Wednesday, November 29, 2017

THERMOS
 
Ever wonder where your thermos came from? Not the one you bought yesterday, but the one you had as a kid. It was made in Norwich, Connecticut, at this factory on the Thames , which is pronounced 'thaymes' due to the Revolution and War of 1812 and all that, both very much still on the minds of the Yankees on the CT coast.
Since turned into condominimums, of course. These next posts are going to be about re-use of old buildings for a while.
 

Nice windows

 
Beautiful location and landscaping

 
Good place to do art, if the windows are to be trusted.
 
 
This is the original building or the residence of the owner, I don't know which. But it is a part of the complex, attached to the left.
 
 
Wide eaves with monstrous carved brackets (sawn, not carved, but that's what they're called). Note the blocked-in attic windows. Or try.
The vertical jut-out is likely an abandoned chimney stack, since there are no others. Multiples might be structural supports.

2 comments:

  1. I really like these photos. Great arched windows in the old factory; great wide eaves with brackets. Those huge windows are an artist's dream, though it seems it would be hard to insulate the new condos against the outside air. Hopefully the restorers solved that problem.

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  2. I've been in only one of the condos, and the windows are just as you see. Tall, wide, stark with light, and leaky as hell. The ceilings are between fifteen and twenty feet high, and though there are bedroom lofts, the spaces are quite chilly in the Januaries and such up here. But the whole building exudes an air of past busy-ness, especially in the huge hallways and common areas, themselves over forty feet high. The elevators, though without the sliding cages of old factories, are quite open and add to the factory ambiance. The place is very much one artists would enjoy. The problem is that few artists can either afford the rents or qualify for the low-income discounts. Sigh. Between worlds.
    I know the feeling.
    I know all this from one visit to the interior two years ago, when I marveled at the 16x16 beams.
    My own experience in the past six months has reflected a bit of this design. I have been the caretaker of two old mills-turned-into-artist-space apartments, as you know. I hoped the gig would be worthwhile, but, alas, it was rife with micromanagement from above, and I recently left the position with only regret for the tenants, many of whom had become dependent on me. But I have little truck with being railroaded, and that was the gist of things. I hope things will improve at The Artspaces, which, strangely enough, have very few artists.
    But two weeks into unemployment (and after a serious talk with She Who Lives Upstairs), I have found an incomparable position restoring old windows with a fellow craftsman that needed my help, appreciates my talent, and who has taught me a few things (as I him). We get along famously, and I expect this endeavour to last for quite a while.
    I couldn't have landed a better position with a better person. Making a third more than I was a month ago, I look forward to going to work every day. I also am challenged and am gathering many more photos to share with you and my one other reader; we work on some pretty fantastic buildings. And though I will be doing the "Reuse of Old Buildings" thing, I have a very interesting ghost post (oh I like that; I had no intention of saying it) coming up. Thanks for your interest, Lisa. Stay tuned! Great things are afoot, and not just here. A change is coming across the planet...

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