If Walls Could Talk – History of the Carriage House

We purchased the Carriage House from the Historical Society a year ago, October 2024. Today the building might look new, but the Carriage House is decades old. The history of the Carriage House, once red in color and sitting next door to the Cleveland House and Museum, started long before 2024. The Carriage House is the barn (where horses and buggies were kept) to the first house built in Naples, New York (called the Cleveland House) in 1794. The Cleveland House and Carriage House were just recently subdivided by the Historical Society for the sale of the Carriage House only. The sale of the property went to the Historical Society fund to restore the Cleveland House.

Quoted from the Statement of Significance, United States Department of the Interior National Park Service and National Register of Historic Places, “The Ephraim Cleveland House is architecturally and historically significant as a rare intact example of Federal era architecture in the Naples area and is a well-known and important reminder of the community’s historic development and growth. Built in rural Ontario County in 1794 by Revolutionary War veteran Ephraim Cleveland the two-story frame dwelling (The Cleveland House) exhibits distinctive period features, including two-story, five-by-two bay center entry plan, heavy timber frame, central chimney mass, symmetrical fenestration pattern and double-hung sash containing twelve-over-twelve lights.”

There is much speculation and debate over when the outbuildings, including the Carriage House was built after the original 1794 home. This includes the addition of the Church Steeple that is connected to the back of the Carriage House from the original Church in Naples Square (between, now, the Old School Café and coming soon Plenty the Diner, previously Bob and Ruth’s). We’ve been told by members of the Naples community and historians in the village that the Carriage House has been many of things throughout the decades including a Carriage House, hay barn, metal works and blacksmith, furniture store, boat parts and boots retail shop, bakery and most recently a quilt shop where the local community could come in and purchase materials for quilting as well as lessons.

After the Carriage House went on the market in 2024, we couldn’t help but stop by and check out the inside. We immediately fell in love with the bones of the building (the hand axed beams!!) and the potential to bring this beautiful barn back to life. We felt it was potentially the perfect place for Hometown Wine Company, just maybe. Fast forward a year… here we are today. It has been such a learning experience, we couldn’t be more thrilled and grateful for all the support we’ve received to make this dream a reality.