In the 1930s, avid 17th- and early-18th-century Americana collectors Miriam and George Maurice Morris were on a mission to own an authentic Colonial House. Since the couple lived in Washington D.C. – which was founded in 1790 (after the Colonial Period) – they decided to scour the East Coast for a suitable landmark that could be relocated. They found the Lindens, a 1750s Georgian masterpiece at risk for demolition in Danvers, Massachusetts. The Morrises purchased the three-story house for about $13,000 (approximately $227,000 today), and under the supervision of Walter Macomber, Colonial Williamsburg’s first resident architect, the frame structure was dismantled nail by nail and carted to Washington on six railroad freight cars to be rebuilt in the posh Kalorama neighborhood.
The Morrises created a house museum concealing radios and telephones with fake book spines and antique boxes. Bathrooms were tucked into closets once used for powdering wigs. Over the next 45 years, the home welcomed approximately 50,000 guests with Miriam wearing a damask hoopskirt and serving refreshments made from Colonial recipes. Following her death in 1982, Christie’s auctioned all of the couple’s prized antiques. The present owner (who purchased the Lindens from subsequent owners) hired designer Mariette Himes Gomez to preserve the integrity of the home, but to make it feel like a home and not a museum. Gomez took particular care to let the architectural beauty of the house shine, noting that the furnishings needed to defer to the elegant woodwork. “You want people to notice all that, not some decorator’s one-upmanship,” she said via Architectural Digest.
Installed in the 1860s, three complete sets of French scenic wallpapers by Dufour et Leroy survived the relocation. Artisans steamed them off the two-story stair hall and rehung them once the Lindens reached D.C.
A lantern chandelier from Nesle hangs in the pine-floored entrance hall; framing the doorway is Dufour et Leroy’s famous Les Paysages de Télémaque dans l’île de Calypso.
The pilastered living room has a classic, comfortable array of modern upholstery and Georgian and Charles X antiques; the formal curtains and valances are trimmed with a fringe by Samuel & Sons, and the Sultanabad carpet is from Doris Leslie Blau.
In the dining room, a circa-1880 George III-style chandelier from Kentshire is suspended above an antique double-pedestal table from the Shop; the Georgian chairs are a mix of antiques and reproductions, and the curtain fabric is by Rose Cumming.
The kitchen features light fixtures by Howard Kaplan Designs, a Sub-Zero refrigerator, and Windsor chairs by Woodard & Greenstein.
Dominated by paneling painted in a Donald Kaufman hue that recalls Wedgwood drabware, the library’s neutral color scheme is warmed by the ruddy tones of a carpet from Doris Leslie Blau and Fortuny-fabric pillows from David Duncan.
This room features a custom-made J. Paul bed upholstered in a Zimmer + Rohde fabric.
Another bedroom is highlighted by valances made of a Kravet silk, a candlestick lamp from John Rosselli & Assoc., a club chair covered in a Sahco fabric, and a rug by Beauvais Carpets; the circa-1875 Pennsylvania quilt is from Woodard & Greenstein.
A circa-1800 English linen press is a focal point of the master bedroom; the chair and ottoman by Anthony Lawrence-Belfair are clad in a Nancy Corzine fabric, the floor lamp is by Hinson & Co., and the Amritsar carpet is from Doris Leslie Blau.
Engaged Corinthian columns distinguish the main façade of the Lindens, a 1754 Georgian residence in Washington, D.C., that was redecorated by Gomez Assoc.
This article originally appeared in the February 2014 issue of Architectural Digest. Please click here to read more of this fascinating story. Has anyone ever had experience in moving a house? What a wonderful way to prevent demolition!
Sweet Home Alabama: A 19th Century Restoration
A Neel Reid Historic Home in Atlanta Restored
An 18th Century Seaside Cottage Saved from the Wrecking Ball
A Graciously Restored 19th Century Colonial Revival
Andrea, I just wanted to tell you that this is my absolute favorite blog! I look forward to each and every one. Thanks for all that you do!
Dear Mary,
Thank you so much for your kind words and for reading my blog! That makes me so happy to hear. 🙂
All the best,
Andrea
The Glam Pad
So nice that the decorator respected the house, and didn’t try to impose her will upon it, as many designers are wont to do. Would love to have seen old photos of it when the Morrises had it. Very beautiful place.
Thank you for your posts. I live in an English Victorian Rectory but adore the American homes which I see in your blog. I am slowly incorporating glimpses of American style over here. I dream of a holiday home in Connecticut!!
Thank you
Susan
Absolutely beautiful…. and amazing the first owners were able to relocate
the original wall coverings. They are a work art to say the least.
Your blog is always a pleasure to read.
Many thanks and best regards,
Daryl
Beautiful post. I appreciate the designer’s restraint and appreciation for the house.
The Lindens appeared in an old book I inherited from my mother, 100 Most Beautiful Rooms in America. It’s only two pages, and the only thing that looks significantly different is the bedroom (it’s in black and white). I have scanned the two pages onto Pinterest if you want to take a look.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/99501473003999294/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/99501473003999300#
Hi Elise,
Oh my goodness, thank you so much for sharing this! I have this book too (isn’t it good?) but I did not make the connection. So fascinating to see!!
Xx,
Andrea
The Glam Pad
Beautiful house! Great AD and TGP coverage!
The mother of my client in W-S had a similar house dismanted in South Carolina and brought to NC and re- built!
Hello! Fantastic and beautiful home; very well done, thank you for sharing! Do you have any information on the average height of the ceilings? I’m estimating 12′ – 13′ based on the bookshelves for the first floor and maybe closer to 12′ for the second floor… Thanks!