The Preservation Commission toured the Westinghouse Home of Tomorrow (1934) on Andover Road yesterday. It's in the middle of some repairs prior to getting it back on the market after being foreclosed and going back to the bank. The flat roofs are going to be replaced with rubber when the weather allows.I was happy to see some of the most outstanding features haven't been lost. The upstairs bathrooms are still in fantastic condition with the bakelight(?) veneer and inlay deco designs still like new. There has been cieling damage on the second floor from the flat roof areas, and some drop cielings applied in the past as cover-up.
Scott Schaut brought along an album of Westinghouse photos and we spent about an hour comparing the original photos with existing things in the house. The kitchen is the most radically altered part of the house, as you can imagine. Even though it was the home of tomorrow, we are talking 1934, so understandable that the original kitchen innovations of that era didn't survive the test of time so well.
9 comments:
I'm happy to know that the bathrooms survived the renovations. I'd heard that there were significant changes to the house since I saw it in the early '80's. What a gem! I hope it gets the treatment it deserves...and it sure would be nice to have it restored.
Great house! My wife's aunt's family were the original owners. I would love to see it in person sometime- thanks for the update.
The house did finally sell in '07 and the new owners seem to be very sensitive to its history.
was looking up house of tomorrow-my grandparents owned it.
It was great growing up asa kig there-my granddad owned it--cl van dereau--he was the plant manager of westinghouse-my dad Dean Fighter married Van's daughter and was later the plant manager--many great memories
226Debra Ramsey said...
I too am a granddaughter of the Van Derau's. I remember visiting my grandmother almost weekly at the Home of Tomorrow. I would like to let people know that there will be a talk about the home by Scott Schaut on Oct 15, 2014 at the main public library, 6:30.
I attended Scott Schaut's program at the library this evening and found it very interesting. I live here in Woodland, and it's great that we have a little piece of American History right here in our neighborhood.
Scott Schaut's program on the H of T was very good. I spent so much time in my grandparents house growing up but learned many new things. I never knew about the movie that ABC had on it. Too bad that they feel they still need to keep the copywrite on something that Mansfield would like to have.
My partner Stephen and his three siblings grew up in this house!
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