Reuel E. Smith House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Reuel E. Smith House
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 Location in New York
Location in the United States
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| Location | 28 W. Lake St. Skaneateles, New York |
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| Nearest city | Auburn, New York |
| Built | 1848-52 |
| Architect | Alexander Jackson Davis |
| Additional Architect | Archimedes Russell |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 79001612 |
| Added to NRHP | July 27, 1979 |
The Reuel E. Smith House is a very special home in Skaneateles, New York. People also know it by fun nicknames like The Cove, The Gingerbread House, or Cobweb Cottage.
This unique house was designed by a famous architect named Alexander Jackson Davis. Another architect, Archimedes Russell, made some changes later. It was built between 1848 and 1852. The house is a great example of the Gothic Revival style. This style was popular because it was different from the older, simpler Greek Revival style.
The Reuel E. Smith House is the only home designed by Davis in Onondaga County that is still standing today. A photographer named Jack Boucher took pictures of the house in 1962 for the Historic American Buildings Survey. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. This means it is a very important historical building.
In 1979, a state official named Orin Lehman said the house showed important ideas from the mid-1800s. These ideas were about art, books, and building design. In 1981, the house even received money to help fix its pink outside walls, roof, and chimneys. Experts called it an "excellent example of Gothic revival style."
The home was built for Reuel Smith, who owned a shipping business in New York City. His son, E. Reuel Smith, inherited the house. E.R. was a well-known person in Skaneateles. He married Elizabeth DeCost, whose family was among the first settlers of the village. E.R. passed away at the home in 1911. Their son, DeCost Smith, who became a famous painter of the American West, was born in this house.
Reuel's grandson, Sedgwick, married Elsa Watts Smith. In 1975, Elsa sold the house to Robert and Shirley Feldmann. The Feldmanns sold the property in 2017. Today, Justin and Dr. Rebecca West Reeves own the home.
What Makes the House Special?
The Reuel E. Smith House is made of brick covered with a special coating called stucco. When it was first built, it sat on about 20 acres of land. The stucco on the outside has been painted many times over the years. In 2009, the house was pink with darker salmon-colored trim. This trim is called "gingerbread" because it looks like the decorations on a gingerbread house. By 2019, the house was painted gold with off-white trim.
The house has many windows, which are placed in a balanced way. This is typical of the Gothic Revival style. On the front, there is a special window that sticks out on the second floor. It is called an oriel window. Above this window, there is a round window with a pretty, four-leaf design made of wood.
The main entrance has a unique arched shape. It is decorated with off-white sandstone pieces. A porch wraps around most of the first floor. This porch has cool iron decorations that look like oak leaves and acorns.
A large picture window was added to the north side of the house in 1926. This window is now in the kitchen. The decorative trim (bargeboards) was taken off in 1940 but put back later. The floors, which were originally pine, were changed to walnut in 1941. The inside walls are very thick, about ten inches, and are made of brick covered with plaster. The house still has its original fireplaces with white marble mantels on both floors.
Alexander Jackson Davis: The Architect
Alexander Jackson Davis is known as one of America's most important architects. The Metropolitan Museum of Art even recognized him for his work. His career was at its peak in the 1840s and 1850s, which is when he designed the Reuel E. Smith House.
Davis was famous for designing "country" homes. His unique Gothic Revival style was very popular with important Americans. Even famous people like Samuel Morse (who invented the Morse code) and Jay Gould (a successful businessman) loved his designs.
While other architects built simple, box-shaped houses, Davis was more creative. His homes had tall peaks, parts that stuck out in different directions, special windows, and verandas (porches). You can see all these features in the Reuel E. Smith House.
Davis's beautiful designs can be found in many places in the Northeast and the Hudson River Valley. Even though many of his homes have been torn down, the Reuel E. Smith House still stands proudly by Skaneateles Lake. It is truly a "jewel" from "America's Picturesque Architect."
Davis was also friends with Andrew Jackson Downing. Downing was a landscape designer who loved the Gothic Revival style. He probably helped Davis with some of the ideas for the Reuel E. Smith House, including its inside design.
