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This old frame: A modern home with history Couple resurrected an 18th-century Connecticut farmhouse in Potomac.
In Potomac, Jim and Linda Hobbins have given 21st-century living an 18th-century backdrop. The main section of their shingled, brick-red home is the frame of a 1790 Colonial Connecticut farmhouse. An adjoining new wing adds more living space, storage and a garage. The couple raised five children in the house. Linda waters flowers on the front steps of her house. “I loved the idea of the heritage of it and the spirit of it, and that the house would not die — we would resurrect it,” she says.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
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The house, with the antique frame on the left, under construction. New Hampshire architect David Howard, a specialist in timber-framed homes, had the frame in his stock. “When we found this place through my connections, it had holes in the roof and trees growing out the windows,” Howard says. The frame arrived in Potomac on a flatbed truck. On Dec. 1, 1979, a local builder began digging the foundation; in October 1980, the family moved in.
Jim Hobbins
Part of the Hobbinses’ dining room. Linda regularly rearranges the furniture in the house. “My wife’s idea of cleaning is to rearrange the furniture,” Jim says. Linda says it’s her way of giving the old “an air of new.”
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Instead of traditional doorknobs, doors have wrought-iron latches and hinges. The home’s roots in the 18th century excited the Hobbinses, who are antiques collectors. “We decided it would be a great setting for all our old furnishings,” Jim says. Some of their pieces are family heirlooms.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The spacious country kitchen is centered on a large fireplace, one of five in the house. Jim designed and built the fireplace mantels.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The main staircase was inspired by the 18th-century Hart House from Ipswich, Mass., which is on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The antique clock is one of two that strike on the hour. Jim calls them “the heartbeat of our home.”
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The master bedroom has a reproduction of an 18th-century bed from Cohasset Colonials (www.cohassetcolonials.com), a favorite online source. Though the floors look old, they came from the late great Washington hardware emporium, Hechinger. The floor boards were installed by the builder and nailed in by Jim, using traditional rosehead nails.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Reproduction wall sconces provide low lighting. It took Jim nine years to finish the detailing on the inside of the house.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The house sits on a rolling five-acre property called Chestnut Hill, which is enclosed by stone walls and white fences, and includes a small barn and a guesthouse.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Rafters from the original frame are visible in the attic bedroom. The home was once thought to belong to one of the children of Gen. Israel Putnam, a Revolutionary War aide-de-camp to George Washington, but Jim has uncovered recent evidence that this is not the case. The original owner of the frame is still a mystery, and Jim, a historian, is still investigating.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Linda and Jim Hobbins's kitchen. “It was a wonderful house full of character and unique furnishings,” says the youngest Hobbins, Emily, 31, now a Washington lawyer.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Jim, 70, at his kitchen table. He and Linda married in 1970 and began making weekend excursions to antiques shops. “We had so many fun times together. What a joy to remember it,” Jim says. “We would go on exploring trips and come back with things strapped on the roof and stuffed in the trunk.”
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
A batten door hides evidence of the modern appliances.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Traditional-style door latches are seen throughout the house. Jim’s parents had a Williamsburg-style home filled with period furniture when he was growing up, which influenced him greatly. “Clearly, I got my inspiration from what [my mother] was doing.”
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Jim with Linda, 67, a flower designer.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The couple’s Saint Bernard, Gracie.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Realizing their children’s families would grow, Jim and Linda built a 1,900-square-foot guesthouse with two floors and a loft.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The guesthouse kitchen is a big help when the children and their families come to visit.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The guesthouse also has plenty of natural light in the gathering room. The ceiling fixtures were made by Jim Hobbins.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
One of Linda Hobbins's wreaths.
Andrew Hensler
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ANDREW HENSLER
The guesthouse also allowed Linda Hobbins to have a studio to work on flower arrangements. After her children had grown, her love of flowers led her to join the Washington National Cathedral’s Altar Guild. She started her own business, Custom Wreaths of Potomac, where she crafts wreaths, hanging baskets, bouquets and centerpieces for all seasons.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The barn on the Hobbins's property.
Andrew Hensler
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ANDREW HENSLER
Spirit, one of the couple’s two cats.
Andrew Hensler
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
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Section:/lifestyle/magazine
![Traditional-style door latches are seen throughout the house. Jim’s parents had a Williamsburg-style home filled with period furniture when he was growing up, which influenced him greatly. “Clearly, I got my inspiration from what [my mother] was doing.”](/rf/image_606w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2012/09/06/Magazine/Images/MGhobbins25_1346907120.jpg)
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