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by Beth S. Buxbaum
Set back from the main road, this 1840s Bucks County stone farmhouse sits on a parcel of land in Sellersville, Hilltown Township. The land, encompassing 55 acres, was sold to Samuel Sellers (for whom the town of Sellersville was named) by William Penn in the early 1800s. This homestead is believed to have been a dairy farm until sometime in the 1960s. More recently the homestead was a rental property, until Adolph Jager purchased the homestead in March of 1983.
As a centuries-old Bucks County fieldstone farmhouse, the elements of the living space are simple. The keeping room has a wood beamed ceiling and a walk-in fireplace with a beehive oven. Adolph explains that the fireplace used to be the summer kitchen. “The summer kitchen would have been off the north side of the house and at some time closed in, with access through the stonewall to the kitchen,” Adolph adds. Next to the keeping room is a living room, with heart pine floors, that used to be two rooms. Adolph points out that there are two front doors and indicated where there used to be a wall dividing the spaces. Also, Adolph notes that remnants of two walk-in type fireplaces exist in the basement, which was once a dirt floor, but some time ago a concrete floor was poured. Over the years some structural changes have been made to the original property. This homestead also has the original PA German bank barn, the original sheep house that Adolph used to raise his sheep and beef cows, and a couple of chickens.
Adolph liked the idea of fixing up an old house. He was interested in the property for its potential and possibilities. As the owner and operator of A. Jager General Contractors, he was well equipped for the challenges that lay ahead. “This was a true labor of love,” Adolph explains. Renovating this centuries-old farmhouse was an opportunity for Adolph to practice his skill on his own house.
“Everything was old,” he adds, “so I had to decide where to start.” In a renovation project like this, all the work was done from a unique perspective of the owner, as architect and builder. “I lived this,” Adolph adds. He was creating his living space on project at a time. “As a single guy, I had a specific set of expectations,” he says, “and my vision was simply to make what I had functional.” His only restriction was the cost of the renovations, which limited his scope at the time.” I compromised on the first renovation. I couldn’t afford a lot and I had a different set of expectations,” he adds.
A self-taught craftsman, Adolph prides himself on the fact that he did the renovations on his historic farmhouse. All the electrical and plumbing systems had to be updated. There was no insulation and he knew that the walls needed to be refurbished. With assistance, the original plaster and lathe walls were replaced with dry wall on the second floor and plaster on the first floor. When he renovated the original living room area, he added slate to the 20-inch deep original window sills. With the second floor bathroom, the only bathroom in the house, he gutted the space, modernized the plumbing and added new fixtures to bring it to modern standards. After he completed his bathroom renovation, Adolph focused on the kitchen, which was totally outdated. There was an entry door and two windows, with a closed off staircase to the second floor. Also in this space was a washer and dryer, pot belly stove, rustic cabinetry and a wagon wheel light fixture. “My 1984 renovations included the installation of a picture window, a staircase opening, powder room, structural improvements to the floor to accommodate a wet bed terra cotta floor, new plaster walls, lighting, cast iron baseboard heat, new cabinets and appliances,” he details.
Aesthetic enhancements to the home’s exterior were also part of Adolph’s plan. He changed the roof line, removed the asphalt and added a new cedar shake roof. “It was a hip roof and now it is a conventional gable roof,” he describes. He tore down the front porch to create a new, wrap-around porch with a lead-coated copper roof and flagstone floor. In 1985 Adolph removed a one-story flat roof porch that was added to the side of the property in the 1930s. It was created as an expansion of the living space, extending out from the stone exterior wall. Adolph redesigned this area as a two-story cedar and glass sunroom with a Mexican terracotta floor and a wood-beamed and glass ceiling. As he redefined and transformed his new home, Adolph enjoyed the challenge and was pleased with his results. “It was all the way I wanted,” he says.
At the time, his historic homestead fit the bill for a single man. Then his life changed when he met Molly. Adolph married Molly in 1988 and expectations changed. Now there was a new vision and shared necessity for a different level of functionality and aesthetics. With these new expectations Adolph was confident he could design and create the new spaces because his experience and knowledge had grown. Adolph and Molly knew that eventually they would start a family and needed to re-do the living space to accommodate. The original rooms were not fitting the needs of their growing family.
Adolph’s most comprehensive project was in 2002 when he built an addition to the original 1840’s structure. Building out from the original exterior kitchen stonewall, Adolph first designed a transition space by constructing an expansive hallway from front to back. Finished with Mexican terracotta tile, this hallway connects the old and new living space. He also built a finished basement for everyone to gather and enjoy. Stairs to the lower level reside in this transition hallway. Flowing from the hallway is bright and airy addition, adding a great room, consisting of a dining room area and living room, plus a laundry room, powder room and master bedroom suite. “We wanted to create a living arrangement that allowed us to be predominantly on the first floor,” he explains. Just looking ahead years from now, he explains that at some point they will appreciate having all their necessary living space on one floor.
In Adolph’s design of the great room, he built a server between the dining area and living room to subtly define the spaces. An added design element is the addition of two columns on the surface of the server to the ceiling. On the back wall of the living room is a built-in entertainment center, gas fireplace, window seat and built-in shelves. The radiant heat floors he constructed with engineered antique, salvaged random-width floor boards. To bring in more light, Adolph added a wall of windows in the dining area, as well as along a side wall of the living room.
Prior to building the addition, Adolph built a pool area in 2000 for their son and daughter. He also added a pool house designed with a kitchen area and a powder room, plus an outdoor shower. To spruce up the pool area he added 2200 feet of brick pavers around the pool, with inlaid flagstone throughout. Adolph designed the addition so that it was centered with the existing pool area. To create a flow and accessibility to this area he put in a set of French doors. This great room opened up their living space and created a natural connection to their outdoor living. To enhance their outdoor space, Adolph built a flagstone patio, just off the pool area, shaded by an expansive pergola. Over the years his early projects spruced up their living space and added a variety of venues for family and friends to gather.
Now, 35 years later, Adolph was ready to update again. So far, in 2018, his improvements included updating the second floor bedrooms and hall, redoing the bathroom, adding solid doors, and new simulated divided light windows throughout the house. Exterior refurbishments include new slate-colored custom cedar shutters and authentic hardware. Next on his list is re-doing the kitchen and the sunroom. Adolph’s work is never done, but he genuinely enjoys his projects and his craft.
For Adolph it is all about function and scale. His frame of reference is the original structure of the home and keeping with the scale and style of that period. He appreciates simplicity, while enjoying the art of designing and creating his family’s living space. “I believe in giving justice to what the original farmhouse was,” he explains, “so that any addition of modern conveniences had to be in a simple, comfortable styling to flow with its original state.”
Beth S. Buxbaum is a freelance writer from the Philadelphia area.