1518 Fremont Place

This 1900 Queen Anne Cottage was purchased for restoration in early 2005. It is a one-story frame house with arts and crafts accents. The exterior features a classic bungalow porch with an open gable end with cross bracing, sawn wood balustrade, truncated wood posts on brick piers, and king posts. 

The restoration on the interior is nearing completion. The cottage has its high ceilings once again! The day that water-stained drop ceiling panels were stripped away was an uplifting moment in the process of returning the home to its period charm. A dank and dingy storage closet off of the kitchen is now a breakfast nook. Double-hung windows consistent with the period were purchased from salvage dealers and were added to the nook, now a sunny space for morning coffee. The kitchen was completely gutted except for an original brick chimney. The brick work was restored and it now contributes early 1900s atmosphere to the modernized kitchen which boasts a center island and ceramic-tile countertops. 

The hardwood floors, which seem to have been covered at one time or another by every type of floor-covering imaginable, have been restored to warm and gleaming. However, enough "flaws" remain to give them character. A half-bath was added and the original bath restored. The original claw foot tub remains and an old dresser was adapted to serve as the bath vanity cabinet. The original bead board in the bath was restored and given a fresh coat of cream-colored paint.

The house has also been given a new roof, new electrical system, reinforced foundation, repaired plumbing, exterior siding and windows, and extensive drywall repair. The restoration has been a labor of love for all who have been involved. Mark Turner, the project foreman and trim carpenter, said it best when one day he remarked in his prominent Tennessee accent: "This house is going to be cuter than a puppy's behind."

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