Vintage Refresh

Thanks to a thoughtful renovation, timeless interior design, and a smattering of family heirlooms, a circa 1870s New England farmhouse has never looked better.

Sometimes, with age comes wisdom; other times, it brings a series of questionable facelifts. The Josiah Nickerson House, a circa 1870s Greek Revival located in Chatham, Massachusetts, came with both—plenty of old-world charm and a series of confusing additions. So when a Washington, D.C., couple snapped up the home a few years ago, they looked to Boston architect Patrick Ahearn to remove the grim and restore the great. “It was basically a tenement—there were all these multigenerational additions that compromised its character,” Ahearn says. “We had to get past all that and reimagine the farmhouse for a family of four.”

Chatham Cottage Revival was featured in Better Homes & Gardens Cottage Style, Spring Summer 2021 issue.

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