The house that Joseph built, or How to protect your home from encroachments

There are many secluded places in the world where you can hide from unwanted guests and annoying fuss. But among them there are special ones, looking at which the soul of a misanthrope rejoices and sings. This is exactly the kind of place Klingstone is — a house on a tiny island in the Atlantic, built by a resentful American at the dawn of the XX century.

The conflict with the mayor's office of Georgetown, which occurred in 1905, divided the life of the family of Joseph Wharton into two parts - "before" and "after". In need of additional space for the expansion of urban development, the authorities through the court took away from Joseph has his house on the outskirts of the city, as well as a small plot of land. For their property, the Whartons received compensation, which was more of an insult than adequate compensation.

Construction of Clingstone House. one thousand nine hundred six

An angry Wharton decided to build a house that would belong only to his family and that, even with a strong desire, it would not be possible to take away. To implement his plan, Joseph purchased from the state of Rhode Island a bare rock in the Narragansett Bay of the Atlantic Ocean, on which he began the construction of his mansion in 1906.

One of the original interiors of the early XX century

The building, which had 23 rooms, of which 10 were bedrooms, had 3 floors, balconies, a terrace and was equipped with everything necessary for life,including sewerage and water supply. The island was connected to the shore, located a few dozen meters away, by a pier, which could only be reached on foot.

The perfect place for privacy

The house in Narragansett Bay got its own name — Klingstone. This word was taken by Joseph Wharton from a botanical reference book and it means a bone that is difficult to separate from the pulp of the fruit. According to the owner, this name most accurately characterized the home of his family, which was now very difficult to survive from home.

Since 1938, you can only get to the house by boat

Wharton's dream came true and his family lived many peaceful years on the windswept Atlantic cliff. There were other owners of the house who preferred the privacy of a picturesque bay by the ocean to the company of people. In 1938, a hurricane broke the pier and Klingstone became even more isolated. Now the island could only be reached by boat or by swimming, through a not wide, but very cold strait.

There is a lot of modern life around Klingstone, but the house is as unchanging as the rock on which it is built

The current owners of the cliff house are the family of architect Henry Wood. Klingstone was purchased by them in 1961, along with the rock on which it stands, for just $ 3,600. But it wasn't really a very good purchase. For more than half a century, Clingstone House has undergone major repairs only twice and is therefore very dilapidated.

After repair

A serious problem was that Joseph Wharton chose oak wood as the building material, which, although it is one of the most durable, is still not too "friendly" with sea water. The reconstruction of the building, which was decided to keep in its original form, cost Henry Wood a good sum.

The house is gloomy, but inside it is very cozy

After the renovation, the house, once gloomy and damp, became warm and cozy. Henry Wood and his three sons, who are still the owners of Clingstone House, are proud of their mansion and are happy to show it to everyone.

The owner of Clingstone House, Henry Wood, unlike the first owner of the house, loves guests

In addition to the privacy and beautiful ocean scenery, Klingstone has many other advantages. This house can be considered completely autonomous, as its residents use rainwater and receive electricity from a generator. The mansion's sewer system has access to the ocean, but all waste is treated in a multi-stage process before being discharged.

The Klingstone dining room, thanks to the large windows and the view from the window, looks like a brigantine's mess

The wooden house requires constant care, so on the first floor there is a spacious workshop

Master's office with access to the terrace

One of the 10 bedrooms

Henry Wood's bedroom and himself

A favorite vacation spot for Henry Wood and his family

Looking at Clingstone House, you want to give up everything and ask for a stay with an old architect and finally find out what real peace and unity with nature is. What do you think?