later additions are part of the entire house and present unconditional historical and architectural value.

Igor Kiselev, F.N.A.

07.27.2003

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