Colonial Williamsburg Digital Library

GENERAL NOTES:

The decision of Restoration officials to make Paradise House and its outbuildings an exhibition group modifies the following notes. The only evidence of a stable in the group is an advertisement of sale of the lot and buildings, which mentions a "fine large stable and coach house," also stables and coach houses usually comprised a part of outbuilding groups accompanying substantial residences in Williamsburg of the eighteenth century. Thus no known conclusions from foundations or other wise were available, so that the demands of authenticity made by the decision to make the group an exhibition one had to be answered by the careful adherence to other known, colonial stables and coach houses.

The design comprises two portions - a brick stable part with a wood coach house wing. The brick portion was adapted from the brick stable at the old Tavern at Gloucester Court House, the brick stable at King William Court House and certain details from a brick storehouse at the Henley Estate, near Walkerton, The wood coach house was adapted very closely from a similar edifice on the Annie Catlett place, Port Royal Virginia, and the coach house at [?]

Old material came from following sources and is authentic, eighteenth century made up from the various following sources - but once delivered to the job or the wood working mill, pieces were culled from all the lots for specific uses - thus their geographic identity became lost - tags and chalk marks became effaced.

Brickwork: All exposed brick is eighteenth century brick from source (1) page 2. It is laid up in Flemish bond on outside - English on inside. The joints are as at Main Paradise House, and the mortar is made up to simulate the customary, local type of the eighteenth century by use of burned marl for lime. The marl is removed from the deposits along the banks of the James River - the same source as used by the colonists in this locality in the eighteenth century. Brick not exposed to the eye are common brick of modern manufacture.

Exterior Painting: Exterior doors and shutters painted sample #69-s. Trim and finish are painted a cold water paint similar in effect to whitewash. The cupola is painted with whitelead and oil.

The sample mentioned above is in the record sample files in possession of the architects and is an authentic eighteenth century color used in the vicinity. Ditto for the white.

NORTH ELEVATION.

SHINGLES: Mohawk Asbestos Shingles, Williamsburg Type. Developed specially for the Williamsburg Project to be fireproof yet imitate a weathered wood shingle. Insurance and soning requirements specify roofs to be fireproof. Roof boarding of antique material in stable - new common pine over coach house. A thickness of roofers felt was inserted under the shingles. This was necessary because shingles are other than wood. The sheathing had, therefore, to be tight - with close butt joints. This is in no sense a colonial method of roofing, but was done here because of the kind of shingle employed - nor does it offer a contradiction to a colonial appearance on the exterior. The old material for sheathing over stable was used because the hay loft was to have been exhibition, so rafters were of antique, colonial material and rightly the exposed sheathing had to be likewise. It was taken from source (3) page 2.

DORMER WINDOWS: None.

CUPOLA: Was adapted and simplified from Bremo Barn cupola. This was made of new material to architects details. The wood is heart cypress and southern yellow pine. All sheathing and boarding was rough sawn with hand saw to simulate a rough hand worked texture.

CORNICE: On coach house was adapted very closely from precedent at Port Royal - small barn on Annie Catlett place.

GUTTER AND LEADER: None.

WALL SURFACE: On stable of brick from source (1), page 2. See notes on brickwork, page 2. At points on the surface, headers were omitted 4" deep to simulate their feature so customary in colonial brick outbuildings. Precedent - 1. Carter's Grove flanking buildings, 2. Shirley barn, 3. Stratford barn.

On Coach House flush boards, forming a smooth surface about the two entrance doors. This is of antique material from source (3), page 2.

Cupola - see same, page 3.

POROH: None.

FRONT DOOR: Stable door #1, random width boards with capped, beaded joints on Z battens.. Simple, heavy frame. Adapted from old Tavern Stable, Gloucester Court House. Made of old material from sources (2) and (3), page 2. Ditto for hay-loft door above it. Flat arch of headers on edge to head brick openings is adapted from precedent at 1. Gloucester Court House Tavern Stable, 2. brick outbuilding at Henley Estate, near Walkerton.

Coach house doors #3 and #4 - double leaf doors of vertical, random width boards, capped, headed joints on Z battens. These are of old material from sources (2) and (3), page 2. Frames are cased around stud posts as at Port Royal barn. The doors are adapted from the Gloucester Court House Tavern Stable and from Mt. Airy Stable, also from The treatment of wall surface and frame with bead as at Port Royal barn. A post is driven into the ground at [illegible] of doors #3 and #4 to serve as a hooking base as well as a bottom stop for swing.

Door #1 is wide and high to accommodate the passage of horses - the dimensions being as at Gloucester Court House, Tavern Stable. Frames and aills of these openings in brick walls are joined by mortise tenon and pegs. The wide frames conceal, at the heads of openings, steel angles. These are inserted as a modern safety measure to prevent failure of brickwork above them.

The method of closing door against frame, rather than rebating frame to receive it is as at Gloucester Court House Tavern Stable and is also mentioned in eighteenth century stable specifications in possession of Department 5 of Research and Records.

WINDOWS: None.

SHUTTERS: None.

BASEMENT WALL: No basement under stable portion. Foundation wall under coach house high enough to free siding from contact of earth at grade and is a 9" thick wall in English bond. It is broken by the coach doors # and #4. The wall is of antique brick culled from source (1), page 2.

CHINNEIS: None.

BARGE BOARDS (END BOARDS) CORNER BOARDS: On Stable - barge boards of old material from source (3) and (4), page 2. They are beaded and taper towards peak as at brick outbuilding, Renley Estate, near Walkerton. The cornice stops are flush with these and are an adaptation from the above precedent.

Coach house - corner boards of old material, copied from precedent at Port Royal Barn.

GENERAL NOTES:

EAST ELEVATION.

SHINGLES: See North Elevation.

DORMER WINDOWS: None. For Cupola, see page 3.

CORNICE: On Stable - of a/slightly different type than on Coach House to indicate a different building. It is made of new material - heart cypress - run by modern milling methods to detail. Precedent for the beaded facia is the Annie Catlett Barn, Port Royal. The bed mould is adapted from Main Paradise House. The cyma is practically typical for wood - mid eighteenth century cornices in this vicinity.

GUTTER AND LEADER: None.

WALL SURFACE: Brick. See North Elevation for Stable. Coach house does not appear on this elevation.

PORCH: None.

FRONT DOOR: None.

WINDOWS: No windows, but narrow, vertical openings appear, splayed on inside. These have direct precedent at 1. Shirley barn, 2. Gloucester Court House Tavern Stable, 3. King William Court House Stable. Of these examples, (2) was followed most closely.

SHUTTERS: None.

BASEMENT WALL: None.

CHIMNEYS: None.

BARGE BOARDS (END BOARDS) CORNER BOARDS: None.

GENERAL NOTES:

SOUTH ELEVATION.

SHINGLES: See North Elevation.

DORMER WINDOWS: None.

CORNICE: Stable - none showing.

Coach House - see North Elevation.

GUTTER AND LEADER: None.

WALL SURFACE: Stable - see North Elevation.

Coach House - random width boards - joints lapped and running horisontally.

All of old material from source (3), page 2. The precedent for such treatment is small barn on Annie Catlett place, Port Royal.

PORCH: None.

FRONT DOOR: None.

WINDOWS: Stable: first floor has opening with infill of simple frame and square crossbars set diagonally and running horisontally, the whole opening having a sheathed shutter with Z battens. This treatment is specifically mentioned in records of Governor's Palace Stable and is further born out by precedent at 1. Stratford barn, 2. Shirley stable and barn, 3. Gloucester Court House Tavern Stable, Bars and frame are made up of new southern yellow pine to detail by modern mill manufacturing. The shutter is of old material from sources (2) and (3), page 2.

On second floor or loft and in gable is a louvred opening - louvres and Trame made new; see note above on frame and crossbars of first floor, windows. Precedent for such treatment: 1. Brandon brick storehouse, 2. louvred openings - Bruton Church, Williamsburg, 3. Port Royal Barn. Both frames and sills are joined with mortise, tenon and pegs. For brick treatment about these openings, see North Elevation; also for steel lintels.

SHUTTERS: See windows.

BASEMENT WALL: None for Stable. For Coach House, see note on North Elevation.

CHIMNEYS: None.

BARGE BOARDS (END BOARDS) CORNER BOARDS: Same as for North Elevation.

GENERAL NOTES:

WEST ELEVATION.

SHINGLES: See North Elevation.

DORMER WINDOWS: None. For Cupola, see North Elevation.

CORNICE: Ditto.

GUTTER AND LEADER: None.

WALL SURFACE: Stable - see North Elevation.

Coach house - see South Elevation. All exposed material on coach house, this elevation, is old and from sources as stated on page 1.

PORCH: None. Overhanging gable on coach house adapted in detail and very closely from Annie Catlett Barn in Port Royal, Virginia.

FRONT DOOR: Stable - door same as for that on North Elevation; window same as for that on South Elevation.

Coach House - door in gable loft or gallery a sheathed, beaded door on double Z battens - sheathing as at Annie Catlett barn, Port Royal, Virginis. Battens as at Gloucester Court House Tavern Stable. Frame and trim, etc. as at Port Royal barn. All of old material from source (3), page 2.

WINDOWS: No windows. Dove-cote openings as at Annie Catlett Barn, Port Royal, Virginia. See note on stable window above under Front Door.

SHUTTERS: For stable window, see under Windows - South Elevation.

BASEMENT WALL: Stable - none.

Coach House - see North Elevation.

CRIMNEYS: None.

BARGE BOARDS (END BOARDS) CORNER BOARDS: Barge boards on coach house as at Annie Catlett Barn, are of old material from sources (2) and (3), page 2. Ditto for corner boards and cornice stop.

None appear on stable, this elevation.

GENERAL NOTES:

GENERAL NOTES:

See page 1 regarding decision to make this building an exhibition structure. The intention was to make the interior exhibition as well as exterior. Thus the whole interior of stable was to be so treated and the space below the loft in Coach House. To accomplish this end, old material was to be used in all parts of these portions of the building which were to be exposed to the eye. The stable was to have its stalls, fodder rack, posts and harness pegs, loft ladder and trap door and access for tossing fodder to the racks in the stalls below. The floor in the stable was to have been brick with a drain gutter flowing out of the area through splayed openings in the exterior brick walls. Upon this basis complete drawings were made, the various details following closely known precedent at 1. Gloucester Court House Tavern Stable, 2. King William Court House Stable, while the floor and gutter were authenticated wall outlets uncovered on the outbuildings and dependencies of the Governor's Palace. The Coach House interior was to have a temped earth floor and exposed framing - all of it being very simple. This was completed as indicated and planned on the drawings, but a decision of the Williamsburg Holding Corporation to complete only those portions of the stable necessary for the structural requirements of the building postponed the insertion of most of the stable equipment until a future date to the time of this writing. In the following notes, the various portions of the interiors completed will be mentioned only.