This one-and-a-half story wood frame house has an open gable roof with knee brackets under the eaves, center dormer window, three-bay front porch with battered posts, and wood shingle cladding. Windows are mostly six-over-one double hung sash, either
singly or in pairs. On the northeast elevation there is an outside end chimney and a small one-story shed-roofed wing. The owners believe that this is a pre-cut house, bought from a catalog, citing evidence of various kinds. Gladys Andrews, a relative of the original owner, stated that Ralph Westervelt "built the house from a kit." Neighbors said that lumber for the house arrived in Ithaca on freight cars. A piece of lumber removed from an interior wall is marked with the name "F. E. Andrews, E. Ithaca, New York" indicating that lumber was probably shipped by rail to the site. "E. Ithaca" refers to a train station which was located a short distance from Forest Home.
In about 1960, a one-story wing was added on the northeast side of the house, which included a bedroom and bathroom. In 1991 this was used as a study. In 1986, a two-story rear wing, with a kitchen and bathroom, was added.
The property is bordered at the rear by Fall Creek. The remnants of a mill race are still visible between the house and creek. Across the street are lands of the Newman Arboretum, part of the Cornell Botanic Gardens (formerly called Cornell Plantations).
Included in
Forest Home Historic District with USN 10906.000182. To access the Building-Structure Inventory Form (sometimes referred to as the "Blue Form"), and from which many of the details above come, including the estimated year built, follow these
Lookup Instructions.