19th-Century Victorian Marvel Captivates 1.8 Million Online Viewers
From Instagram to "Zillow Gone Wild," a 19th-century Victorian's timeless charm captivates audiences, reflecting its enduring appeal across generations.
The Victorian-style home was constructed in 1867 in New Hartford's Pine Meadow Historic District
| by
How gobsmacked would 19th-century New Hartford industrialist Philip Chapin be, if he were to learn that the Victorian-style home he constructed in 1867 in the town’s Pine Meadow Historic District, would one futuristic day more than a century-and-a-half later be simultaneously viewed by 1.8 million people?
Would he have had the imagination to foresee this virtual conduit to the world called the internet, where images of his five-bedroom, three-bathroom home would be displayed on a sociable subsection known as Instagram, on a specialty real estate part called “Zillow Gone Wild?”
During the country’s Reconstruction era, the local factory captain surely would have been familiar with cameras and photographs. But envisioning a nebulous technological platform that would help raise his home’s profile so much that the $595,000 property was under deposit after only being listed in September, that would have surpassed his comprehension.
The 4,681-square-foot house on two acres has been under contract since Thanksgiving; only the fourth real estate transaction this property has seen in its 156-year-history. Its had few owners and even fewer renovations, and according to listing agent Jessica Travelstead of William Raveis Lifestyle Realty, the fact that this antique is still so true to its original form is what really separates it from the routine housing stock.
“I sell a lot of homes in Litchfield County and there is a plethora of antiques here, and you go into these homes built in 1700s or 1800s and largely they’ve been changed,” said Travelstead. “You’ll still see remnants but most have been changed, taken out fireplaces or mantlepieces or wainscoting and it is hard to pinpoint the original, because they’ve been so massively renovated, not restored.”
The home has undergone restoration but no major renovation, and is therefore still so true to its original form, that even the furniture are period specific antiques.
She stressed that its antiquity is part of what made this house, which has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1977, prime for Instagram coverage.
“The Richards lived there for 100 years (after the Chapins) and didn’t do anything, but (subsequent owners) the Crookes really restored it, fixed all that was broken,” Travelstead continued. “They’d even go to antique sales in New Hartford and buy old furniture that was in a home in New Hartford and they’d restore the furniture, so even furniture was specific period pieces.”
Of course, maintaining a home’s integrity throughout numerous generations comes with its challenges. The Victorian, with all of its Italian Renaissance splendor and original features (including a functioning tin bathtub) is poorly insulated in parts. It still has numerous rooms without heat, and the whole place needs a major paint job. That’s why it sold for such a relatively modest sum, because the new owners will have to invest in continued restoration.
This is still very much the house Chapin built. But who was Chapin?
“The Chapins were one of the foremost Pine Meadows families in the 19th century,” stated local historian Bruce Clouette in 1976 when he petitioned to have the structure designated historic. “Hermon Chapin started in 1828 a factory which made planes and machine-stamped rules. This prospered and was one New Hartford’s largest firms.
“Philip Chapin (1838-1915) tried to continue his father’s success,” Clouette further stated. “Around 1865 he purchased the Kellogg Machine Works and, with additional shop space inherited from his father, formed the Chapin Machinery Company to manufacture machinery, especially knitting machines. At the same time, he married and built this impressive house on the green. Between 1878 and 1880, however, his business failed twice and was bought out by his brother Edward, who had continued the original tool company. Philip left Pine Meadow to start a bolt factory in Cleveland. He later managed an iron company in Johnston, Pennsylvania, but after the flood, moved to Washington, DC, and then Paris.”
The original tin tub is still functional, though behind the window a working shower has been installed.
Chapin lived in the home for about 20 years, but unfortunately his wife died not long after they moved in. It was sold to the Richard family, who stayed there for a century. By the 1970s, the Crookes bought it and lived there until about 10 years ago. Now it’s ready for its next stewards.
So the Chapin family didn’t spend their whole lives in this house, rather, it was just a moment in time. But given how much of its originality has been preserved, that moment in time continues today.
The home sold for $550,000.
Subscribe for free to read this article.
No hidden fees, we promise.
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
From Instagram to "Zillow Gone Wild," a 19th-century Victorian's timeless charm captivates audiences, reflecting its enduring appeal across generations.
How gobsmacked would 19th-century New Hartford industrialist Philip Chapin be, if he were to learn that the Victorian-style home he constructed in 1867 in the town’s Pine Meadow Historic District, would one futuristic day more than a century-and-a-half later be simultaneously viewed by 1.8 million people?
Would he have had the imagination to foresee this virtual conduit to the world called the internet, where images of his five-bedroom, three-bathroom home would be displayed on a sociable subsection known as Instagram, on a specialty real estate part called “Zillow Gone Wild?”
During the country’s Reconstruction era, the local factory captain surely would have been familiar with cameras and photographs. But envisioning a nebulous technological platform that would help raise his home’s profile so much that the $595,000 property was under deposit after only being listed in September, that would have surpassed his comprehension.
The 4,681-square-foot house on two acres has been under contract since Thanksgiving; only the fourth real estate transaction this property has seen in its 156-year-history. Its had few owners and even fewer renovations, and according to listing agent Jessica Travelstead of William Raveis Lifestyle Realty, the fact that this antique is still so true to its original form is what really separates it from the routine housing stock.
“I sell a lot of homes in Litchfield County and there is a plethora of antiques here, and you go into these homes built in 1700s or 1800s and largely they’ve been changed,” said Travelstead. “You’ll still see remnants but most have been changed, taken out fireplaces or mantlepieces or wainscoting and it is hard to pinpoint the original, because they’ve been so massively renovated, not restored.”
The home has undergone restoration but no major renovation, and is therefore still so true to its original form, that even the furniture are period specific antiques.
She stressed that its antiquity is part of what made this house, which has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1977, prime for Instagram coverage.
“The Richards lived there for 100 years (after the Chapins) and didn’t do anything, but (subsequent owners) the Crookes really restored it, fixed all that was broken,” Travelstead continued. “They’d even go to antique sales in New Hartford and buy old furniture that was in a home in New Hartford and they’d restore the furniture, so even furniture was specific period pieces.”
Of course, maintaining a home’s integrity throughout numerous generations comes with its challenges. The Victorian, with all of its Italian Renaissance splendor and original features (including a functioning tin bathtub) is poorly insulated in parts. It still has numerous rooms without heat, and the whole place needs a major paint job. That’s why it sold for such a relatively modest sum, because the new owners will have to invest in continued restoration.
This is still very much the house Chapin built. But who was Chapin?
“The Chapins were one of the foremost Pine Meadows families in the 19th century,” stated local historian Bruce Clouette in 1976 when he petitioned to have the structure designated historic. “Hermon Chapin started in 1828 a factory which made planes and machine-stamped rules. This prospered and was one New Hartford’s largest firms.
“Philip Chapin (1838-1915) tried to continue his father’s success,” Clouette further stated. “Around 1865 he purchased the Kellogg Machine Works and, with additional shop space inherited from his father, formed the Chapin Machinery Company to manufacture machinery, especially knitting machines. At the same time, he married and built this impressive house on the green. Between 1878 and 1880, however, his business failed twice and was bought out by his brother Edward, who had continued the original tool company. Philip left Pine Meadow to start a bolt factory in Cleveland. He later managed an iron company in Johnston, Pennsylvania, but after the flood, moved to Washington, DC, and then Paris.”
The original tin tub is still functional, though behind the window a working shower has been installed.
Chapin lived in the home for about 20 years, but unfortunately his wife died not long after they moved in. It was sold to the Richard family, who stayed there for a century. By the 1970s, the Crookes bought it and lived there until about 10 years ago. Now it’s ready for its next stewards.
So the Chapin family didn’t spend their whole lives in this house, rather, it was just a moment in time. But given how much of its originality has been preserved, that moment in time continues today.
.png)
.png)
.png)
