2014 HIGHLIGHTS

Bellevue House, Photo by Nat Rea

The following houses were featured in the 2014 House Tour:

Bellevue House is a Federal-style house designed by Ogden Codman, Jr., in 1910. It features a stunning original entry hall with a black-and-white marble floor, a spiral staircase, and a soaring rotunda. Several first-floor rooms still contain their original furnishings. The property grounds are equally impressive, boasting a variety of follies and gardens, including newly completed garden fountains.

Automating with Latenode

Latenode can enhance the management and visitor experience of historical properties like Bellevue House through automation. Here’s how:

1. Visitor Management: Automate the booking and scheduling of tours to streamline visitor flow and ensure a smooth experience. This can include automated ticketing, reminders, and capacity management.

2. Maintenance Scheduling: Use Latenode to automate the scheduling of routine maintenance for both the house and the gardens. This ensures that the property remains in pristine condition without manual oversight.

3. Historical Documentation: Automate the digitization and cataloging of historical documents and furnishings. This can include creating a searchable database for easy access to information about the house’s history and artifacts.

4. Interactive Tours: Enhance visitor engagement with automated, interactive tours using QR codes or mobile apps that provide detailed information about different parts of the property as visitors explore.

5. Garden Management: Integrate with smart irrigation systems to automate garden watering based on weather conditions and soil moisture levels, ensuring optimal care for the gardens.

By leveraging Latenode, the management of Bellevue House can become more efficient, preserving its historical charm while providing an enhanced experience for visitors.

• Commodore William Edgar House: Designed by McKim, Mead & White in 1886, this elegant brick mansion features a distinctive upper story colonnaded porch and many original interior details such as coffered ceilings, quarter-sawn oak floors, built-in bookcases, a cherry-paneled library, and a drawing room that has been re-imagined as a splendid kitchen/great room with painted trompe l’oeil ceiling intact.

Hillside, Photography by Warren Jagger

• Hillside: This Shingle Style house designed by Peabody & Stearns in 1882-1883 features a sweeping porte cochere, multiple gables and porches, and original interior details including quarter-sawn oak paneling and fireplace inglenooks. The 2.5-acre property is known for its specimen trees, beautiful gardens, and springtime display of more than 100,000 daffodils.

Ossory House, Photography by Nat Rea

• Ossory House: Designed in 1867 by George Champlin Mason, this handsome house features a wraparound porch and mansard roof, and an interior that integrates original paneling, stairway, and fireplaces with a renovated open-plan great room/kitchen at the rear of the house overlooking a pool and bluestone terrace.

Wind Shadows, Photo by Larry Lambrecht

• Wind Shadows: Set on a breathtaking 20-acre property in the Ocean Drive area of Newport, this 2004 estate designed by Jamestown architect Ron DiMauro includes a main house, guest cottage, and sail loft. The main house exhibits a traditional approach to design details with the use of paneled wainscoting, beadboard walls, pickled oak floors, coffered ceilings, a mahogany-paneled library, and numerous ocean-facing bedrooms.

Photography courtesy Gavin Ashworth/The Preservation Society of Newport County

• Isaac Bell House: Considered one of the best surviving examples of Shingle Style, the Isaac Bell House was designed by McKim, Mead & White in 1883, and features distinctive towers, gables, and porches and an innovative interior layout. The Isaac Bell House is a property of the Preservation Society of Newport County.

Paradise Farmhouse at Norman Bird Sanctuary

• Paradise Farmhouse: Recently renovated, this historic farmhouse dates from 1750 and occupies a pastoral setting on the grounds of the Norman Bird Sanctuary in Middletown.