For the Residential Rehabilitation of the John L. and Henrie Sears House, 5104 Sears Farm Road, Cary
The John L. and Henrie G. Sears House, constructed c. 1915 in rural southwest Wake County, is a two-story, double pile, frame house with a hipped roof with a unique design. The Sears family is said to have boarded teachers from nearby Green Hope School in their home until the teacherage for the school was constructed in 1928 on property adjoining the farm. The house features a hipped roof, corbelled brick chimneys, a partially enclosed wraparound porch, and finials at the peaks of the patterned metal shingle roof. Interior details include heart pine flooring, original mantels and windows, tongue-and-groove paneling, and an irregular historic floor plan that has had little modification.
Working with Capital Area Preservation, Pulte Homes, planning a housing development on the original tract of land, relocated the house from its original site on Green Hope School Road to a new site on Sears Farm Road in September 2016, placing it on a new foundation, and stabilizing the house on its new site. Located a quarter mile from its original site, the historic house sits across the street from a town park and is buffered by trees in order to create a setting that is separate and distinct from the housing development surrounding it. In December 2017, Pulte sold the house to Zach and Stephanie Johnson including a preservation easement and rehabilitation agreement with Capital Area Preservation, Inc., attached to the deed in perpetuity.
Fast forward one year later and the results are nothing short of astounding! Both the interior and exterior have experienced transformations of the nearly 100-year-old house nestled in a neighborhood of new homes but standing out on its own. Within the protections provided by the preservation easement with CAP, the house needed a complete rehabilitation. The rear addition to the house, which had previously been used as a kitchen, was converted into a new kitchen space, opening up the butler’s pantry to be incorporated into the room. Inappropriate windows were removed and new, one-over-one wood windows installed to be consistent with the main block of the house. Since the original hardwoods were missing from the rear of the building, salvaged wood from some early twentieth century Raleigh houses, slated for demolition, were repurposed and added to this rear space. Exposed tongue-and-groove wall paneling was restored and new cabinetry installed. Heart pine floors were refinished throughout the rest of the house and fireplaces and mantles repaired and restored to their original condition. The damaged porch tin roof was replaced with new 5V metal sheets. On the second floor, smaller spaces were reconfigured for expanded new bedrooms, while retaining its unique floor plan.
The Sears House stands today as a testimony to the success of historic preservation as an economic development strategy; and, as a model for similar partner projects in Cary as well as across Wake County. The story of the house, from its peril in the path of development to its relocation and stabilization, as well as its meticulous restoration at the hands of new owners, is one giant success story – years in the making – for historic preservation.
The Board of Directors of Capital Area Preservation, Inc. is pleased to present a 2018 Anthemion Award to Zach & Stephanie Johnson; Simplified Construction for the Residential Rehabilitation of the John L. and Henrie Sears House, 5104 Sears Farm Road, Cary.