Just prior to starting work on this house, a local arts paper reprinted a short notice, originally printed in The Express Times, describing this building as the first brick house built in Easton. The house dates from 1792 and was built on the orchard of Samuel Sitgreaves, a founding father of Easton. The house was given to a slave named Cudjo who was owned by Sitgreaves at the time of his death. Evidence of this gift is in the probate of Sitgreaves’ will.  

Based on the 19th century architecture, we initially doubted this to be the same building. We were therefore surprised and excited to find that the south corner of the facade was significantly different than the west facing facade. It was clear that the bricks were substantially older, larger, and not nearly as standard in size. It is worth a walk down this historic street to get a glimpse of perhaps the first bricks used in Easton. This was one of our most gratifying projects to date. Removal of brick face is a delicate process but one that makes an old building look great again. This house and its history is a sober reminder of how recently slavery was part of America, existing even in a small Pennsylvania town.