Home of the Week: An Amesbury Second Empire that reigns supreme

By John R. Ellement

$979,000

Style Second Empire Victorian

Year built Circa 1890

Square feet 3,795

Bedrooms 4

Baths 2 full, 1 half

Water/Sewer Public

Taxes $15,778 (2023)

This Amesbury home makes you want to be a cat lazing in the sun.

Stairs on the right side of this towering Second Empire home (with its own tower, of course) lead to a 38-foot long sunroom. And what makes it “cat-tractive?” Three walls are lined with double-hung windows, which are framed with sidelight windows that are topped with transoms and framed by sidelights.

Lots of sunshine for snoozing furry ones.

The floor in this 411-square-foot L-shaped room is hardwood, and the space also comes with a door to the side yard of the 0.33-acre lot, three ceiling fans, and exposed beams. (All square footages are approximate.)

The sunroom offers two ways into the interior. The first opens into a traditional foyer with the stairwell on the right and a hallway that travels deep into the center of the home. On the left is a 206-square-foot family room featuring a working wood-burning fireplace with a white mantel. The second opens into a short hallway with entrances to the family room and the 212-square-foot living room. The latter features a windowed bump-out beyond a columned archway, as well as crown molding and hardwood flooring.

A second archway flanked by columns heralds the start of the dining room (193 square feet), which has a pair of windows and hardwood flooring.

The kitchen is up next. The space wows with its updates: stainless steel appliances (the stove is an induction), a long island topped with quartz that offers seating for four, a trio of glass globe lights, a white subway tile backsplash, recessed lighting, a coffered ceiling, and white Shaker-style cabinetry. Glass doors on some of the uppers are a nice touch. The 261-square-foot kitchen is adjacent to a 134-square-foot breakfast nook, and a slider leads to a deck. The light-green walls and hardwood flooring address the yearnings of today’s buyer to incorporate more natural elements into the home.

This level also offers a half bath, a second foyer (in the back of the home), a laundry room with shiplap, and a mudroom with shiplap, custom cabinetry, and benches.

Using the stairwell in the front of the house leads to a serpentine hallway that runs the length of the home and connects two bedrooms, a full bath, and the primary suite. The primary suite is in the back, facing Whittier Hill Reservation, a tear-shaped drumlin in Amesbury.

It may be more appropriate to call the primary suite a “quatre” because it has four parts: a 223-square-foot bedroom with crown molding, hardwood flooring, and two windows; a 108-square-foot walk-in closet with custom shelving, crown molding, recessed lighting, and a pair of windows; a bath with a double vanity, a marble counter, quartz flooring, and a shower that has a seat and double shower heads; and a private deck that wraps around the back of the house.

The two secondary bedrooms on this level are just over 180 square feet, and one is set up as a home office. Each offers three windows, hardwood flooring, crown molding, and recessed lighting. The bedroom used as an office has wainscoting, while the other comes with a walk-in closet.

They share a full bath with a double gray vanity, a marble countertop, a shower/tub combination, and quartz on the floor and in the shower.

A carpeted stairway leading to the third floor ends in a hallway with a skylight. The fourth bedroom (201 square feet), which occupies this level with unfinished storage space, is carpeted and has a skylight and a set of three windows crowned by a half-moon.

The basement is unfinished.

The detached garage has two bays and upstairs storage space.

Heather Stasiak with Aland Realty Group in Portsmouth, N.H., has the listing. As of press time, an offer had been accepted on the property.

Follow John R. Ellement on Twitter @JREbosglobe. Send listings to [email protected]. Please note: We do not feature unfurnished homes unless they are new-builds and will not respond to submissions we won’t pursue.

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