This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1916 edition. Excerpt: ...the ideal of homely comfort in the days when people lived close to the hearthstone; it is human and direct. A century ago the fireplace was the source of warmth and good cheer during six months of the year and the very center of home life; here the family gathered when the day's work was done; here the honored ...
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This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1916 edition. Excerpt: ...the ideal of homely comfort in the days when people lived close to the hearthstone; it is human and direct. A century ago the fireplace was the source of warmth and good cheer during six months of the year and the very center of home life; here the family gathered when the day's work was done; here the honored guest was entertained; here youth plighted troth, and plans for new firesides were whispered in the mellow glow from the hearth. The fireplace was a thing of the utmost necessity that could be made beautiful by the application of woodwork with carving and other embellishment. Naturally, therefore, like the architects of all times, McIntire devoted his best efforts to the judicious ornamentation of his mantels and chimney pieces; they became the crowning feature of his interiors, indeed virtually the keynote of the scheme of furnishing and decoration, and, because of McIntire's rare skill and creative genius, they are possessed of exceptional grace of line and proportion. To contemplate these masterpieces of interior woodwork is to comprehend the importance and attributes of the fireplace. Unlike many architects of the present day McIntire realized fully that while sentiment lies in the fire on the hearth, the fire is absent during warm weather, and that as a permanent ornamental feature of the house actual beauty centers not in the fireplace proper but in its architectural setting, the mantel or entire chimney piece. Hence he invariably avoided structural materials that would have emphasized the fireplace opening by strong color-contrast with the white woodwork, such as red brick facings with conspicuous mortar joints. Instead, he employed marble, white and of various tints and markings, gray soapstone, and the like, a precedent in close...
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