Sag Harbor Architecture

During the 1970s, Sag Harbor experienced an architectural Renaissance.

Many of the clapboard homes that line the narrow, tree lined streets were in need of a facelift.  The historic Harbor was experiencing its own version of urban blight.  Unprovoked, residents began picking up paint brushes and pounding nails.  Almost overnight, a market opened up for deteriorating 19th Century sailors' cottages.

Sanding knotty, wide plank pine floors turned into a popular pastime.  Having a manicured lawn was chic.  Reciting the history of your 18th century colonial saltbox home became cocktail conversation.

Gradually, all eyes turned to Sag Harbor - a village that has quietly emerged from decades of being in the shadow of the sunny Hamptons.  The 300-year-old Harbor today continues to blossom, and is now recognized as a village of architectural significance.

Sag Harbor's architecture is also a study in 18th and 19th century Eastern Long Island history.  The variety of houses in the Village cover more than 200 years of architectural development, beginning with the simplistic Colonial half houses of the early 1700s, to the elaborate Queen Anne homes popular in the late 1800s.

Sag Harbor is also known for its wealth of Federal and Greek Revival architecture.  More than 100 homes in the Village's close knit neighborhoods exhibit these architectural trends, beginning in 1785 and carried through 1820.  Though fire has swept through the Harbor four times, many of these historic structures were spared, the majority of which are located on Main, Madison, Jefferson, Garden, and Division Streets.
 

From 1785 to 1820, the mood of American architects belonged to the Federal style.  Comfort and quality in homes that were symmetrical, simplistic, yet elegant in design, characterized this architectural trend.  American Federal was seen in small cottages such as the Jared-Wade home on the corner of Union and Madison Streets (circa 1797), as well as larger structures like the Custom House (circa 1789), at Garden and Main Streets.

There is a sense of harmony in these Federal homes, from the proportion and line in the arrangement of their windows, to the characteristic fan shaped transoms above the doorways.  Detailing in the wide fascia board, connecting the roof lines to the sides of the dwellings, is also typical of Sag Harbor's Federal style homes.

By 1820, when most people in Sag Harbor began realizing the profits of the whaling boom, architects turned to the Greek Revival style.  The eclectic forms reflected a mood that Grecian designers experienced centuries before.  The style was one of building in grand proportions, but with limited adornments.  Greek Revival, which is similar to the Federal style, stressed simplicity and performance.
 

The Whaling Museum (circa 1845), which is thought to be designed by architect Minard Lafever, is an example of an elaborate Greek Revival home.  The only temple front Greek Revival building in Sag Harbor, the museum is more severe in style with the embellished Corinthian columns and cornice crest of a lance and blubber spade design.

A less austere example of Greek Revival architecture is the L'Hommedieu House (circa 1840), located on the south corner of Bayview and Main Streets.  The only brownstone in the village, the house has a simple Doric doorway, recessed behind a Doric framework.  The use of this plain order, popular in Greek structures, is less ornamental in comparison to the Federal style homes containing the classic Ionic porticos.

Following Greek Revival, architects briefly practiced a similar style, known as Egyptian.  The Whaler's Church (circa 1844), designed by Lafever, has the battered walls with a slight slant, characteristic of Egyptian Revival.  The steeple of he Presbyterian Church, shaped by a sailor's spyglass, was blown off its perch during the Hurricane of 1938.  The whale blubber spades along the roof line are tributes to the builders of this church.

Trends in Sag Harbor architecture continued with the Gothic Revival style - a revolt against the classical Greek and Egyptian trends.  In opposition to the rigid, symmetrical style, the Gothic homes (circa 1845-1855) are characterized by their pointed arched windows and doorways and barge boards dripping from the roof lines.  The purpose behind the  Gothic design was to create buildings that were in harmony with nature, with particular attention given to the creative use of shadow and light.  Gothic, at its most elaborate form, may be seen in the Hedges House.

Victorian Gothic (Howell and Hannibal French Houses, Main Street), the Second Empire Style (Hope House, circa 1852-1870, Main Street), and the Queen Anne Style (Eaton House, circa 1889, Palmer Terrace), round out the architectural trends of Sag Harbor into the early 20th century.

Sag Harbor is an open-air museum.  The Village's heritage, with roots in the whaling industry, may be read in the roof lines and doorways of its neighbors.

See a collection of unique Sag Harbor Doorways.  Press your BACK button to return here when finished.