Historic Hall Christy House
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GOODBYE

7/18/2017

10 Comments

 
Picture
  I had a house on Quaker Hill.   I had a house on Quaker Hill.  The opening scene from Karen Dinesen's ​Out of Africa has always haunted me.   My heart broke when she had to say goodbye to the resting place of her beloved Denys Finch Hatton and her beautiful farm in Africa, perhaps already somehow knowing I, too, would have to walk through an empty Hall Christy house and wrench myself away from the graves of my beautiful goldens, my children, who shared it with me.  Unlike Dinesen, I did it voluntarily, mostly, although taxes and work were sapping us from our energy, and I never wanted to be in a position to resent my gem of a home.

I left my soul there.   It took almost six years to acquire that house and we spent another
thirty years cherishing it, preserving it and protecting it so it could go on after us for others to love, hoping it would be my legacy to the future, as I did not have children which are usually the legacy of others.  I wanted the future to have the beauty, history and even wonder of this house.

I always thought that the house loved to laugh.   It made me a better person by living in it.  By opening myself to trying to imagine the lives of those who lived there before, I opened myself to give to those who now walked through that door.   By noticing every wonderful detail, I paid attention to the details in other living creatures to better understand them, to accept that the details of their lives made them the special people I loved.  By watching not just the physical, but the shadows, it taught me that there is so much more to the story of a life than what we think we see.  It taught me that I am such
a small part of human history, that I have benefitted from what those did who came before me, so I should be very careful to conduct my life as to not damage those who come after me.  

In the last three years, we had experienced quite a few losses of beloveds in our life.   Somehow, walking through the house, they were still with me, hearing them laugh, seeing their smiles, the wagging tail, the stories told around the dinner table under the candlelit chandelier.  The house anchored and comforted me.

It was April 21st at 2:45 PM that I shut the gate for the last tie.   Walking through the house, I felt like I was also saying goodbye to all those souls to whom I had already said goodbye once before.   It was one of the most difficult days of my life.   But , yet, as I looked back, the house stood,  with a part of soul left there, but it stood, ready to live on well past its 270 years.

Alas, it was not to be.   We learned that in the early morning of July 16th, the Hall Christy house vanished in smoke and fire.*  There was no one in it at the time.  It was empty of any human habitation.  The tragedy is simply and yet enormously in the loss of it alone.  I know that a part of me died in that fire, I hope not the better, giving part it gave to me.  I am told there is nothing left to sift through to salvage those amazing details.   The proportion, design, and the wonderful shadows will not be found.  Nor that piece of my heart I left behind.    I had a house on Quaker Hill.    I had a house on Quaker Hill.



*I had protected the house for 30 years and the new owner could not protect it for 3 months.   Let's just say that I feel there will be more chapters to that story.

10 Comments
Gretchen
7/22/2017 07:39:23 am

Dear Ms. Denton,
I'm so terribly sorry for your loss, and the loss to history of this beautiful home.
I believe we have a piece of history that pertains to the Hall Christy weaving family. I would very much like to share the details with you, and ask for your help. Is there a way I may contact you directly?
I hope to hear from you at your convenience.
Yours truly,
Gretchen

Reply
Sara
10/24/2017 02:40:30 pm

I am utterly shocked and devastated to learn that your incomparable home is no more. We also lost a home tragically when I was younger, a home that, while special historically and special to us, was not nearly quite as important as yours, and still twenty years later it haunts my dreams and those of everyone in my family. Very literally: the house appears in our dreams, we appear inside of it. I can only begin to imagine a fraction of your pain and loss. I am so deeply sorry. I am selfishly sorry, too, because I had hoped that your house listing was no longer available only because you had removed it from the market. I had loved and cherished your stories and images of your home for years, hoping that my husband and I could buy it when you chose to pass it along to another steward. I could not believe my eyes when I read your story just now. I am so sorry. What a tragedy.

Reply
Lynne
10/25/2017 07:52:45 am

Sara,

Thank you for your wonderful comments. The loss still is with me every day.

We did sell the house back in April. It was the new owners who let it burn and did not appreciate how special it was and how it always touched people.

We are moving on to France and have purchased a house there.
Unfortunately, as much as I will love our life there, I will never again be able to put so much of my soul into a home as I did with the Hall Christy house. I do not just mourn for myself, but for all of those who came before me and made it so special and for those who never got the chance to experience its magic.

Reply
Gretchen
10/30/2017 09:11:31 am

Dear Lynne,
I saw your reply above and wanted to try reaching out again. I hope your move to France is going well, although I appreciate that it could never be the same as what you lost with the Hall Christy house. And to Sara above, I wish for both of you that this home could have become yours to honor as Lynne had - the notion of stewardship is too rare these days.
My family runs a small yarn and weaving company in Maine, and several months ago (actually just around the time your home was lost), we acquired an original Hall Christy weaving manuscript. When we found these weaving drafts we were so looking forward to seeing the home from which they came and perhaps helping to articulate another branch in this amazing piece of American craft history. If you'd ever be open to it, we'd be so grateful if we could get in touch to share with you what we have, and to learn a bit more context about these articles.
Best wishes,
Gretchen

Reply
Lynne B Denton
11/6/2017 01:30:49 pm

GretRuth was the chen,
I do not know too much about the weaving company. It was run during the Civil War by Gilbert Hall Christy and his wife's brother W. Harrison Tilton. They wove blankets for the union army. Gilbert was the son of Ruth Hall (b. 1782 and Gideon Hall's daughter to whom the house was left. Ruth married a Leonard Christy (b. 1784 c. 1859) who was Gilbert's father. Gilber married a Mary Tilton in 1838 (d. of Daniel Tilton and Betsy Salisbury, b. 1812 and d. 1868). I believe that the Union Vale Historical society took a blanket out of the house (when they should not have) and probably still have it. We found countless bobbins and shuttlecocks in the house which we left for the new owner but are now gone in the fire. We had a blue blanket box with Gilbert's name on it. We had moved it to the auxillary building so I hope it survived the fire. That is really all I know about the weaving company. You might check with the historical society. It is very difficult for me to go back over these materials right now so I hope that this will be of enough help.
Sincerely, Lynne

Reply
Gretchen
11/6/2017 03:11:56 pm

Dear Lynne,
Thank you very much for your reply. I truly appreciate the information you've provided, it is indeed helpful. It must be very difficult it to even consider the home and its history. I'm sorry to stir up the dust as it were and I am grateful for your generosity in sharing this information. We will continue to work with the materials we have and as it progresses I would be glad to share with you the results of our work if you would like. Thank you again for this background. I wish you the best.
- Gretchen

Reply
Sandy Burke
4/10/2018 07:03:33 pm

Lynne,
Am reading the story of your lost house for the first time. i cannot tell you how it is haunting me. To lose such a huge chapter of your life story is beyond a simple death. No matter you didn't legally own it at the time of its untimely and probably unnecessary demise, you along with all its, "people," shared a common love. I am truly sorry.

Reply
Sandy Burke
4/11/2018 08:13:54 pm

Lynne,
I cannot help but wanting to encourage a full read of the Christy House restoration story with my fellow history/old house impassioned lovers on, "Old House Dreams," website. I found the links there, and am so taken with all you've had to offer in the restoration wisdom of your house and your commitment to authenticity of it's period. It is my hope this experience will both encourage and enlighten others to a better work. I hope you don't mind.
Sandy

Reply
Mary Newell
8/6/2018 12:08:11 pm

Lynn: I am mortified that between my hand issues and our schedules, I never got to the Hall-Christie house. I’m sure you are mourning, but so am I! My ancestor lived in that house. If anyone inquires, I have a family tree of the Halls going all the way back to Rhode Island. I would love to exchange information. Mary Newell

Reply
Lynne Denton
8/7/2018 05:59:51 am

Mary,

I would love to know more about the Hall family tree. How might I obtain it? We are in France now. Do you have it online? Thanks,
Lynne

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    Lynne Denton has a Master's in American History, is the owner of Christy Designs, an 18th Century Design company and lives in the Hudson Valley.

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