On the water in Freedom
The southwest corner of Freedom takes in part of Ossipee Lake, and Broad Bay sits between Freedom and Ossipee, tied to the main lake by a channel. Plenty of houses in Freedom face that water, from old summer places to newer year round homes.
Lake houses here usually have a deck on the water side held up by posts, and a foundation that shows far more on that side than it does from the road. Round New Hampshire fieldstone veneer on those posts, and on the concrete behind them, is the kind of job stone veneer suits best.
Freedom village
Freedom village is a small cluster of older buildings around Old Portland Road and Elm Street, with the Allard House museum and the village store. The town began as the north part of Effingham, split off in 1831 and took the name Freedom the next year.
Near the village, a lighter touch tends to work. A low band of fieldstone on a foundation, or a stone base at the front steps, sits easier beside older wood buildings than a tall wall of stone would.
Cragged Mountain and the Maine line
Freedom's highest ground is Cragged Mountain, 1,806 feet, up in the northeast corner. East of there the town runs right to the Maine line at Porter.
Hillside lots up that way often leave a foundation tall on one side. That tall side is a good place for stone, since it is the side you see from the yard and the driveway.
Winter on a Freedom foundation
Freedom gets a real winter. Snow sits against the house for months, and in spring the ground freezes and thaws over and over. A stone face over a foundation has to live with that.
Kevin keeps the base of the veneer up out of the soil and the snowmelt, and builds so any water that gets behind the stone can drain out instead of freezing in place.
Gutters matter too. A downspout that empties onto the base of a stone face will wear it down faster than the cold ever will.
Walls, walkways and paint
Lake lots in Freedom often slope to the shore. Kevin builds flagstone walkways and stone steps down to the water, New Hampshire fieldstone walls, and patios near the lake. Jones Legacy also paints, inside and out, if the house needs new trim or siding paint to go with the stone.
