The Woodpile: Braewold

Completed in 1870, Braewold is the fourth and final "Woodpile" home built for James Wood II. Born in 1839, James Wood II was the youngest child of Phoebe and Stephen Wood. The family farm where the three family houses are built was purchased in 1809 by James Wood I, the grandfather of the four Wood siblings.

James Wood II was the only member of his family to receive higher education; he attended Haverford College for three years. Unfortunately in the fall of 1850, all of the brothers had to return to Bedford to care for their terminally ill mother. They all permanently moved to Bedford in 1856. Henry Wood built his home Brambleworth Cottage, John Wood built his house Evergreen Lawn, and James Wood II was then given the rest of the land and built Braewold, the final house. It was built on the site of the Old Farm House that was burnt down a year earlier. 

 Braewold stayed in the Wood family until James Wood III, the grandson of James II sold it in 2006. This house was completed in 1870 by an architect from Philadelphia named Addison Hutton. It is a two-story stone structure in the Second Empire style, characterized by a mansard roof and strong massing. The style was made popular by Napoleon III and has French Renaissance precedents. Braewold also differs from the other Wood properties in that it was an operating farm.

1.O'Rourke Andrew P., Westchester County Deputy Commisioner Historic Preservation, Albany, New York. May 31, 1991 (Accessed, October 14, 2020)

2.National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form, The Woodpile: Braewold, Westchester County Historical Society Archives, Accessed October 14, 2020

3.Williams, Gray. Picturing Our Past: National Register Sites in Westchester County. Elmsford, New York. Westchester Historical County Historical Society , 2003.