We closed on the house on September 28, 2017 and since then have been on an incredible journey. A home that remained in the same family for 143 years is a special place. It sat empty on the market for about a year and a half even though many people looked at it. We wondered why so many people looked and passed it by. We have heard a few say it was too old, too much to fix, an odd floor plan, and other things you say when evaluating a 140+ year old house. So, it sat lifeless waiting for someone to revive it. When built in 1875, it was home for Spiro and Lizzie (Simpson) Bennis, where they raised their family, and after that, the home for generations of descendants until it went on the market. Spiro and Lizzie were both active in the Sullivan community as were most of their children. History tells us that son Fred and his sister Ida were the last Bennis' to occupy the house until Ida willed it to a Simpson descendant who became its guardian.
We have vacationed in Maine nearly every summer since 2000. At first, we dreamt about a place of our own. Then in July of 2017, with retirement for one of us looming, we took action. We had spoken to Peter Drinkwater (Realty of Maine), owner of the Winter Harbor 5 & 10, a few times while shopping at his store, so he is who we called to ask if we could see a few properties. One of those was the Captain Bennis House, an intriguing house we had been following online and watching its price dropping lower and lower. People seem less interested in a house that sits on the market too long and they are often suspicious about what's wrong with it. Perhaps for good reason. So off we went one July afternoon to see some properties.
When we pulled in the driveway it felt like time travel. We may as well have been back in 1875. We spent maybe 30 minutes looking around, getting lost, but enjoying the craftsmanship and the history. But there was something more than that. We both enjoy history, genealogy, and love of the Maine coast, and this house was speaking to us. Call it irrational or reckless if you must, but love at first sight is powerful. A few weeks later a deal was made and the house was ours.
People asked us, including our lender, what we would be doing with the spaces set up as rental suites. But that hadn't crossed our minds. For us it would be our second home. But along came an interesting plot twist. The Pierre Monteux School and Music Festival in Hancock had been housing orchestra musicians at the house for a few summers. With our lives enmeshed in music for so long, this struck a chord! In 2018, our first summer as owners of the house, we had several of the Monteux School orchestra musicians stay with us. Since we had taken the time and effort to set the place up for our musician guests, we launched into Airbnb for the rest of the season. Since then, we have hosted family, friends, Monteux guests, and Airbnb guests, running close to full occupancy each season.
Do you believe in coincidence? Karma? Well, it seems our instincts served us well. It's been quite the adventure ever since. And the best part, if it is possible now to love the house more than we did before, we do.
"Our goal is to preserve the integrity of the house with judicious repairs and updates while respecting the rich family history and distinctive character of its construction."