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South Mountain Company

Martha’s Vineyard’s integrated design/build company

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The Company We Keep

Dear Reader,
This blog is now an archive. John Abrams (Founder of South Mountain, author of this blog, and a book of the same name) retired on December 31, 2022. All posts published up until this date are preserved below.

For updates on John's next chapter, visit abramsangell.com.

For updates on South Mountain's second act, subscribe to our newsletter using the form below.

passive solar

Madeline’s Solar House

June 30, 2010 by John Abrams 8 Comments

In 1980 a woman named Madeline Blakeley called me to ask me to look at a piece of land with her.  She was a librarian in her early sixties whose husband had recently died.  They had no children and had always lived in rented apartments.  Her dream was to own a piece of property.

She had $7,000 in cash.  A realtor showed her a lot priced at exactly that, but all her friends advised her against buying it.  The property sloped steeply south to a beautiful little valley, a perfectly matched solar exposure and view.  But it was right beside the main road from Vineyard Haven to Edgartown, which was very loud and loomed over the property.  Except for that proximity and the fact that the whole lot was a hillside, it was a lovely site.  There was nothing else on Martha’s Vineyard within her price range.

Read More about Madeline’s Solar House

Filed Under: Companies We Keep, Design, Housing, Martha's Vineyard, South Mountain Company Tagged With: Companies We Keep, passive solar

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West Tisbury, MA 02575

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