We added a stone stairway and retaining wall to improve foot access from the parking area to the cabin safer and more pleasant.

For over a hundred years the original inhabitants of this cabin made the climb between these two levels via a well-worn dirt path. A path that we found slick to traverse when wet or covered with snow.

We used local stone to build with and the masons did an amazingly good job on it… it added so much to the function and aesthetics of the cabin site.

Originally posted 2015-03-05 17:07:20.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a stone mason? maybe even, during his “glory moment”? To be up at the top of a chimney after many weeks of hard work and struggle… about to complete something that will stand for centuries?

Of course you have. 🙂

These five photos (all taken at the same time) pretty well showcase life at the top of a chimney.

First notice that there is the ladder, a big part of being a stone mason is the climbing, up and down. Over and over. Always while carrying something heavy… tools, stones, or mortar.

Once you are up there at the top the views of the surrounding countryside, and all the jobsite activity, are amazing. You are on top of the world.

It’s time to get to work though… there is the constant checking of each stone to make sure that everything is plumb and level. Each stone is laid with as much care up here as it is down below. No one else would ever know if something was a bit off… but the masons would know… and so, it is done right.

There is plenty of activity going on up here as the final shaping of each stone takes place to get it to fit just right. While here you stand on a narrow walkboard rock chips fly past you, sometimes striking you, adrenaline is flowing.

The conversation is often jovial, each man boasting of how good they are at what they do.

One of the greatest benefits of working with stones all days is that you get to wear whatever kind of hat you want… no one would dare insult a mason on his choice of hat. A mason is after all a walking muscle. A man that can hit you with a rock at anytime from high above. A man that swings a heavy hammer for a living.

All three of these men became dear friends of mine over the years of working together. Dan, seen here with his captain hat, passed away from cancer a few years ago… I can still hear him singing one of his old Irish tunes. Will, the man with the level, surprised us all and is now a member of the clergy in the Episcopalian church. And Stewart… he works in the local zoning office… he says its’ much easier on his back. Of that, I have no doubt.

For many years I was the only area builder who kept a full-time crew of stone masons. I loved to see their work on a daily basis. I loved the sounds that were always present in the background… of chisels being struck with hammers, but most of all I just liked having friends around me who enjoyed working with their hands.

Originally posted 2015-02-27 15:33:33.

Everyone loves a good mystery. At least I do.

And, everyone that works on old houses is always looking for that hidden treasure that no one has ever found before.

I had the thrill of finding both, in one item, while taking down the old house known as “Western View”. That memento was hard for me to give away, but I did. And, it took me fifteen years to solve the mystery behind it, but I believe the answer was finally revealed.

Up near the top of one of the chimneys I found a stone with my initials carved into it… NB. The “N” was inverted (that part of the mystery I still haven’t solved).

It’s not uncommon for masons to carve the date on a stone in the chimney, and perhaps their initials, but when they do so it’s always at the base of the chimney where all can see it.

This stone was near the top and on the side of the chimney that faced the roof. A mason rarely gets up on a roof, he works from a scaffold and the roof side is the back of the chimney to him, he just reaches over to that side. Every indication was that this stone was carved by someone sitting on the roof after the chimney was built… how odd was that?

Now, I clearly owned this stone, it was mine. I bought the salvage rights to the house. I found the stone. It had my initials in it… how many times will this happen in my life? It was a keeper for sure.

But when it came time to build my client’s fireplace I felt that the stone belonged there in plain site, to honor that mysterious engraver from so long ago. I just wished I knew why someone would sit on a peak of a roof to carve their initials in a rock.

Fifteen years later I received a call from a potential client who owned the farm across the road from where Western View once stood. He had on his property an old stone kitchen that had once belonged to Dolly Madison’s grandmother. He wanted me to restore it and add on to it a vintage log cabin (which I did, but that’s a story for another day).

When I went to look at this stone kitchen I was pleased to see that it was built out of the same kind of stone that Western View’s chimney’s was built out of. This new client pointed out all the names and initials that were carved into the stones, put there by Civil War soldiers while based there on the property, some of the names had inverted letters. Ah Ha!

I did a little research and found out that it was common practice to assign someone during that war to take a lookout position on rooftops. I then had this vision of some young man stuck up on a Western View’s roof, sitting next to a chimney, with nothing to do but carve his initials in one of the stones.

Likely the only thing that young man ever did that still survives to this day is that one carving. Now that is something to think about.

Originally posted 2015-02-23 15:23:32.

I have designed and built several stone cottages over the years. This one is on a hillside in Madison County, with spectacular views.

This home pulled me in a new direction, and I appreciate that, after all, no one wants to be stuck in a rut. We all know that we learn and grow with new experiences.

Anyway, back to the story of this structure…

Originally posted 2015-02-13 15:22:51.

One last photo to share from the barn/home project. Remember those arches that are so prominent in the photos of the front of the house? Here’s a close-up photo showing the workmanship that went into building those features.

Every one of these stones was created by very talented men, each with a hammer, a chisel, and lot of strength. These are not glued-on stones like you find in shopping centers, but solid rock that will last millennia.

I just love good stonework. Can’t you tell?

Originally posted 2015-02-13 13:46:28.

Whenever I build a log home I always have the stone masons build the corners first… for several reasons.

The first reason is that at the beginning phase of any stone project is the period when you have the best selection of stones. As a stone pile gets lower, the pickings become more challenging to lay. You will find that you are left with more “bowling balls” than “shoeboxes” (it is only human nature to pick the best stone you can find after each visit to the pile). You want the best stones used on your corners, for strength and beauty.

Originally posted 2015-02-08 15:50:31.

Hi, my name is Noah Bradley and I am an “archoholic”. I can’t help myself, I love the things… I can’t get enough of them.

Wouldn’t you agree that a log bedroom just HAS to have a stone fireplace and that having an arched one would make it perfect? That’s what we built for this cabin.

I find vintage stone arches all over Virginia, and beyond. Masons didn’t stop using them in the Roman times, they were a part of American history. Arches are not just for the wealthy, or for elaborate Cathedrals, but for anyone who desires to build something that not only looks great, but lasts for centuries.

Originally posted 2015-02-07 15:02:40.

Here’s a photo of the angle-cut course of stone made in order to create a wider base for the stone chimney that is to come. It’s a really nice touch to add to any chimney.

I’ve never read why the masons of old added this feature on the finer chimneys of that era, but I would imagine it was a way to further strengthen and stabilize these monuments.. and that is what a well-built chimney is, a monument. A chimney often stands long after a home is gone.

Folks back then paid more attention to nature than we do today and Incorporated those observations into their homes. Take a look at the tallest living structures that you encounter on a daily basis… trees. Notice how they flare out at the base?

It’s little details like this that will bring joy to you and for the generations to come. This handcrafted detail is right down there near the ground and is something that catches your eye every time you walk by it. New visitors always comment about it and often go over to touch it.

But it’s not without cost, it takes effort for you to get it in your plans, it takes extra materials, but most of all it’s about extra labor, it takes a mason days and days, with a hammer and chisel in hand, to create it. There is nothing like breaking the budget on day one… but IT”S WORTH IT !

Originally posted 2015-02-06 17:15:07.

Here’s the side profile of the Middle River house… this is where you park your car and enter the home. The front section features a stone chimney placed so that you can enjoy it’s beauty every day when you arrive home. Solid stone chimneys, built well, are not inexpensive so when you design a home make sure you place the chimney in a location where you will see it when you approach the home and park. You don’t want to hide something like this from view.

The section to the right is built using standard framing techniques (fast and easy) and where you will find two bedroom/ two bathrooms, one stacked over the other.

The section of the house behind the chimney is timber-framed using wood that we harvested locally and then cut and assembled. (That’s about as green of a construction as you can get!) This area with a cathedral ceiling serves as a kitchen and living area and connects to the front porch… all offering tremendous views.

Originally posted 2015-02-03 13:56:20.