For the Residential Rehabilitation of the S. S. Rogers House, 207 South Mason Street, Apex
Jeff and Cheryl Fike purchased the circa 1901 S. S. Rogers House in June, 2014 with the intention of making it their home. One of the few full two-story houses in this section of Apex, it has a side-gable roof with a front cross-gable topping a cutaway bay window at the first and second story. A smaller cross-gable balances the roofline on the right elevation. A porch with original turned posts and a few sawn work brackets wraps around the bay and across the main facade. Original 2/2 sash windows remain. Selvia Sanford Rogers married Sarah Helen Burns in 1880. In 1909, Rogers founded the Rogers Insurance Agency which continues operations in Apex to this day. By 1918, Rogers was appointed United States Postmaster for Apex.
As a home builder, owner Jeff Fike was able to carry out most of the restoration work himself. The rear addition had been updated in the 1970s and much of the original fabric had been lost. As a first step, vinyl was removed, exposing the original pine siding. Repairs were made to the original siding before it was repainted for the first time in decades. The original 2/2 sash windows throughout were retained and rehabilitated with new rope and weight systems; and, any broken panes were replaced. In the rear of the house, the second story roof was removed and reframed to provide office space at the back on the second floor. For the interior, Jeff finished the floors, repaired the stair railings, and installed appropriate matching newel posts where the originals were missing. An additional 900 square feet was added to the rear of the house, increasing the living space to 4,019 square feet. A small rear porch and side porch were also added. Interior trim was replicated and matched on site; and, as much of the original materials as possible were saved, including trim, plinth blocks, moldings, and baseboards. Floor girders were repurposed as exposed beams around the office balcony overlook and the back porch. A unique feature is a window boxed in for use as a cabinet with natural light from the original window illuminating the cabinet. Repurposed materials from other sources and projects were used in an appropriate manner throughout the house, once more restoring the home to life.
The Board of Directors of Capital Area Preservation, Inc. is pleased to present a 2016 Anthemion Award to Jeff and Cheryl Fike; JF Builders & Associates, LLC for the Residential Rehabilitation of the S. S. Rogers House, 207 South Mason Street, Apex.