Five Centuries of Fireplaces - part 1

Five Centuries of Fireplaces - Part 1

17th and 18th Centuries

Let's enjoy a quick survey of fireplaces from the 1690s until today, strictly speaking about 325 years but spanning five centuries, the 17th through 21st. Funny how that works out. I've focused on American examples but there are a few European examples as well, to fill in key gaps.

This post looks at a late 17th century example and several 18th century examples. Nineteenth and 20th century examples will follow in separate posts and there will be a final post about fireplaces today.

Israel Arnold House, Lincoln, Rhode Island - 1695 - Photo by Historic American Building Survey (HABS)

The Israel Arnold House (1695) in Lincoln Rhode Island was built and expanded over several periods. But it started out as a two room cottage anchored by a massive fireplace. This is the gambrel roofed kitchen wing we see today. (All about gambrel roofs here.)

Israel Arnold House, Ground Floor Plan

In the floor plan above (see my eBay store for house plans) the kitchen can be seen at the left, with an oven to the left side.

Israel Arnold House, fireplace showing an array of cooking equipment

Israel Arnold House fireplace plan detail

The oven at the left is covered by a cast iron panel. Both wood and iron panels were commonly used. It was normal to build 2 or even 3 separate smaller fires in the fireplaces, for varied cooking and heating needs. The pivoting iron arm enabled cooks to move pots closer or further from the flames to control temperatures more precisely.

At the Peak House of 1711, in Medfield, MA, we see a picture of what the first 100 years of life was like in the new colonies. Security and warmth were paramount. There was no time for luxuries. But there was time to do things right.

Peak House, Medfield, MA - 1711 - Photo by HABS

The Peak House consists of sturdily built timber frame around a massive brick fireplace at its core. The fireplace includes an oven to one side. The brick chimney, heated by the fire at the ground floor, carried its heat up through the center of the house, warming all the rooms. Plans of the Peak House are available at my eBay store.

Peak House plans & elevations (HABS)

Peak House fireplace - photo courtesy: Patch

The Fenno House, at Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, MA dates from 1725, just a few years later than the Peak House. The curators of the house have lovingly restored it and arranged it as it would have been originally.

Fenno House fireplace, Old Sturbridge Village, Sturbridge, MA

The fireplace, set up for open cooking, also includes an oven in the back. A pair of log rests and a suspended kettle suggest how it was used. It was common practice to set multiple smaller fires within the one fireplace, depending on cooking and heating needs. A small fire of kindling could be set under the kettle at one side, or a larger fire for warmth could be set on the log rests, or even both fires could be set at the same time.

Fenno House fireplace, detail - Photo courtesy Colonial America: The Simple Life

By the middle of the century life was more prosperous. Time and resources could be devoted to some luxuries. Although fireplaces were still the primary means of heating homes, they could be more than utilitarian. They could exemplify the aesthetic ideals of the time as well.

The taste setter of the time was the Scottish architect, Robert Adam. Together with his brother James, he built and remodeled many great houses of the British elite, as well as developing the Adelphi Terrace in London. Most influential of all were his books, in which he published his own designs.

A mantelpiece design by Robert Adam, 1775

Adam's works were well known to the cultural leaders of early America, such as Thomas Jefferson, and copies of his books were found in American homes. On trips to London Jefferson himself saw buildings designed by Adam.

A mantelpiece design by Robert Adam

When Jefferson came to designing his own home at Monticello he looked to the works of Adam for inspiration.

Monticello Dining Room - 1770s - Photo courtesy Monticello.org

Clearly fireplaces such as this were no longer used for cooking. But they did still serve as the principal heat source. Kitchens typically migrated into the basement or into a separate building. At Monticello, the original, rather small kitchen was in a cellar. But as Jefferson expanded his home he added a much larger kitchen in the south wing, replete with a fireplace and two ovens, as well as a range of brick-built wood stoves.

Monticello, 1809 kitchen - Photo courtesy Monticello.org

But this brings us up to 1809. So it's time to end this post and save the 19th century for later this week.
Coming up next, the 19th Century in all its variety and profusion!