Period Mantles & Hearths

[SouthernLady]

This has been driving me nuts ever since I moved in my house... What is the deal with the hearth? Both hearths are like this--same materials, same pattern. It looks like slate with some kind of terra cotta tile inlay. I know for a fact this mantle in my parlor is original to the house (1884), while the mantle in the dining room is assumed to be a 1930s swapout. I have yet to confirm that, but that was surmised in the 1981 evaluation by the National Register when they came through my old community.

Has anyone ever seen anything like this before? Do you think it is period?



For the record, I am still saving and searching for a company to line my chimneys. I would love to get them back to the coal/woodburning fireplaces! This was taken right before I moved in, but the goal is to strip the mantle and moldings to go back to the shellacked appearance it seems they originally had.

[Gothichome]

Southernlady, it does look a bit out of style for the age of your home. With a quick look it looks to me to be an attempt at an art Nuevo look. Looking at it longer it just looks to be a bit of a hodgepodge. I wonder if they put in a new hearth a long time ago to give the fireplace a bit of an update, or replaced one that for some reason had cracked.

[kelt65]

Yeah I'd believe it. I bought some nicer neo-classical style mantels for my house, as I did not like how plain the ones it came with were. I don't see a reason to keep a mantel if you don't care for it, so long as you get something appropriate. I'm almost sure my front parlor fireplace can still burn coal. Can't wait to fill the house with soot and cover the nice drapes I'm going to buy with it.
I don't think any of my hearths are original, save one, which is tiled, and is most likely going to become a casualty of the house leveling. Crossing fingers, but I can't do a lot more.

I got this one to replace the brutish almost art deco looking thing in the front parlor ... it's a near perfect fit and I love it.

[kelt65]

I don't think there's any way those hearths could be original for 1883 South Carolina, but I don't know much of anything about your region. Still, it seems a stretch.

[phil]

they stuck really ugly floor tiles all over mine with cement! grrr!!
I bought a nice deco mantle, but it is too short and not wide enough.
I picked up another locally and all it is is basically an old board with just a little trim piece underneath. I get the feeling mine was just brick with a board on top. But getting the cement off the brick is almost impossible I started beating on it with a hammer and came to the conclusion it is so stuck that I would surely just wreck whatever brick was there in getting it off.. so i'll have to make some sort of wood cover I guess, or another layer of old brick perhaps.

I think a lot of people chopped kindling on the hearth and they were often broken that way.

[SouthernLady]

Thank God, I hope to have an official answer to this question of mine in the next few weeks! I made contact on Facebook with the last family descendant to live in my home. She just messaged me that her daughter is coming to visit her this weekend, bringing boxes of old (and some "very old") family photos, some of which are of the old house. They will be going through all that they have and will be pulling out photos pertaining to the old house. Hopefully some will show the hearths/mantles! '

Phil, I am sorry you have to deal with that! That would be a real bummer...

[Don M]

It is interesting how things get modified over time. I have two fireplaces & a bricked in third one that has a wood stove connected. I had a visit from a fellow who grew up in our house. His wife & he courted during the time his family live in our house. Apparently the fireplaces were not used & were blocked off. When the house had a major re-hab in the 1960s the fireplaces were restored; so much of what is there now is a 1960s re-work. Neither are the best or original hearth or mantle. At least the fireplaces are safe & work well.