Who Stole Edgewood Cottage?

The mystery has prompted a number of phone calls inquiring what is happening, so The Blowing Rock Historical Society wanted to share the current status with readers who missed the explanation in the January 25th story in The Blowing Rocket on the future of Edgewood Cottage.
The cottage has NOT been stolen from the site, though it has visibly disappeared, but as we mentioned in the earlier story, it had to be dismantled and then reconstructed. Why? Years of neglect, water damage and primitive construction methods began to point to many areas in Elliott Daingerfield’s first home and studio which needed to be repaired or brought up to modern building standards and codes affecting fire and safety issues.
When the cottage was moved, it became evident that the major beam holding up the base of the cottage was badly deteriorated. Methods of replacing it were sought, and the most cost effective and most secure method to meet current construction standards was to dismantle the building, replace the entire beam and rebuild on the new foundation. When the cottage was built in 1890, many quick and inexpensive buildings were made in the same “box-board” style, which meant the floor was supported by stone piers and at the four corners of the house were erected corner posts, to which a header and footer were nailed. The vertical pine tongue and groove boards were then nailed to the upper and lower rails, and the seams were covered with chestnut battens. The outside wall was virtually the inside wall, and there was no insulation or wall coverings on the interior, just the reverse side of the exterior boards.
As you can imagine, very few “box board” style houses survived, as the walls caved in without studs to support them. It is a testimony to the builders of Elliott Daingerfield’s cottage that the building survived at all, considering it was a two story structure, with additional weight on the corner posts. These early style homes were built quickly and most commonly in areas where logging was prominent. As a summer home without insulation, the four fireplaces that were formed around one chimney kept Edgewood Cottage warm on chilly days.
When the cottage was moved, the chimney collapsed, and will be rebuilt. All of the bricks have been saved, and Mr. Daingerfield’s early design will be replicated exactly. The exterior structure of the house was taken apart board by board, and carefully stored at the Boone Construction Company’s warehouse, or on-site wrapped in plastic. Much of the siding can be reused and will cover the exterior of the renovated cottage.
Ideally, the Edgewood Cottage Committee would have liked to not have had to take down and rebuild the exterior walls, but the best way to replace the main structural beam was to dismantle the house. We knew early on that studs were a necessity to meet code and provide a safe and stable structure, but we had hoped to put them inside while the walls stood. Disappointingly, this was not possible…too many hard winters, no one caring for the cottage, and other acts of neglect negatively impacted the substructure of the cottage, and the complete dismantling of the cottage was necessary.
As soon as the Department of Insurance in Raleigh approves the next plans, the house is ready to be reassembled with as much of the original wood covering it as is possible. Nothing has changed in the size and look of the cottage, but like the restoration of Colonial Williamsburg’s many historic structures in the 1930’s, we, too, have had to do more adjusting to fix the ravages of time than we originally thought was necessary.
Working closely with the Town of Blowing Rock who gave the Historical Society the custody of the building for the restoration process, we are mindful of the historic importance of preserving Elliott Daingerfield’s first home, to accompany his other two homes and studios, Windwood (a private residence) and Westglow Spa and Resort, which has just recently finished its restoration process. The complete picture of this wonderful artist’s life in Blowing Rock from the purchase of the Edgewood Cottage property in 1889 to his death in 1932 tells a very important historic and artistic story about our village over a forty-three year period as it was developing its status as the place to go for health, beauty, comfort and culture.
We are eager update readers with the Edgewood Cottage restoration plans, so another story will follow shortly with more information. As of now, the Edgewood Cottage Committee is pleased to have all the burdensome details cared for, and looks forward to the Cottage’s reappearance on the site within the next two or three weeks, and then the restoration will move along at an amazingly fast pace. Keep watching!
–Ginny Stevens