Fiat Lux - Alfred University Student Newspaper - February 2017

A quick drive down South Main Street in Alfred, NY, will take you past a unique and historically fascinating structure: the eight-sided Alonzo Potter House, now occupied by local architect Philip Prigmore and his wife, Carol.

That this structure is even standing is impressive. Octagon houses were an American architectural fad that began in the 1850s. A phrenologist, Orson Squire Fowler, built the first in the state in Fishkill, NY, in 1853, sparking the ensuing trend.

According to a 2014 article in the Poughkeepsie Journal, Fowler argued that octagon houses were practical because they offered more interior space and allowed more natural light into the home. He went so far as to say that octagonal homes fostered healthier marriages because of their beautiful and natural shape.

Alfred’s own octagon house, formally named "The Alonzo Potter House," was erected in 1858, placing it among the earliest in the nation. Alfred University (AU) archives record that Perry Potter, Alonzo Potter's older brother, was inspired to have his own octagon house after a teaching stint in Kentucky, where he saw several such houses.

Perry and his wife lived in the house until 1869, when they sold it to Alonzo. In 1899, the younger Potter built the "Keyhole Addition" at the back of the house. Examining blueprints of the structure as viewed from above reveals its namesake keyhole shape. Another unique feature of the Potter house is the veranda that surrounds the building on all sides. "On most octagon houses, it faces only three sides," reads "History of Alfred, NY". The home remained in the Potter family for 73 years, according to a 1949 edition of the Fiat Lux Alfred University Student Newspaper.

In 1923, the Potters sold their home to Henry Hunting. His wife, Bessie Hunting, built gardens to the right and rear of the home, extending back to Kanakadea Creek. An article from the Alfred Luck blog tells that Bessie "transformed the ground into a prize-winning garden featuring a pear-shaped, cement pool." People sometimes drove many miles to enjoy them. In 1947, the Huntings sold to their nephew, Norman Olson.

Olson rented out the home as a two-family duplex until AU purchased it from him in 1965 to use as student housing. "History of Alfred, NY" notes that "it was during this time that the house fell into disrepair."

In 1980, Mary Trouslot, a former Herrick Library employee, purchased the home from AU. A 1982 "Memorandum of Agreement for Professional Services" details Trouslot's efforts to "rehabilitate and use the house."

Trouslot sought federal income tax credits and deductions for funds which she could use to restore the octagon house to its former glory. In Fowler's book, "A Home for All", published in 1848, he explains a critical component of octagon houses:

"Ideally, these houses were to be constructed of stone taken from the site ... the home should be as 'natural' as possible," he wrote. In the same publication, Fowler also proposed concrete foundations and basements, a new concept at the time.

In keeping with Fowler's vision, Trouslot refurbished the porch in 1985 "with reclaimed flooring from the university's Alumni Hall, which was also being remodeled that year," according to "History of Alfred, NY".

Prigmore, a local architect, was working on the Alumni Hall restoration when he and his wife met Trouslot at "The Jet," a popular diner then located at 3 North Main St. It was then that Trouslot propositioned the Prigmores to buy the Potter house.

"Simultaneously, my wife said 'yes,' and I said 'no,' so of course, we bought it," Prigmore laughs.

Since then, the Prigmores have worked diligently to finish what Trouslot started. Externally, all the paint colors are original. Inside, there is still work to be done.

Door-to-door salesmen are not very common today, Prigmore explains. But in the 1850s, there were door-to-door faux-finishers. These workers would charge middle-class citizens an affordable rate to make their homes appear more lavish with cheap wooden facades that mimicked high-end finishes.

According to Prigmore, the walls of the Potter house's first floor were originally papered, and the woodwork on the second floor was all faux-finished. The interior doors were fake tiger maple, while the exterior doors were mock mahogany.

The walls of the second floor were once glazed, a kind of optical illusion where the paint color graduates from dark to light. The effect is such that the rooms appear more spacious and open. Prigmore described the colors as "variations of khaki," and says he has done his best to replicate these gradients in his restoration efforts.

"People in architecture or preservation should never own buildings," he jokes.

Inside the home, immediately right of the front door, is a slightly circular staircase. Prigmore explains that octagon houses became more elaborate over time. More recent structures often feature central spiral staircases leading to cupolas, a feature common to nearly all octagon houses. Natural light floods the house as it filters from the cupola down the staircase. Though aesthetically pleasing, spiral staircases are impractical from a design perspective as they force rooms to be arranged around a central point.

Although Prigmore was not always so fond of his distinctive domicile, he concedes that The Alonzo Potter House is "a useful house to live in." He will continue the home's restoration, working to keep as close to the original design as possible.

"This octagon house is one of only about 25 that have survived in New York," wrote Roger Gates Reed, who evaluated the home for an application to Alfred's historic district. "Alfred is fortunate to have one of only a few."