John R. Hays House

The John R. Hays House is located on Maple Street in Walden, New York. Hayes, a prominent local businessman of the late 19th century and officer in the 124th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the Civil War, built it in a Second Empire style.

It has been largely unaltered since its original construction. In 2002 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).

Description

It is a two-by-two-bay two-story building on a rubblestone foundation mostly exposed in front by the downward slope of the property. Clapboard siding gives way to a decorated frieze and bracketed cornice at the roofline. The mansard roof is shingled in modern asphalt that resembles the slate that was originally used.

A single round-arched dormer window on the east of the roof is complemented by a gabled dormer with double window next to that itself tops two stories of oriel windows. Next to it, the main entrance is framed by a porch which wraps around the eastern side of the house. It is fronted with a balustrade of scroll sawn panels, and a set of stairs drops to the ground in front of the double-doored entrance.

Other than the porch, the east facade is much less decorative than the front, with a single window in each bay on both stories. There is another pair of stairs on this side. The west elevation has just the windows. The south is where the slightly offset single-story rear wing is connected.<ref...
Read More