If you, like many preservationists, harbor a secret enjoyment of shopping and are rehabilitating -- or are interested in someday rehabilitating -- an older or historic building, surf on over to New York City's real estate blog, Brownstoner (Brooklyn inside and out), which recently posted "Reno[vation] Bloggers Take New England Salvage Road Trip."
This entry points readers to Architectural Salvage Romp in New England, their well-illustrated review of eight salvage (and related) shops in New England, including:
This entry points readers to Architectural Salvage Romp in New England, their well-illustrated review of eight salvage (and related) shops in New England, including:
- Portland [Maine] Architectural Salvage & Antiques - which bills itself as "Urban elegance and sophistication with an antique and architectural past."
- Decorum (Portland, ME) - whole house specialty hardware, "specializing in unique upscale kitchen, bath, door and cabinet hardware, accessories and curiosities."
- Nostalgia Lighting (Portland, ME) - "Period, custom-made interior lighting" for the "Home, Cottage, Lodge, Timber Frame and Cabin - Fixtures Individually Made and Handcrafted."
- Old House Parts Company (Kennebunk, ME) - "Architectural Salvage from 1730 to 1930 - You have the dream, we have the parts."
- Victorian Lighting (Kennebunk, ME) - Couldn't load their web address.
- Vermont Salvage (White River Junction and Manchester, VT) - "New England's premier company for architectural salvage."
- Nor'east Architectural Antiques (South Hampton, NH) - Nor'East Architectural Antiques recently filmed a pilot for a new series about architectural salvage with the History Channel.
- New England Demo & Salvage (New Bedford, MA)
I can't wait to check these out. If, however, you are in New York State, or wish to find architectural salvage businesses in New York, good starting places include Historic Albany Foundation's Architectural Parts Warehouse, and Historic Ithaca's Significant Elements - nonprofit architectural salvage programs. Proceeds from sales at both places support the parent historic preservation organizations.
Located at 89 Lexington Avenue in Albany (one block north of Central Avenue), the not-for-profit Architectural Parts Warehouse (photograph above from Historic Albany's web site) carries doors and windows, decorative iron work and stained glass, lighting fixtures, clawfoot and other tubs, plumbing accessories, sinks and toilets, mantels and fireplaces, radiators and heating, spindles, stair rails, newel posts, moldings, woodwork, flooring, and hardware. It's a great place to spend a few hours, support Historic Albany Foundation, and volunteer.
As always, if you know of other places we may be interested in, please let us know in a comment. And thanks for reading. I will add links to other salvage places to this post if I hear of more.
The February 22, 2007 edition of the New York Times also featured an article about architectural salvage shops in New York: Top of the Heap: A Business Built on Salvage.
As always, if you know of other places we may be interested in, please let us know in a comment. And thanks for reading. I will add links to other salvage places to this post if I hear of more.
