Time Warner Cable
Business Class
Road Runner
 |
||
 |
|
|
|
Southerly What it is: This 18,000-square-foot, $12.75 million Shingle Style mansion, built just eight years ago in exclusive Seal Harbor, looks out on half of Acadia National Park. Terraces cover the length of the structure. Includes seven bedrooms, a full gourmet kitchen, and wine cellar. Designed by Randy Seay in the tradition of a Frederick Savage Shingle Style cottage. Decoration by New Yorker Martin Kuckly. What it comes with: A two-bedroom guest/caretaker’s cottage, heated swimming pool, formal gardens, elevator, 300 feet of water frontage. It also comes with $49,018 in property taxes. The great room, formal dining room, and kitchen have granite fireplaces. Where it is: Seal Harbor is 160 miles from Portland, approximately 3 hours, 46 minutes by Ford Taurus, 1 hour, 27 minutes by Ferrari. Your neighbors include David Rockefeller and Martha Stewart. Representation: Story Litchfield, LandVest, at 276-3840.
Atlantique, Crown Jewel of Bar Harbor
What it comes with: Water frontage of 170 feet on Frenchman Bay, 4.33 acres, USGA-standard putting green, championship croquet court. The grounds also include a carriage house and a gatehouse. Estimated annual taxes $27,341. Backstory: Built in 1904 by Fred Savage for John Innes Kane, grandson of fur tycoon John Jacob Astor. Current owners are Bob and Cathy Barrett. “Cathy was fashion editor of Town & Country Magazine and is a former model in Europe, U.S. Doubles croquet champion, and a member of the croquet hall of fame. Bob is an investment banker, retired from Wall Street.” The formal gardens are so voluptuous that “Beatrix interns” from the University of Maine come here each year to landscape the grounds while pursuing their degrees. During busy summer days, retreat to the peace of your private estate or join the shoppers and diners on Bar Harbor’s active Main Street. Where it is: On your way to Atlantique, you’ll drive past an all-star lineup of homes, including “Reef Point,” which features the work of Beatrix Farrand, renowned landscape architect of the early 1900s. Location is 175 miles from Portland, surrounded by Acadia National Park. Representation: Pat Coston, The Swan Agency, 288-5818.
Breckinridge
In the movie Empire Falls, Breckinridge appears as the home of the character played by Joanne Woodward. The house, donated by the late Mrs. Patterson to Bowdoin College, is being de-acquisitioned by the college for $5.375 million. The original architect was Guy Lowell, who designed the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and Portland’s Cumberland County Courthouse. The original structure burned in 1905 and was reconstructed in 1927. What it comes with: Twenty-three acres, including 2,100 feet of frontage along the York River; a castle-like interior; “Grand Tour” wallpaper in the dining room featuring the seven wonders of the world; tiled garden room in celadon; a study in Chinese red; a rose garden (all white roses) with maze and circular fountain; legendary plantings and vistas that put this house at the pinnacle of society in the 1920s; edge-and-centerboard His & Hers bathhouses beside the enormous (102-feet in diameter, 9 feet deep) turquoise circular pool; a lovely dock on the river; and a field house for rope climbing, squash, and basketball, with wall-mounted weights and cages protecting the windows. The only thing missing is the medicine ball. Whom to call: Vaughan Pratt, LandVest, 774-8518.
Kalm Harbour
What comes with it: Jewel-like lawns and gardens that hug the rocky coastline. Don’t worry if it gets late—your guests can spend the night in either the Pond Cottage or the Sunflower Cottage. Other amenities include two ponds for canoeing and ice-skating, riding and hiking paths, a deepwater pier and a float with two moorings, a batting cage, a lighted tennis court, and a two-story treehouse. If a Nor’easter hits, head indoors to your movie theater, artist’s studio, stables, or boathouse. The arcade in the barn features six pinball machines and countless video games. The lodge includes a heated pool, stone fireplace, full gym, and stuffed predators (no, not teddy bears—a 10-foot Kodiak bear, a rare golden eagle, and a jaguar). Estimated annual taxes $16,120. Where it is: In the community of South Harpswell. Nearby attractions include Eagle Island State Park, home of polar explorer Admiral Robert Peary, and Bailey Island. Representation: John R. Saint-Amour, LandVest, 774-8518. Ravenscleft
Background: Named after the ravens who once nested on a ledge below the house. Original owner James Ford Rhodes, a coal magnate from Cleveland, spent his retirement writing Civil War history in Boston and Seal Harbor. Much of the furniture that decorated the house in 1901 is still here. The Rhodeses’ distinguished guests included presidents and senators, but since James liked his privacy, they rarely spent the night. Luckily, the ample servants’ quarters can now accommodate your overnight guests, presidential or otherwise.
The town of Seal Harbor lies on the edge of Acadia National Park. Sandy Seal Harbor beach is just around the corner from Ravenscleft, and a boardwalk conducts you to the center of town, less than a mile away. Carry your sandals while you walk, then put them on when you arrive to explore the village restaurants and pubs. Finally, let Ravenscleft be your navigational landmark as you wander homeward. Representation: Torie Hallock, The Knowles Company, 276-3322.
Bay of Pigeons What it is: A camp with 80 feet of shore frontage on Pigeon Hill Bay in Steuben, Maine. Listed for $137,500 with annual taxes of $812.
What it comes with: Two bedrooms, five rooms in all. There’s electric heat and an electric range, plus a generous refrigerator for holding all the provisions you need for weekends in the country. A deck affords the best views of the bay. Where it is: Heading up Route 1 from Bar Harbor, you’ll spot the “Entering Washington County” sign at the same time as you pass the “Welcome to Steuben” sign. The town is the county’s southwesternmost point. It was named for Baron von Steuben, who fought for the colonists in the Revolutionary War. From Route 1 look for Pigeon Hill Road. The home is at the end of the road on the right, where the ocean starts opening up to eternity.
Representation: Jeremy Pietila, Knowles Real Estate, 667-4604. Both Sides Now What it is: Listed for $63,500 with estimated annual taxes of $623, this New England shingle farmhouse shimmers with water frontage--a deep green pond on one side and views of Pennamaquan Bay on the other. The garage across the way could be transformed into a comfortable porch or studio, perfectly situated for views of the bay.
What it comes with: Eight rooms, including a den and a basement. When you come in from your morning walk among plum and apple trees, shed your jacket and boots in the mud room and lay your damp socks in front of the wood stove to dry. Where it is: Hardy Point Road, off Route 1 in Pembroke, which is about four hours north of Portland. If your 1.85 acres are too small, head for Pembroke’s 140-acre Cobscook Reversing Falls Park. Here, tidal surges create the illusion of water falling backwards over an eight-foot drop. Water falling backwards? Hard to believe. Then again, you’ve just found a house on the coast of Maine with an ocean view for under $100,000—you’ve already learned that anything is possible. Representation: Joe Robbins, Sunrise Realty, 255-3039. Times Have Changed, But the View Hasn’t What it is: For just $95,900 and taxes of $1865, a large Colonial with views of estuaries in East Machias with an in-town location convenient to UMaine.
What it was: This sturdy patriot was originally built as a simple country estate with a barn, a fireplace, and a sapling in the front yard. The barn has now been changed to a two-story garage, and the sapling towers over the house—but the fireplace and lovely views remain unchanged. What it comes with: Perched on a full acre, the white frame house has six rooms and a deck. Where it is: East Machias is just a five-minute drive from downtown Machias, 200 miles north of Portland. Machias’s branch of the University of Maine is a center for marine research, but you don’t have to be a biologist to enjoy the town. For music lovers, there’s a summer chamber music series, and for history buffs, there’s the site of the first naval battle of the Revolutionary War, in which Mainers overwhelmed the British schooner Margaretta. This is truly a place to hear the “ticking of eternity.” Representation: Anita Johnson, Sunrise Realty, 255-3898. Cutler Cottage What it is: A quaint shingle cottage on Little Machias Bay listed for $125,000 with taxes of $467. Enjoy the privacy of this gem located off of the main road and overlooking the curve of the ocean as it smashes into Cutler, Maine.
What it comes with: You’ve made sacrifices, but this is absolutely a million-dollar ocean view. Well water supplied from a spring. Take time to explore the numerous hiking trails around Cutler or join a puffin-watching expedition to Machias Seal Island that departs from Cutler’s pier. Where it is: From Main Street in Bar Harbor, drive along Frenchman Bay past the Mount Desert narrows and onto Route 3. Hop onto Route 1 and enjoy the rambling drive along the coast through historic fishing villages. In East Machias, head south on Route 191, also known as Cutler Road. In Cutler, drive down a right-of-way and over a hill. You’ll feel a storybook piece of mind envelop you as you drive up to your shingled home at the end of the road. Representation: Joe Robbins at Sunrise Realty, 255-3039 First Sunrise What it is: Eastport, Maine, is the first place the sun touches the United States each morning, and you can get a rejuvenating shot of it right at the ferry terminal in this two-family Victorian with two identical units. Offered for $89,000 with taxes of $1,361, this yellow-shingled home offers outstanding flexibility for a buyer: Either rent one apartment to bring in some extra money, use it for a business, or move in the extended family. With the ocean swells just a walk away, any of these dreams can be reality. What it comes with: Each identical apartment has a living room, dining room, bathroom, kitchen, and two bedrooms. A full basement provides room for storage or remodeling.
Where it is: Take Route 1 up the coast through Bath, Camden, and Machias, then turn right onto Route 190. Finally, take a right on Water Street where the yellow house awaits your arrival. Representation: Dexter Jones, Due East Realty, 733-4540. On The Edge What it is: This beautifully landscaped double-lot home in Eastport was built in the early 1900s, has a large grassy yard, and thrills with views of the ocean and dreamy Campobello Island, where President Franklin Delano Roosevelt used to relax. The fenced yard provides privacy (as if you need that in Eastport), and the deck is a perfect place for watching the tides and keeping an eye on the children. The owners never finished the third bedroom on the second floor, a cozy hideaway for falling asleep to the sounds of the waves. The spare room on the first floor could also be a bedroom, welcoming guests or another child.
What it comes with: The kitchen includes range and refrigerator beyond the stunning ocean views. Other rooms on the first floor are the living room, bathroom, and the spare room. The second floor has three bedrooms, one unfinished. There is a new electric water heater, washer, and dryer. What it costs: This house is going to set you back $75,000, with taxes of $854. Representation: Dexter Jones, Due East Realty, 733-4540. Addison Avenue What it is: Yours for $78,000 with estimated annual taxes of $674, this three-bedroom cape with sincere purple shutters is situated on half an acre of pristine landscape overlooking West River Bay, a favorite place for eagles and osprey to swoop. Across the fennel grass, lobster boats sway with the tide, backdropped by an almost black line of Norway spruce beyond lush carpets of Labrador tea. What you see is what you get here: five rooms and a deck, with a clean, well-lighted basement for storage. There’s plenty of room down there, because your dreams are already unpacked.
Where it is: Take the less-beaten path of the Downeast Highway beyond metropolitan Waukeag Neck, Gouldsboro, East Steuben, and Milbridge. Named for writer Joseph Addison, the town is halfway between Bar Harbor and Machias. With a population of just over 1,000, it won’t be long before you’ve met everyone up here. Addison’s marshes are well-known among birdwatchers. Animal enthusiasts of a different stripe frequent the local llama farm. Representation: Dorothy Blackwood, Re-Max A-1, 255-8133.
What it is: How can you resist this tiny outpost, with three or four bedrooms overlooking the spooky East Machias River Estuary, for just $69,000 and taxes of $1,021? Beyond the designer wildlife and time-warp views, this stark Greek revival cape with ell features a workshop, woodshed, sewing room, and attached one-car garage. The unfinished bedroom and attic beckon to be transformed into creative spaces. City dwellers, look over your heads: Those are stars. Where it is: Route 191, East Machias. Representation: Joe Robbins, Sunrise Realty, 255-3039
Send a comment on this story to Portland Magazine's Editors |
© Copyright Time Warner Cable unless otherwise indicated
BY Janet Blevins, Katharina M. Hagmann, Brita Zitin
What it is: This $6.25-million Tudor home will provide unspoiled
views of Frenchman Bay. Watch schooners and cruise ships passing by your beautifully
landscaped gardens. Invite guests to summer here in their choice of 15 bedrooms.
What it is: York’s most fabulous mansion was built along the historic
York River in 1927, bringing together the fortunes of rubber magnate B.F. Goodrich
and John C. Breckinridge–Vice President of the United States under Buchanan
from 1857 to 1861 and later the Confederates’ Secretary of War. Vassar
graduate Mary Marvin Breckinridge Patterson, the most recent owner, worked
Edward R. Murrow’s CBS team in Europe during World War II as one of “the
Murrow boys”; published photos with Vogue, The Washington
Post, Life (in the 1930s, covering the Nazi Rallies in Nuremberg), Look, and Town & Country;
and became the first female aviator to win a pilot’s license in Maine.
Her husband, Jefferson Patterson, couldn’t quite keep up but did serve
as U.S. Ambassador to Peru, Egypt, and Uruguay.
What it is: Originally built in the 1920s, Kalm Harbour sprawls over 67 acres
of South Harpswell, with 700 feet of frontage on Harpswell Sound, including
a sandy beach. The current owners of this Adirondack-style Shangri-La, listed
for $5.75 million, picked it up as a second home in the 1980s and rebuilt the
main house in 1995, after a fire burned it to the ground.
What it is: A century ago, ships sailing into Seal Harbor scanned the horizon
for this Victorian Tudor mansion, listed for $5.2 million, with estimated annual
taxes of $12,388. Once they spotted Ravenscleft, they knew they were home.
You’ll feel the same way when you tour these 17 remarkable rooms, almost
all of which offer sweeping ocean views made more dramatic by towering Norway
spruces. 
What it comes with: Approximately two acres of land sparkling with 700 feet
of bold ocean frontage. Nine of Ravenscleft’s 17 rooms are bedrooms.
You’ll also enjoy a study, walk-in pantry, and a generous linen closet
to store all those guest towels.
BY Janet Blevins, Katharina M. Hagmann, Brita Zitin
Yestuary!
