Restoring a Victorian in one of Philadelphia’s first planned suburbs

It took two months for Penny Chumley and Martin Hain to evict the squirrels from the rooftop turret on the classic Queen Anne Victorian they bought in Riverton.

Meanwhile, amateur historian Hain buried himself in deeds and other documents on the Burlington County house, which was built in 1890-91 and has had numerous incarnations since then.

Restoring a classic house calls for varied skills and talents. “The house has had a lot of lives,” Chumley says. “Our goal is to take it back to its original life.”

Or, in a less elegant translation: “We’re stopping the bleeding.”

While previous occupants — other than the squirrels — weren’t destructive, they had ideas other than historical accuracy in mind over the decades. The biggest change came in the late 1930s or early 1940s, when the house was converted to a two-family dwelling, which meant a cramped layout without the spacious entrance.

“You miss out on the grandeur,” Chumley says. “When this was built, it was state of the art.”

Returning it to its original condition is not a task for the faint of heart, perhaps not even for folks unfamiliar with restoration. But Chumley and Hain knew what they were getting into — sort of, anyway. They previously restored an 1850 farmhouse in the New York City suburb of Mamaroneck.

» READ MORE: Renovating an 1890 Victorian in South Jersey meant living for years in a construction zone

To some degree, the Riverton project, now at the six-month point, was made feasible by COVID-19.

Chumley, senior director of strategic projects for a major publishing house, and Hain, who works in communications for a nonprofit dedicated to saving the Long Island Sound, had both been working in New York. But the pandemic allowed them to go virtual, so they headed for Philadelphia where both had family and connections.

Hain is from Berks County, and Chumley grew up in Colorado but graduated from Temple University.

Plus, “we always wanted a true Victorian,” Hain says.

But in Riverton? “We never even knew Riverton existed,” he says.

That put him in the same boat as many area residents, unaware that Riverton is considered the first planned suburb of Philadelphia, created as a posh summer retreat for moneyed folks who took a long-extinct ferry from the city.

» READ MORE: An 1860 Victorian tucked among Fishtown’s revitalization

For Hain and Chumley, an early task will be removing a wall that narrows the entrance foyer like a clogged artery. In a classic Victorian, someone entering can immediately see into the parlor.

Small details like molding have remained, unchanged. “The millwork is amazing,” Chumley says. “There are still so many original details left in this house.”

But what will be the dining room is an attic-like jumble, and the kitchen needs to be totally renovated as part of an extension of the rear. The house has gutters only on one side.

And the two tiny bathrooms are, in Hain’s word, ”ridiculous.”

One of the most interesting features, the 19th century HVAC system, will remain a possible house tour stop, if nothing else. It’s in the basement and uses blocks of ice to send cool air throughout the house, either through the pipes through convection or possibly with fans.

Hain says similar systems were powerful enough to cool entire theaters. Repairmen going into the basement stop and take pictures, he says, and say they have never seen anything like it.

The couple have replaced all of the old knob-and-tube wiring, and the next big project is replacing the aging roof. Here, historical accuracy may take a backseat to economics if cost forces them to use synthetic materials rather than real slate.

They also are repairing the turret, which Chumley envisions as a meditation center because “it’s so magical.”

One of the most significant items in the house is on a parlor wall: a black and white photo of how the house looked almost a century ago.

“It’s our inspiration,” Chumley says. “In two or three years, this will be a much different house.”

Have you solved a decorating, remodeling, or renovation challenge in your home? Tell us your story by email (and send a few digital photographs) to [email protected].