CROGHAN — After years of false hopes and furtive inquiries, the historic Basselin House in Croghan is being purchased by a local native determined to restore the mansion’s greatness and come “home” to stay.
“This is a house I’ve looked at since I was a kid. It was a house that showed me what I wanted to strive for in life,” said new Basselin House owner Travis Proulx, “It’s humbling to be able to do this and to have the community support for it.”
Via Facebook posts and phone calls, family members and total strangers have been reaching out to offer their congratulations, energy and paint brushes to help whip the iconic home into shape whenever Mr. Proulx asks.
Although Mr. Proulx hasn’t been living locally for some time, he said his family has deep ties not only to the village but also to the house’s namesake: his great uncle, Kenneth Proulx, wrote Theodore Basselin’s biography.
Mr. Proulx said he spends most of his summers at his camp locally and he is always impressed with the village.
“There’s a lot of really good things happening in Croghan. There are so many cool features and people creating so many cool things. Every time I’m in town, I’m in awe of what’s there. I would love to help elevate that,” he said.
In the future, Mr. Proulx doesn’t envision a business for Basselin, although he has ideas about it being used for weddings, family reunions and community events with the upstairs bedrooms as some form of a bed and breakfast.
“I want this to be a home, first and foremost, but a home that is accessible to the community,” Mr. Proulx said, “I’m buying a house but it’s a property that means a lot to everyone here. It’s really the focal point.”
At first, Mr. Proulx will continue living in Albany, working as the vice chancellor of government relations and marketing at the SUNY system headquarters so he will be able to pay for the renovations.
As those renovations increase, so will his time in Croghan so that when the work is done, he is likely to have already made the Basselin House his primary residence.
The first focus for repairs on the main house will be on roof replacement and stabilizing the porch, followed by a good paint job on the outside before getting started on restoring the original “flow” to the inside.
“When you’re buying an old home you’re buying the story and the history,” Mr. Proulx said, “And homes almost always look their best when they are restored to their original state... when you can take a step back and think, ‘That’s perfect.’”
He believes the multi-step renovations he has in mind will take three to five years, but after closing, he will get started right away working on the guest house behind the mansion.
His first act of allegiance to and support for the Croghan community in this project was directed to the current owners of the Basselin House, Lena and Thomas Horne.
Although the sale is expected to be final in January, Mr. Proulx has agreed to allow the Hornes to stay in the house until spring when they hope to rent a house in Lowville or Watertown while Mr. Horne continues to receive medical treatments.
The long term goal for the couple is to move to Mrs. Horne’s native Sweden to be closer to their two children and four grandchildren.
Mr. Horne worked for IBM for 34 years before looking for the simple life in a big, old house they could bring back to luster in a quiet community like where he grew up in New Jersey.
“Coming to Croghan was like it was 1959, ‘Oh, this is Warwick again.’ We had more cows than people, just like in Lewis County. I really saw the charm of the community, the people were really welcoming,” Mr. Horne said.
Mrs. Horne added, “I love the spirit of Croghan. Everyone here helps everyone.”
Their intention when they bought the house 15 years ago was, like for Mr. Proulx, to restore it to its former glory, however Mr. Horne began having serious health issues that, even with good insurance, curbed their plans for the house.
While they were able to restore the ceiling in some rooms, switch the heating system from oil to natural gas and make a number of cosmetic changes, they started listing the house for sale for the first time about six years ago, they said.
While the Hornes are looking forward to their next stage of life, they said they will miss the village and the house very much. They have loved learning about the property and it has been the perfect size for their two super-sized St. Bernards and their various hobbies and interests.
Both Mr. Proulx and the Hornes credit Julie L. Robinson, the owner and operator of Crown Jules Realty and co-historian for the village, with making the sale between them possible by never giving up on Basselin House.
Mrs. Robinson has led the charge the past few years to keep “this acre of land [from] becoming a village parking lot.”
The small original house on the property, built in 1859 by Dominique Basselin, was expanded by his son, Theodore B. Basselin, a lumber baron and the village’s first president, into the Greek revival-style mansion seen today.
The 5,737 square foot residence has seven bedrooms, four bathrooms and shares 1.6 acres of property with a barn and the guest house.
Mr. Basselin’s doctor, Dr. Ira Darius Spencer, and generations of his family, lived in the house from 1914 until 1995, when they sold it to Hollywood set designer Byrel M. Triggs in early 1995, who sold most of the antiques and architectural flourishes at auction.
Larry and Carol Brundege purchased the property from Mr. Triggs and ran a bed and breakfast, a flower shop and an antique shop out of the property before selling it to the Hornes in 2004.
“The name of it should really be the Basselin-Spencer-Brundege-Horne-Proulx House,” Mr. Horne said.
The property was listed earlier this year for $175,000.
There is one thing Mr. Proulx said he knows will happen at the Basselin House in the not-so-distant future.
“There will definitely be a painting party.”
People interested in following the Basselin House’s progress can go to The Basselin House Project Facebook page and on Twitter @BasselinHouse.
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