A historic cedar-shingled home among the lavender fields with a kitchen built for a true chef.
The nuts and bolts
4 bedrooms
2 bathrooms
2,500 square feet
3.2 acres
House proud
Built circa mid-1600s, this Cape-style home is an exceptional example of a very early North Fork building with much of its original details intact, and yet sensitively updated to be a home with modern conveniences.
“Homes like this one are a rare find, especially since most houses from this era were located on the main road,” says Kate DiGregorio, the Corcoran agent who is co-listing the home with Rebecca Shafer. “It still has the integrity of the original house with all the details, and is in move-in condition”
Both agents noted that the very large rooms and ceiling height are unusual of an early 17th-century house, making this an especially unique offering.
“High ceilings are so rare in houses of this period,” Shafer adds. “To see this height, clearly the [original] owner had height and the financial ability to build to this scale.”
What’s the plan?
The first level includes the 320-square-foot living room, an open-format kitchen and dining area, another 210-square-foot formal dining room and a primary ensuite bedroom. The remaining three bedrooms, ranging from 129 to 292 square feet, are on the second floor and share a full bathroom. There’s a library with built-in bookcases on the second level. The dining room, living room and kitchen all have their original wood-burning fireplaces. The full basement is unfinished, features a fieldstone foundation, and is accessed via a ladder on the interior and a Bilco door on the exterior.
What’s cooking?
The kitchen is a true chef’s kitchen: The home belonged to Rosa de Carvalho Ross, a well-known chef, cookbook author and teacher in the North Fork community and beyond, noted for her unique farm-to-table Asian-influenced cuisine. She was the owner of Scrimshaw restaurant in Greenport. The 317-square-foot kitchen reflects her personal interests and professional life, equipped with commercial-grade appliances, butcher block countertops and custom pot racks.
What else?
Throughout the home, the original wood details have been preserved—wide-plank floors and doors, the multi-pane sash windows, exposed ceiling beams and fireplace mantle details.
Amenities and more
- Three fireplaces
- A custom library
- Garden shed
- Outdoor shower
One cool thing
Although she had a professional-grade cooktop in the kitchen’s center island, Ross used to cook in the kitchen fireplace, alternating between past and present cooking techniques. Born in Hong Kong, she lived in London and in Milan, where she met and befriended Marcella Hazan, the “godmother” of Italian cooking and who took her under her wing. Her Scrimshaw restaurant would pay homage to that tutelage, as well as her multi-cultural background. (Read Lily Parnell’s interview with Ross in Northforker last year.)
Agent’s callout
“This is a refined house refined with a very low key North Fork feel and a property size that can accommodate accessory buildings,” DiGregorio says.
Shafer adds, “I feel there are such few houses if this period even left and this one has been maintained with such a gentle hand, that it has retained its original character.”
Location, location, location
Surrounded by lavender fields, the historic home on Cedar Lane is .6 miles from the village of East Marion. In the center of the North Fork, it is 1.1 miles to the water’s edge, with access points at Cleaves Point, the Fox Island marina. Also nearby are Island’s End Golf & Country Club and Gull Pond.
Details
The home at 1117 Cedar Lane lists for $2,775,000 and the details can be seen here.
