| Splendor
in the Past, by Terry
E. Cohen
Pocomoke City
In rehabbing the Littleton T. Clarke House, circa 1860, Pamela
and Walter Eskiewicz have been restoring more than a historic
house. they have reclaimed a piece of the region's history,
provided guests a home away from home and filled themselves a cup of
the spirituality and community for which they brought their family
to the Eastern Shore. All this on a budget, recycling and
reusing every possible material and fixture, and doing most of the
work themselves.
The history and architecture of the
home are splendid stories unto themselves. According to Paul
Touart, an area architectural historian and author who helped the
Eskiewiczes place the home in the national Register of Historic
Places, the house is an example of the "Second Empire"
style, a revival style popular in the United States from about 1850
- 1880.
Built by a well-to-do merchant, the
structure features the mixed slopes and curves of a mansard roof and
heavily bracketed eaves.
Despite its magnificence, the home was
in neglect when the Eskiewiczes purchase it in mid-1992. So
pathetic was its appearance that Pamela's normally upbeat mother
could only say, "I guess you just see it finished."
What the Eskiewiczes ultimately
envisioned was not only a home for themselves, but also a
bed-and-breakfast. Even with renovations still in progress
today, Littleton's Bed and Breakfast has been open since July of
1994.
From three of the four beautifully
restored second floor bedrooms to an updated kitchen, the transformations
are stunning. But don't think the Eskiewiczes magically saw
the house "finished" in detail. Walter put friends
through numerous color swatch tests to arrive at the rosy mauve of
the foyer walls. The pair said they "redrew the kitchen
50 times."
In fact, they couldn't completely
"see" the house finished because parts of it were
hidden. At some point in its history, the house was converted
into a two-family dwelling. While drafting interior and
exterior blue-prints, Walter Eskiewicz made a discovery:
The measurements didn't add up.
"He said, 'Something's
wrong. They don't agree. We're missing something inside
this house!'" Pamela Eskiewicz recalled. tearing
in, the couple found everything from hidden radiators and entrances
to stained glass doors disguised by white paint. Some secrets
made themselves known dramatically, as when water gushed out from an
unseen maze of pipes.
The Eskiewiczes had some appreciation
of the task ahead, having volunteered in the restoration of the
Stanley Theater in New Jersey. Her skills as a homemaker, and
his from the High School for Art and Design in East Manhattan and
jobs in engineering laid the foundation for the daunting home
renovation. Yet, they credit a vast amount of research and
self-education, plus help from family, friends and professionals,
for making the transformations possible.
Among so many of these is the parlor,
with its enormous bay window, furnishings primarily from family and
artwork Pamela's brother helped the couple to acquire. The
wide border resembling sculptured tin atop the parlor walls is one
of the Eskiewiczes' special finds. Called Linustra, it's a
weighty, linoleum-like material manufactured for more than 100 years
in England. Keeping it pliable and adhering it was tricky,
especially since it was done in the wintertime.
"We wet it down, put it between
plastic showier curtains, laid the old electric blanket on top, and
let it cook," Pamela Eskiewicz said with a laugh.
"When we stuck it (up), it s-l-i-d down the wall. So we
got push pins of about half a dozen different colors. It
looked ridiculous in here like a war room or something!"
"A lot of people have asked us
how you get started. We made a lot of mistakes. but we
made less mistakes by taking our time," Walter Eskiewicz
explained. As another tip for renovators, he noted that
finishing one room at a time gave them the impetus to continue.
"We salvage everything," he
said. "There are a lot of houses in this area (like this)
where people have failed to appreciate the craftsmanship in
something that has stood the test of time. The house ...
responded."
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