When you stop in front of this house, look toward Clarissa Street. Notice the houses that line both sides of a well-established street. They look as though they’ve been there for a century or more. But forty years ago, a number of these homes were not at their present locations. Many original houses were lost because neglect had made them unsalvageable. The Landmark Society came up with an idea to move endangered houses from other locations to replace ones that had been torn down, thereby preserving the integrity of an older neighborhood. This house was one of them, moved from 463 Tremont Street in the 19th Ward where it was standing empty and abandoned.
John Aceto and Lee Pumputis have lived in this house for seventeen years, decorating it in a style that Lee describes as “French salon inspired by the Victorian era.” The house has several charms the owners like to point out. The red oak woodwork throughout the house has never been painted and its beautiful grain retains stunning clarity. They will proudly point to the tin ceiling in the kitchen and (get this!) the copper tub in the bathroom upstairs.
The house is art and has inspired art. Original work is prominently displayed, hanging on walls where decorative patterns are hand-painted; you won’t find a bit of wallpaper. The house is also featured in one of the most popular posters from the fifty-year history of the Corn Hill Arts Festival (you’ll see it). It features revelers wearing Corn Hill houses as hats. The hat on the left is this house.
Just in time for the holidays: a fanciful house with surprises at every turn.
