Visions of the Past
A spell of cold but clear weather toward the end of February made an act of destruction a gateway for viewing the past. For several days the walls and roof of the late 19th c., third floor addition of the Stevens house were brought down brick by brick, plaster and lath. What remained was the building's wooden frame; its skeleton.
It was clear that the rafters and their supports were of an older period than the raised third floor itself. Mortis and tenon end points of hand hewn rafters were tightly pegged together. Roman numerals marked the sequence of their installation.
(To Be Continued)