The Residence

Completed in 1901, the three-floor, stucco-clad Residence was designed by Henry Bacon, later renowned as the architect of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D. C. With nine bedrooms in the Residence, French was able to host many seasonal guests, and house a small staff year-round. 

The Residence incorporates several architectural styles: English Georgian, American Colonial Revival, and references to Italian villa architecture. The exterior bears generalized Colonial Revival details (symmetry, dormers, and shutters). The siting of the house on a ridge with splendid views from the porches and terraces is more likely drawn from Italian sources. The overall design must have deeply appealed to French, because it combined the form of his grandfather’s beloved Chester, NH, Colonial Revival house with nostalgic references to the architecture seen during his Italian travels. The Residence’s exterior features another family connection: French’s sister-in-law, Alice Helm French, applied fresco images of flower and fruit garlands to the Breakfast Porch’s pale yellow walls. For the next thirty-one years, she continued to retouch frescoes as they weathered.

The Residence contains antique furnishings that were either family heirlooms or bought by the sculptor at local antique auctions. Some elements were reused or recycled from other structures. French was a proponent of “adaptive reuse,” and repurposed the original Warner farmhouse’s doors, molding, and fireplace surround. He installed silver-plated knobs and hinges rescued from a New York City townhouse under demolition. Although French’s daughter made changes in furnishings, decoration, and structure after Chesterwood passed to her ownership, the house is essentially the same as it was when it served as the family’s summer retreat.