Red Farm, on the enchanting island of Martha’s Vineyard, combines wild natural beauty with charming, picturesque antique buildings. There are more than 21 acres of land dotted with multiple outbuildings, which makes it perfect for a family compound. The West Tisbury spread also includes a key to Hancock Beach, a beautiful private beach in nearby Chilmark. Asking $6.25 million, the farm is brokered by Elissa Lash at Tea Lane Associates.
Built in 1687, the main residence is one of the first and oldest English-style houses in the area, and it still sits on its original site. The house has been carefully renovated, preserving the antique character of exposed framing, builder’s marks, and a large cooking fireplace with bread oven. Also of note — the interior shutters, wide plank floors, the painted wood (paint on wood is correct for a home of this era), plus the decorative fireplace covers for the off-season. There are seven bedrooms and three and a half bathrooms in 3,745 square feet.
Wanting to expand the original house, the current owner purchased another ancient house in New York from the descendants of folk artist Grandma Moses, and undertook the awesome yet undoubtedly complicated effort to have it transplanted to the Vineyard and connected to the main building. That addition now houses the estate’s primary bedroom suite.
One of the property’s particularly enticing features is the antique barn that now contains two levels of living space and an attached greenhouse with sauna and soaking pool, plus a 17th century French tub for baths. There’s also a charming two-bedroom guest house that was once a forge. And if that isn’t enough to charm six-and-some-million bucks out of someone, there’s also a replica of Thoreau’s tiny cabin from Concord, Mass., where he wrote “Walden,” his Transcendentalist treatise to the value of a spiritual connection with nature.
The property is also known locally as the Robert Luce homestead, after its original owner. Robert Luce was the second generation of a twelve-generation Martha’s Vineyard family. Born in 1667, the son of Henry and Remember Luce, his many brothers and sisters included Remember Merry, Israel, Deacon Experience, Eleazer, and “White Eyed” Henry Luce, whose wife was called Desire Luce. (And some think the Kardashians gave their children strange names!) After building this farm, Robert died by drowning sometime between 1711 and 1714, sailing between from Martha’s Vineyard to Nantucket. Surely he’d be amazed and delighted to know how long his house has lasted — and how much it is now worth.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Ancient stone walls meander through the property that includes rolling medows and a small pond.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com A fish-hook like candelier over a rustic wooden table in the simply outfitted dining room lights the room the old fashioned way, with candles.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com A non-working fireplace in the unfussy, up-to-date kitchen looks great with a display of copper cooking vessels.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Notice the period-appropriate interior shutters that flank this room’s trio of cushioned window seats.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com This is part of the old house that was added to create the master suite.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Another candelier lights a display of willow pattern plates.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com One of the bedrooms includes a steep staircase to a bunk room in the attic.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com The upper bunk room, with a cozy built-in bed tucked under worn beams.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Delft-style tiles with a sailboat pattern ring the bathtub in one of the home’s bathrooms.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com This vintage barn includes a large entertaining space with barn doors that can be flung open to enjoy views over the meadows. There’s also a bunk bedroom and half bath.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com The barn’s entertaining area.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com A huge conservatory attached to the barn includes an inviting, lagoon-like soaking pool.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Once a forge, this guest house now offers two bedrooms, a bathroom, and an open living and kitchen space with a wood stove.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com The kitchen in the guest house showcases an antique range.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com One of the compound’s many enchanting spots is the sunken, stone-walled dining area with its large wooden dining table placed next to a rustic outdoor fireplace.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Nestled in the woods, there’s also an itty-bitty writer’s cabin, a replica of Thoreau’s cabin where he wrote “Walden.”