Nestled near the meeting point of the Hudson & Camp Creek on three & a half splendidly landscaped acres, Peary Homestead is a well-preserved & abundantly charming example of the 19th-century Gothic Revival country manor.
The home was built in the 1840s by ship captain Robert Peary & would stay in his family for nearly a hundred years, serving as a farm with far-reaching pear orchards.
The current owners continued expanding the bountiful gardens, while also undertaking, with the help of architect Chip Bohl & interior designer Louise Copeland, a complete interior renovation & the construction of the north wing, home to the kitchen & the primary suite.
The guiding purpose of the recent multi-year-long renovation was to unify each space within the house, embracing elements of the historical floorplan where possible, & integrating textures & finishes that felt authentic to the property's early 19th-century roots.
In the newly built North wing, the beautifully crafted Plain English kitchen is further enriched with honed Arabescato marble countertops, a deep green Lacanche range, a built-in breakfast nook, & a working fireplace. Ample storage for small appliances & cooking supplies was integrated into the kitchen's millwork, & a separate butler's pantry & bar lead the way to the characterful dining room, which features a vibrant green limewash by Portola Paints & the most precious views of the property's central allee gardens & greenhouse.
The 'formal' living room centers around a particularly tall fireplace, lending itself to more intimate evening gatherings & slow weekend afternoons lounging with a book. The family room, on the other hand, finds its home in the sunroom, an energetic & bright space constantly in dialogue with the surrounding gardens & exterior entertaining spaces. A library/office with walls of overflowing built-in bookshelves, a gym, a wallpapered powder room, a tiled mudroom, & a large screened-in porch complete the ground floor.
The home's original staircase leads to the second-floor landing, with sweeping views of Peary's fruit trees & endless gardens. The primary suite is very well-fitted, with two dressing rooms / walk-in closets, & a large bath with a soaking tub, Waterworks vanity & fixtures, & shower.
Two identical kids' rooms with built-in cabinets & tall ceilings share a bath. The guest suite is in the original wing of the home, & is covered in creamy, textured wallpaper, with extra tall windows that look out onto the front courtyard, a walk-in closet, & a full bath. Second-floor laundry is discreetly fitted into the back section of the home, with a secret door leading to the very magical playroom for the small ones.
The second floor of the carriage house hosts a large guest flat, with tall, vaulted ceilings, two bedrooms, a dining/gathering area, & a full bath. The ground floor houses much of the utility & workspace for the property, with a 2-car garage, storage, & a workshop that, because of its verdant views & abundance of natural light, equally lends itself to the artist or maker as it would a gardener.
Every inch of Peary Homestead's land is overflowing with charm & whimsy - from the in-ground pool with two lotus gardens along its sides, to the custom greenhouse with a fenced cutting garden, & a long line of trellissed raspberry bushes, the pear trees as a special nod to the property's history, the trumpet-vine covered dining pergola, a babbling stone fountain, the oh-so-gently tamed field of wildflowers, & many an allee to wander down, all lined with the most magical flowers & plants.
Peary Homestead is near a wealth of beloved farm stores, restaurants, orchards, hiking spots, & charming towns. The property is just minutes from Germantown's main street, 10 minutes from Hudson / the Amtrak train station, 20 minutes from Red Hook, Tivoli, & Rhinebeck, & 2 hours from New York City.