In 1785, shipping merchant, Jonathan Hamilton, built this Colonial Revival Estate in South Berwick, Maine, overlooking the Salmon Falls River.
During the American Revolution, Hamilton expanded his mercantile business to include shipbuilding, timber harvesting, partial ownership of local mills, and sugar plantations in Tobago, West Indies. His base of operation was in Portsmouth, but he built ships and loaded and unloaded materials at this site.
Today, the Hamilton House is part of Historic New England which endeavors to preserve and share thirty-eight historic homes, farms and landscapes throughout New England.
I visited Hamilton House in August with fellow gardeners, and the gardens and flowers were at their peak.
As a bonus, at the edge of the property is this beautiful barn. I know I’m prejudiced, I think every barn is beautiful. Besides being handsome, I’ve never seen a barn door quite like this one.
We’ve certainly left August behind and moved well into October. The heat officially goes on tonight because we’re dropping down to 28°F. I’m not mentally psyched up, but Mother Nature is ready to rock and roll right into winter because they’ve already had snow flurries up north. I’m still not getting that snow shovel out – yet. ❄️
Linked to Norm Frampton’s, Thursday Doors, October 18, 2018
I love that barn! The house and gardens are beautiful.
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I’d had a great afternoon and was exhausted from the heat and humidity, but I almost jumped out of the car when I saw that barn. I love that door. 🙂
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What a majestic place to admire today – imagine the effect in 1785!
I love the barn on the Hamilton property, but not the door! It just doesn’t look right to me! Like an awkward update! Paint it to match the grey please! (Sorry to such a bossy-pants!)
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Sorry! I meant: “Sorry to BE such a bossy-pants!” (I’m forever apologizing!)
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It’s okay because you have something the rest of us don’t – a background in art. 🙂 Your comments are ALWAYS welcome and appreciated. 🙂
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LOVE the barn! Like you, I’ve never met a barn I didn’t like. Can’t make up my mind if I like the door or not. It’s certainly different, but the more I look at it the more it works. I would’ve painted it ‘barn red’.
The gardens are (were) magnificent. Beautifully maintained. That’s quite an entryway to the home. Must’ve been very impressive in its day.
🔹 Ginger 🔹
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The barn door made me wonder if it had been hand crafted. I don’t know, but it’s certainly not run of the mill barn door material. As I walked around that day, I could picture boats pulling up to unload and load back up. It must have been something. 🙂
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Barns are indeed beautiful, and that is some door. Very brisk in central Maine this morning but no snow.
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I think you’ll be taking that patio furniture in sooner than later. 🙂 The wind is blowing today and it feels like mid 30’s. I brought the last of my outdoor furniture in this morning. 😦
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When my husband recovers from cataract surgery. Then in they will come.
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Hope the world is a brighter place for him. I know it was for me. 🙂
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It is, it is! He is amazed at the difference.
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Here in central Indiana it’s a toasty 33, and I’m happy to cast a wistful eye back to the colors of August in those beautiful gardens, but I don’t miss that wretched sticky heat we all had for so long. The air here this morning is bracing and bright and goes well with a New England homestead. As to the barn, I like the way the window panes in the door seem to repeat the window panes in the rest of the barn. It is indeed a handsome specimen. I seem to see splotches of red here and there on the barn — do you know if red was its original color? If so, what magnificence! Also — did anyone happen to tell you what happened to the other pineapple?
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Oh, I do appreciate your sharp eye and the chuckle it brought me. 🙂 I liked that photo but wondered about using it with the second pineapple missing. I hope it is just sitting in a shed somewhere waiting to be put back. 🙂 I do not miss the humidity, but boy is it cold here today – mid 30’s and the wind is blowing down branches all over the place. I’m really glad I have all my outside work done, tools cleaned, and everything put away. 🙂
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Congratulations on being ready! Tomorrow is to be our day for strong winds, so I’ll try today to be as virtuous as you! I too hope that they have that pineapple restored to its proper place some day, and I think your photo is all the more interesting for its absence. It’s good to have a photo that asks a question!
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I’ve been to the beautiful Hamilton house and gardens but I don’t remember seeing the barn. New England has some wonderful old barns and I’m thankful to those who keep them in good repair. I can’t believe it has gotten cold so early. I remember the year it snowed in October while the apples were still on many of our trees. The weight of the snow damaged a lot of the trees.
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I remember that storm. I’m hoping the big stuff waits for a while until all the apples are harvested. We’ve had high winds all week with the cooler temps, and one day there were 10,000 without power. Never a dull moment with Mother Nature. 🙂
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That barn door is amazing, Judy. I’ve never seen one like that. I’m partial to barns as well, but the house is beautiful, too. Yeah, our gardens are done looking like that. Keep enjoying autumn.
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When I looked at the barn door while I was doing the post, I thought of you and knew you’d appreciate the creativity behind it. 🙂
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I did. It’s beautiful.
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That is one handsome barn door.
Looks like it will be an early winter this year. We’ve had the heat on for a week already and last night’s below freezing temps had me seriously thinking about putting a few logs in the wood stove downstairs.
And I still haven’t finished cleaning out the garden yet.
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I am so glad that I did the last of my work yesterday because I would have needed winter gloves to work out there today. Here’s hoping you get a couple of moderate days so you can finish up. 🙂
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EVery picture is striking, Judy. An interesting place.
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The flowers really are beautiful, but not for long, I guess. When you said 28 degrees, I started shivering. Oooooohhhhhh.
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You and me both. I wore a winter coat and gloves today for the first time. 😦
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We have a few of those old ones around here, but for some reason, people still actually LIVE in them. Some are fully restored. A lot of them could really use an infusion of cash. It does make the architecture interesting!
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We have an old barn and I wish I’d win the lottery so I could invest a good portion of it in restoring it to its full beauty. 🙂
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I love the barn, but the garden is even better! Rather chilly here, too, Judy, especially after a few days in Baja California!! 🙂 Autumn is well on its way now.
janet
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Hope everything was perfect on your trip. 🙂
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It actually was, Judy, although I could have stayed longer. 😁
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I, too, love old barns. Too many are being lost to neglect. Every winter, it seems another one goes down, a piece of our farming heritage lost. I love seeing colonial houses, too, but I’d never want to live in or own one (too much work!).
Are you heading south this winter? Florence has made a mess of the Carolinas, though bargains might be had. 😉
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We are planning to head south. The last we heard there wasn’t any significant damage in the condo building where we rent in Murrells Inlet. Brookgreen Gardens, about 20 minutes down the road, has a dock and they had several areas under water. We were down there after Matthew hit a couple of years back and it looked like half the area had moved their furnishings to the sidewalk. It’s one thing to watch it on the news and another to see it up close.
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I don’t know how they do it. I don’t think I could.
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I wonder if the barn door once belonged somewhere else on a much grander building and was repurposed at some time. It’s quite fancy. I really enjoy visiting historic homes like this one and like to imagine the inhabitants going about their daily lives.
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We were out there on a really hot and humid day, and I kept thinking about people walking and working in the many layers of wool clothing of that era.
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I love those lush green gardens .. and the barn .. although the door doesn’t look quite right, does it….perhaps added later. I guess you are getting ready for some inside chores now.
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Yes, I’m definitely making the adjustment to inside. It was 28°F this morning, and I’m so very glad I got everything finished outside earlier this week.
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This looks like a beautiful place.
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Oh that’s beautiful. Yet another field trip in which I wish I could have joined you 🙂 Great barn door choice.
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Such beautiful homes and gardens. I love New England architecture.
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I can’t say that I’m a barn expert, but it seems to me that everything about that barn is unusual – including the door. Look at those horizontal windows to the side and above the doors! Can’t you just imagine having a place like this for a grand studio to work in!
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That would be amazing wouldn’t it. 🙂
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Judy, I’m missing the flowers of summer, so thanks for sharing garden photos, along with the very cool barn. We had some snow on Saturday, but nothing stuck and today the weather has been sunny and cool. I think I’m happier that we’re supposed to have more sun this week, something that’s been lacking around here of late. It will feel good and hopefully neither of us will see the white stuff until well into December (a girl can hope).
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I’m hoping right along with you, and the shovels are still hanging in the barn. 🙂
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The barn door is lovely! The garden with the arbor looks so inviting, and perhaps cool?
It’s definitely cooled here and the season has changed.
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What a beautiful site. It’s my quest to tour all of the Historic New England buildings but I’m getting a slow start. We have one in Exeter just a mile from me and I haven’t toured it yet. ☹️
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Love the barn!!!
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