January 2014 MAINE COASTAL NEWS Page 5. Making the Ultimate House from a Shipyard Building
BATH – There are a lot of very fi ne, expen- sive homes along the coast of Maine. Some of them are century old classics built by wealthy business people or summer visitors. Others are of a modern design owned by the successful people of more recent times. The large old homes in most coastal towns had the air of status, many being owned by wealthy ship-owners and sea captains. One would not think an industrial site, especially a shipyard, as an impressive place. It takes someone with vision to build an extremely elegant home with grounds to match, which is what was done at 21 Bowery Street in Bath.
When looking up the Kennebec River from the bridge crossing between Bath and Woolwich you can see on the left hand side the site of the old sardine factory, which burned about seven years ago. This at one time was the site of several shipyards and a claim was made that more ships have been built on this property than any other location in the world. (Not sure that is true.) In 1915 this site was owned by the Texas Steamship Company, who built oil tankers, barges and tugs. At one time they employed 3,000 people. Following World War I there was a glut of vessels and the shipyard went out of business. Most of the machinery had been removed soon after and in 1936 a fi re destroyed most of the wooden buildings on the site.
Nearly 70 years later the property was purchased and the owner built a very im- pressive home on nearly 4 acres of land with 420 feet of river frontage on the Kennebec. If you drive by and take a quick look the home does not look very big. You will see what looks like a small cape with a two door garage. If you walk by and take a closer look you will note there are three levels and once inside you can grasp the true actual size of this home. You will also note that what was
left of the original building, mostly cement foundations, brick walls, granite and ledge was kept prominent where possible. The rest of the house they used insulated reinforced concrete for the fl oors and walls; Douglas fi r wood frame and the roof is copper. The total living space is over 5,600 square feet and has 11 rooms, with three plus bedrooms and 2½ baths. We entered on the south side going through the glass conservatory and into a beautiful European styled kitchen, which is on the middle level. Once through the kitchen you enter the living/dining room, which has a beautiful granite fi replace. At the north end of this level was an offi ce. Go- ing between fl oors there is a centre staircase built of steel with glass treads. Going up you will fi nd the garage to the left and the master bedroom with a great view of the river to the right. Off the master bedroom is an im- pressive walk through closet and bathroom. There is a tub in the centre of the fl oor and when you turn the facet water comes out of the ceiling. Going down to the lower level is another offi ce and quest rooms. It is also where the furnace is located, which supplies the in-fl oor radiant heat and hot water to the entire building.
Outside the grounds still show evidence of the shipyard, but has been landscaped nicely. In fact the gazebo was built on the foundation for one of the three large cranes once used at the yard. There is a 200-foot long pier, which can dock a boat up to 100 feet in length.
There were certainly challenges in the design and construction of this building, but in the end it came together as a very impressive home. Coupled with its grounds, location and views makes it one of the more special nd most interesting properties on the market today.
This was originally the site of several shipyards. This photograph shows the buildings of the Texas Steamship Company built into the hill where this home now sits.
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The living room of this exquisite home at 21 Bowery Street in Bath.
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