Smoketree update...

Forgot to mention that the Smoketree has been officially measured and the details have been sent to Albany for verification. The height of the tree was measured by the DEC at 50 ft. The national champion is in Kentucky and is 42ft tall. So it looks like we might be able to claim that the tree is the tallest Smoketree in America.

Our measurements put the tree at 82 inches around the trunk. Due to a "swelling" at the normal measurement height the measurement had to be made slightly lower down the trunk.... The official measurement was 76 inches in circumference. We are not a contender for the National Champion, which is 101 in circumference.

The crown of the tree - the third measurement that counts towards the 'championship'. Our crown is 20x33ft. (Narrowest and widest) averaging 26.5ft.

The calculation for "championship" points goes something like this:

Height + circumference + (average crown x 0.25) = total points.

50+76+(26.5x0.25) = 132.6 points

If these measures are validated the tree is the tallest in America and the third "largest" in America. The National champion tree has 155 points. The challenger in Kansas is 46 ft tall and 151 points. The only other tall Smoketree I've been able to find is in Missouri and that is 30ft tall and 128 points.

The NY state champion is only 35 points so Gold in the State championship and Bronze in the National championship...

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Paradox farm

If you wander along Springtown Road, past DeJoux House, you will see our mailbox opposite the front door. It's not especially distinguishable except it is rather large and sits on an old tree stump. It's a rusty old thing but it seems to have survived the snow plows and drunk drivers of Springtown Road. It has always bothered me that on the side of the mail box you can see the vague outline of the words "Paradox Farm" which was clearly a name that DeJoux House was more recently referred to. Occasionally when wondering the fields I would stumble across some incongruity and wonder if that was indeed the "paradox" that the farm was named after. Yesterday morning, for some unknown reason, I decided it was time to resolve the paradox. I sent a quick email to the previous owner June Finer to see if she knew anything of the Paradox Farm ghost on the side of the mailbox. This was her reply: once upon a time we, (myself and russell gilmore---my ex), met a...

DeJoux House to be published

Reclaimed Doorway Our house has been watched over the years by a couple, Susan Daley and Steve Gross who create amazing books of old houses and Hudson Valley (each name below is a link to Amazon). They knew the house and had been watching our progress. As we came close to finishing they reached out and asked if they could photograph the house for a book of cottages: Catskill Country Style Book , Old Houses , Farm House Revival , Homes With A Past , Gardens of Hudson Valley , Time Wearing Out Memory ...to name but a few. All of these books are beautifully produced. I can't wait to see our home in one of them later in 2015/16. I won't reveal all of the amazing photographs that have been taken of our house, you'll have to buy the book to see them all....but here is a little taster. Summer patio Kitchen Stools Front Door Open

A long silence broken

It has been over 18 months since I posted an entry on the DeJoux House blog. Why? I'm not sure. The renovations were held up for a while as we enjoyed a working, if unfinished house. Looking back there was frankly very little news of note. Lots of socializing. Lots of enjoying the bounty of the land. Lots of swimming in the pond and Ice Skating...but you'd seen all of that in the old posts. Today, I am inspired to write a post because I have uncovered some news about the history of the house. Since we bought the house we have always been told that the house was built in 1740. That's what the town of New Paltz have in their records. That's what the previous owners told us and well, we had little reason to disbelieve it. However, we have very little proof of when the building of DeJoux House started. This puzzle was further heightened when a gentleman from North Carolina contacted us with the following request. Mr. Flebut - I am a professor at the University of N...

DeJoux House

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