We had an interesting time viewing the 'skeleton' of the Duncan House this week. We were searching for clues of what the original front windows and front door(s) looked like. It's amazing what a trained professional like Chelius Carter can reconstruct from looking 'inside' the outer skin. Original boards and timbers, nail holes, cross beams, ghost prints of all kinds can paint a vivid picture of what the house originally looked like.
We had already known from the original Miller sketch (sketched, by hand, in Corinth in 1860, by an Army engineer) that the front windows were large....he had clearly written "front windows, 21 lights, 7 X 3". This means that there were 21 lights, (panes).....7 tall by 3 wide.
While the final numbers haven't been fully determined yet, we can easily tell that the windows are LARGE! While they are about the width of normal windows, they are like 12 feet tall. This would have been done to increase air circulation during those hot Mississippi summers.
Our goal is to have the front look as much like it did in 1860 as is feasible. So, as soon as Chelius confirms the exact sizes for the windows and doors, we will be having those made. More about that later.
Hope to have the 'out building' moved onto the concrete slab soon. I'm confident that Brian Reese will be doing that very soon.
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