PORTLAND – Gradually, over the past couple of decades, this Back Cove home almost disappeared, shrouded by vigorous evergreens that hid its face from the passing traffic on Preble Street Extension.

Earlier this month, the home re-emerged. The 47 evergreens and other, smaller trees and brush surrounding it were taken down.

The stumps have yet to be hauled out at this writing, but you can see that the home has a front door and a good-sized side deck, fronting on the Extension. And that the lot abuts “new,” tiny Winslow Park, the one with the tall red metal sculpture*, on the Baxter Boulevard side. (The original Winslow Park nearby was among the casualties when I-295 was built in the early 1970s.)

With the New Year, the home is embarking on a new era. Purchased by David Jones of F.O. Bailey Real Estate, it is in the process of being completely renovated, and prepared for sale in 2016. Work is expected to be completed by early in February, Jones said.

City records date the gambrel to 1920, but a search of the city’s 1924 tax records and the city directory indicates that the true building year may have been 1939. In any case, Jones accurately deems the house “an early-20th-century classic” and is being careful to preserve any still-desirable vintage features here at 3 Deerfield Road.

Among the positives, in many eyes, will be the location. Quite busy, but very convenient, and the Back Cove path is steps away. Deerfield, which runs roughly parallel to Baxter Boulevard for its short stretch, is a quiet, walkable street with a couple of dozen well-kept period homes, mostly single-family. This home, sitting near the edge of the south end of the cove, enjoys views out over the water and to the city’s East End.

In fact, in the enclosed porch and in the living room, previous owners had covered walls with panels of mirrors to “double” those views.

What will have replaced the mirrors, the wallpapers, the basement’s pine paneling, the carpets  … ? Look for the house to be included among this newspaper’s real estate section’s featured properties in a few weeks. For now, here is a pre-transformation, inside peek.

* The city’s public art Web page provides more information: “Rustle Diptych II, a vertical, red-painted steel sculpture by Maine College of Art (MECA) graduate Vivian Beer, is sited in Winslow Park, at the corner of Baxter Boulevard  … Rustle Diptych II was designed to conjure the idea of ‘a sail caught in the wind, a wisp of smoke and an ironic throne.’”

Produced by the Marketing Department of the Portland Press Herald, the design feature is provided at no cost.

Photos by Melanie Sochan, staff photographer.

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