PRIME LIVING
A revival revived Deborah A llard Dion
The city of Fall River boasts many antique homes and architectural gems, from the simple American federal facades of the 1800s to the Victorian-era mansions built by the city’s wealthiest residents, and on to the post-war craftsman and mid-century ranch homes of the last century.
With so much history nestled just beyond the curb of the city’s streets, a drive along Highland Avenue reveals the largest concentration of both historical and luxurious real estate in Fall River. The Tudor revival at 503 Highland Avenue is one of those homes. The grand 17-room residence with six bedrooms, six-and-a-half bathrooms and four fireplaces, is on the market for $1,099,000 – making it the most expensive listing in the city. With nearly two acres of property, the Highlands home is a stunning oasis that awaits its future family. Named for Nathan Durfee, it is on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Highlands Historic District. Current owner Cindy Audette has
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enjoyed her elegant family home for the past 25 years. She and her husband Gary purchased the home in 1995. With a respect for the past and an eye toward their future, the couple took on a renovation project to modernize areas of the home to suit their family of five.
N ov ember /D ecember 2020
“But we wanted to keep with the original character of the home,” Cindy said. That meant preserving the home’s many period details and its refined style. The couple created an open layout from smaller cramped rooms that connected to the backyard through French doors. They enlarged bedrooms and renovated bathrooms. The eat-in kitchen, truly the heart of this magnificent home, maintained its character with grand columns and newly installed custom paneled cabinets and center island, hand-painted in the style of English country manor homes. Large crown decorative moldings frame the cabinets and create a modern cook’s kitchen with a historical flair.
Another project for the Audettes was restoring the intricate stained glass work throughout the house that includes characters from Aesop’s Fables to maintain the home’s tradition
