The Hazel River Cabin

Beyond Tradition… Rough-hewn Cabins Reclaimed and Transformed

Nestled into the western slope of Jobber’s Mountain, a 1794 toll keeper’s log cabin and its 1856 clapboard addition guard the remnants of the Old Sperryville Pike.  At Mount Joy Farm in Howard County, MD, slave quarters (the “chesnut log cabin”), slated for demolition, was catalogued, dismantled, and rebuilt adjacent to the Sperryville toll cabin with a modern glass link to create the new Hazel River Cabin.

Arching stone walls carve out a mountainside garden and create a viewing terrace, with views of Hazel River and Old Rag Mountain, while grounding the cabin. On approach, the cabins retain their original character. Large-scale windows and a new dormer open western views to the river and mountain. Modern additions react to but are distinct from the original log structures, establishing a material hierarchy.  The cedar shake roofing on the historic log cabins contrasts with the copper roofs of the modern frame addition, link and porch roofs.

The interiors are reinterpreted for contemporary life. The spatial character is defined by axes focused on the toll cabin’s stone fireplace and the super-scaled chestnut cabin window. Removal of the second floors creates uninterrupted double-height spaces and emphasizes the materiality of the original log structure. Raw steel and refined wood define modern inserts of sleeping loft, built-ins, kitchen, stairs, Wittus stove and view window along with the toll cabin’s modern bathrooms, wet bar and dormer,  carefully joined to and contrasted with rough-hewn original materials.

Wood, stone, hardware and steel fabrication were locally sourced.  Over 70% of the wood was reclaimed from the original cabins or nearby structures, including the floorboards from the Madison County Courthouse.  Efficient modern systems – super insulated roofing and foundations, lighting, air conditioning, radiant floor heating and state-of-the-art electronics – are integrated without impacting the character of the historic cabins.