Barbara Rhines

To be clear, this was no ordinary carriage house even at its inception. Built in a whimsical Carpenter Gothic style, the level of workmanship and design signaled the esteem in which the original family’s horses and carriages were held. A ventilating cupola edged in gingerbread trim and topped with a sleek finial showcased the latest building innovations and style during the mid-Victorian period.

At the end of a pastoral road in Concord, past crisp Colonials and a few mid-century modern Deck houses, there is an enchanting French Norman-style cottage. With leaded glass windows, a romantic, ivy-covered tower, and fascinating ancient brickwork patterns, the house evokes the European countryside.

Often the owners of a beautiful home are called “lucky” or “fortunate” and the same can be said of this historic home, which has benefited from a caring line of owners throughout its 250 years of existence. Now, its current owners, Reinier and Nancy Beeuwkes, have arranged for its permanent preservation. Every historic property should be so lucky.

Concord Center’s beautiful homes are a pageant of architectural history, and among the Federal-era, Colonial-era, and Victorian homes stands this delightful Stick Style home. A rare style in Concord, the home was built in the 1860s for William Munroe Jr.’s gardener. The Stick Style is notable for its functional-appearing but decorative woodwork, such as the diagonal trusses that span the roof’s gable ends.¹