An American Story
About twenty miles from my studio in Princeton, New Jersey, sits a timber frame farmhouse that predates the American Revolution by fifty years. Carved from rubblestone, mud, and walnut trees, the house was built by European settlers who had escaped tyranny in pursuit of religious and personal freedom. The structure appears on an 18th-century map, surrounded by miles of Indian trails, a hardscrabble witness to the birth of the nation and a home to generations of farmers, right to this day.
The current owner, who was born and raised in the house, hired us to rethink the interior for modern living in a way that would honor the home’s historic integrity and authenticity. Collaborating with Lasley Brahaney Architecture & Construction, we designed a small addition that ties seamlessly with the original structure, creating a breakfast nook that features floors of Pennsylvania black slate, quarried nearby; and open shelves instead of cabinets, just like the settlers would have had to stack their crockery.
The client now lives here with his children, surrounded by pigs and chickens that roam free on sixty acres. Like generations before him, he farms the land but with a modern twist: the crop of choice is cannabis.
Katie
Photography by Pam Connolly
