This is the historic train depot in Sykesville, Md. The building now houses a restaurant, but that doesn’t diminish the stature of this grand Victorian architecture on the National Register of Historical Places.
If you saw our previous posts on the historic Sykesville Train Depot, you learned a bit about the detail we have to take with this building. (If you didn’t see it, click here for the interior, and click here for the doors and windows.) This time, we are taking a look at some of the lower exterior areas: the eaves and overhangs along the platforms.
As we saw on the inside, there are a lot of moldings and trim. As was common in Victorian architecture, there is a LOT of trim, with a lot of detail. Especially on the outside. Trim needs special attention, to keep the profiles sharp. Letting the paint coat the grooves diminishes the craftsmanship and beauty of the woodwork. Often, we need to strip away the caked, peeling, and chilling paint, down to bare wood, to give a good coat of paint and preserve the woodwork.
That’s not just any old lattice-work on those overhangs, it’s spindles. Each of those pieces was created by turning a piece of wood, in much the same fashion as a table leg or a spindle on a railing. These are then pieced together to create the frame that sets into the eave. This also served a functional purpose, to discourage birds from flying through.
When it comes to the eaves, there is trim along the edges, but the supports are also heavily carved with ridges and grooves. There was not a post left unadorned with a handsome profile.
Looking up into the eaves themselves, you can see that even the rafter ends were cut decoratively. A gentle curve to the ends added a bit of charm, and the notched design to the inter-lying ends adds a bit of interest.
Check back tomorrow for our 4th installment in this series, Up in the Rafters: Gable Ends and Roof-Line Trim
This is the historic train depot in Sykesville, Md. The building now houses a restaurant, but that doesn’t diminish the stature of this grand Victorian architecture on the National Register of Historical Places.
If you saw our previous post on the historic Sykesville Train Depot, you took a peek at the interior. (If you didn’t see it, click here) This time, we are taking a look at some of the lower exterior areas: the doors on the loading docks and platforms, and the exterior windows.
As we saw on the inside, you can see that there are a lot of moldings and trim. That always needs special attention, to keep the profiles sharp. Letting the paint coat the grooves diminishes the craftsmanship and beauty of the woodwork. Often, we need to strip away the caked, peeling, and chilling paint, down to bare wood, to give a good coat of paint and preserve the woodwork.
I’m sure that in it’s day, these freight doors on the loading dock saw more than their fair share of bumps, dings, bangs and damage.
The stability of those Victorian window sashes to hold that beautiful stained glass is very important. Not only does the old caulking and glazing need to be carefully removed, and the wood checked for damage and rot, the pins holding the panes against the frame need to be checked, and then new glazing applied and cured, before any new paint can be coated onto the frames and trim.
Tomorrow, we’ll post about the detail work on the eaves and overhangs of the platforms.
As you sit at home, contemplating what you are going to do while snowbound for the next few days, We are showing you some great eye-candy to stimulate your senses. This is the historic train depot in Sykesville, Md. The building now houses a restaurant, but that doesn’t diminish the stature of this grand Victorian architecture on the National Register of Historical Places.
First up on this tour is the interior shots. You can see that there is a lot of moldings and trim. That always needs special attention, to keep the profiles sharp. Letting the paint coat the grooves diminishes the craftsmanship and beauty of the woodwork.
The plaster-work and stencil designs around the main dining room took a lot of time and patience for the original painters to do, and that work was replicated when the restaurant did their renovations.
What really is stunning is the original Victorian stained glass designs in the transoms and upper sashes of the double hung windows. This glass is a bit more fragile than what you would find in modern reproduction work, and so it takes a steady hand and careful attention, to make sure that there are no accidental chips, cracks or breakages to the window jewels.
Historic homes require a lot of work and attention, especially when they are on a large scale, such as this. The following photos show you how we work on these wonderful properties.
We know that you liked the video of the painting work we did at this stately and elegant historic home, so we decided to post a few images of her for you to enjoy.
