Your Old or Historic Home
Historic New England wants you to know how to conserve and care for your old or historic home. With a century's worth of experience in historic preservation, Historic New England has the expertise to help you protect the unique character of your house, whether it was built in 1750 or 1950. Membership at Historic New England provides additional services tailored to the specific issues you encounter in your home, including the Historic Homeowner membership program and the Old House Maintenance Advisor service.
Feature Story
Blue porch ceilings
Homeowners often ask how a porch ceiling should be painted, and take for granted that an old-fashioned porch ceiling was always painted blue. But research shows that blue porch ceilings were not typical, and indeed, the treatment for most porch ceilings, at least early in the last century, was to varnish the ceiling, which most often was lined with tongue-and-groove match or bead-board.
Nonetheless, blue porch ceilings are common, so where did the idea of the blue porch ceiling originate?
Learn more about porch ceiling treatments on our Hot Topics page.
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Common Sense Preservation Portal |
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Historic Homeowner Members
Find links to exclusive Homeowner Member content above.
Old House Maintenance Advisor
Historic New England members at the Household level and above can also access the Old House Maintenance Advisor service for answers to technical questions on old house care (not including paint consultations, design evaluations, or specialized contractor contacts). Learn more.
Historic Homeowner Membership
For detailed, ongoing advice for your old or historic home, consider Historic Homeowner membership. Read Testimonials (New!) The Historic Homeowner program supports you with individualized technical support, including online consultation to select historically appropriate paint colors, evaluate design proposals, and locate specialized contracting. Learn more.
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