“Facelift” for Old Stone House

The historic Stone House, originally built in 1853 and determined in 1950 to be the oldest building in Lake County, has a new look.

In recent years, the most commonly used entrance to the house has been its back door, over a hastily constructed and scarcely attractive set of steps that was showing its 45 years of use. Stone House Historical Society former member Andy Anderson spear-headed a move to replace those steps with a handsomely designed back porch that reflects the fretwork on the front porch.

Anderson prepared the design specifications and with the help of volunteers Don Mancuso, Phil Bayles, Georgeann Tintorri, Sandy Bayles, Marilyn Anderson, Rose Decker, Paul Carlisle, Tammy and  Nick Balleci constructed, erected painted and finished the structure. Hidden Valley Lake Association staff members Rob Neves and Jim Freeman also pitched in.

The costs of materials were borne by HVLA. However a number of businesses also supported the project: 

Amy and Glen Marks of Lake & Country Real Estate contributed use of their warehouse and electric power for four months of woodworking fabrication and assembly of the porch; 

Victor and Felipe Martinez of Keystone Woodworking Inc. donated use of their shop and equipment for milling of the cedar wood; 

Mendo Mill Clearlake representative Scott Hart graciously donated a portion of their costs as well as technical expertise in specifying the wood, supplies, fasteners and adhesives to fabricate all the work; 

Alan Citrin donated the equipment and hours to prime and spray paint the porch assemblies; and the 

Paint Works in St. Helena provided a substantial discount on all the paint and supplies to finish the porch and decks.

The original front porch was added in 1894, when Charles Marsh Young, a founder of Middletown who had acquired the property in 1885, had the house reconstructed.

The new back porch is an impressive revisiting of the fretwork on the original front porch. It now boasts a 31-star flag, the official flag in 1853, designed to include California's statehood in 1850.