Hendricks Churchill: Dutchess County  Historic Farmhouse

That is what the Connecticut-based architecture and interior design firm Hendricks Churchill did when it was commissioned to do a gut renovation of a nearly 270-year-old farmhouse in Dutchess County in New York’s Hudson Valley.

“You can’t deny the farmhouse’s sense of history,” says firm co-founder Heide Hendricks. “It’s pretty grand, but it’s not apparent from the outside. It feels like a house for an important person, and this is expressed in the fine details. This was the backdrop for our story: an old-world feeling at a countryside estate that will be just as elegant today as it was 270 years ago.”

The estate, set among 200 acres of rolling hills, also has an aviary, a main barn, a carriage house, and numerous follies and utility barns.

The matriarch of the family wanted to make the 7,900-square-foot main house, which was built in 1758 and acquired an addition in 1910, more comfortable for her three grown children and their young families who use it as a second home.

Many of the original details—the Dutch doors at the ends of the center hall and the patinaed pine flooring—offered clues to the home’s history. And Hendricks Churchill uncovered much more, such as the beams under the library ceiling that the team opted to keep exposed as a historic decorative element that elevates the space.

“At times this project was more of an archaeological exercise than a construction project,” says Hendricks. “When removing damaged plaster, we exposed interior doors that had been covered over during previous alterations. We also exposed a few ceilings that had been framed over to conceal plumbing when bathrooms were added above.”

The firm’s team worked with and around existing conditions when installing new mechanical systems and used existing interior millwork to develop new pieces based on its proportions and details.

The basement is a prime example of Hendricks Churchill’s new-old approach. The section that was added in 1910 was reclaimed for service needs: It now houses a laundry, a pantry, a mudroom, a washroom, and additional storage.

It also became the home of the so-called Negroni Room, which is below the original library and serves as a speakeasy of sorts, where guests have drinks before and after dinner. Its rustic setting—there is a stone foundation and exposed timbers—fast forwards the past to the present.

Its stained-glass window, added by Hendricks Churchill, brings “a bit of mystery and furthers the sense of history,” Hendricks says.

The farmhouse’s footprint was left largely intact, although walls were razed, ceilings raised, and several windows added to create a kitchen large enough to seat a dozen.

The main-level public spaces, notably the living room, carry on tradition in a formal manner, while each of the six bedrooms is furnished to suit the personality of the occupants. Thus, the primary and main-level guest suites are steeped in tradition, and the four remaining ones reflect the youth of their inhabitants.

The furnishings—fine antiques mixed with vintage and contemporary pieces—were acquired at estate sales, auctions, and local shops. They are augmented by built-ins such as the floor-to-ceiling book shelves in the new library.

“We wanted a feel of history in the walls,” Hendricks says, adding that every element had to be durable enough to pass the test of constant use. “And we wanted things to look like they had been passed from one generation to the next.”

Throughout the house, color recedes into the background, allowing the architecture to dominate, creating what Hendricks calls a “harmonious flow that allows you to move from room to room without jarring the senses.”

The main exceptions are the parlor, which is painted in a rich yet staid pink, and the living room, whose walls are upholstered in a sky-blue cotton-batting linen that absorbs sound and imbues the space with a subtle softness.

“This was a dream project,” Hendricks says. “Any challenge didn’t feel like one because it was a pleasure to work on such a beautiful house. It’s one of the favorites of my career.” TB