For The Carriage Trade

By Lauren Aitken

They might have been built to house horses and the fancy barouches and cabriolets drawn by teams of steeds. But these days – with their high-pitched roofs, loft-like interiors and historic provenance – carriage houses make desirable dwellings for modern homeowners. “They evoke memories of an easier time,” says Marcia Altman of Brown Harris Stevens.

Altman has a listing in Westhampton Beach for a Shingle-Style manor house built for coal baron William C. Atwater in 1903 and overlooking almost seven acres on Quantuck Bay. While the 16,000-sf main house is enormously impressive, the carriage house – now a pool house – is also a historic treasure. Most notable is its covering of century-old grape vines that not only cling to the exterior but have worked their way through the roof where they entwine beneath the ceiling. While much of the original remains intact including all hardware and the sliding doors that once allowed large carriages entry, a new indoor/outdoor kitchen has been added. The space is big enough to accommodate large gatherings such as the wine auction held there recently by Christie’s. $16. 750M

Winterset is the name of a former stable in Quiogue that was built in 1910 for the Conklin family (progenitors of the American Hotel’s Ted Conklin), proprietors of Meadowcroft, a grand seaside estate. The structure was converted to a residence in 1947, and while exceedingly charming it lost many of its original details. When interior designer Elizabeth Hagins bought it a decade ago she launched her own renovation in which she exposed the ceilings, which had been dropped in the conversion, bringing them back to their former height and tongue-and-groove glory. Her design mandate was to “coax it into the 21st century while respecting and enhancing its past,” by restoring details such as doorknobs, trim, and bathroom fixtures. Remaining period details like kitchen cabinets work beautifully alongside state-of-the-art appliances. The 7-bedroom abode commands sprawling manicured lawns with century-old trees on more than two acres. Listed by Laura Wynne and Elliot Epstein of Brown Harris Stevens. $2.5M

An interesting fact about many structures listed as carriage houses: they aren’t. Nor have they ever been. Some are just given the name because it sounds appealing. In the case of a splendid edifice on Southampton’s Hill Street, listing broker Geoff Hull  of the Corcoran Group labeled it thus despite the fact that it was actually built more than a century ago as an artist’s studio. As Hull explains, artists’ studios back then were important structures, unlike these days when an artist might take over a garage or other nondescript building. So, calling it a “carriage house,” is true to its context as a bewitching historical edifice if not its actual origins.

The spectacular structure with a soaring beamed ceiling and giant fieldstone fireplace was part of Wayside, the estate of acclaimed artist Marshall T. Fry, which was designed by distinguished architect Aymar Embury (designer of the original Maidstone Club). Many of the original details have been lovingly preserved from the antique floors to the leaded glass windows. The last line of the listing reads: “Own a piece of American history.” Alas, you probably won’t be able to as the property is in contract. Its asking price was $2.295M.

Marcia Altman has the listing for a house on Halsey Lane in Remsenburg whose living room was the hamlet’s original post office. While the structure never housed horses, again the carriage house moniker seemed to describe its old-world provenance best. The original timber ceiling soars 30 feet in the living room while a stone fireplace reaches the apex. The quirky abode was added onto over the years with a formal dining room, sophisticated master suite and pair of guest wings. Ironically, the current homeowners converted the garage into…drum roll please…a stable for a pair of miniature horses the husband bought the wife as a wedding gift. $2.795M