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The Black Pearl

Designed in 1922 by Kilham, Hopkins, & Greeley of 126 Newbury St., Boston, 129 Beach Avenue has always been called The Black Pearl because supervising carpenter Harry N. Black was so pleased with the Dutch Colonial Shingle Style house he'd created fronting Gooch's Beach in Kennebunk that he called it his pearl.

The View

With sweeping bold oceanfront views of the beach from the Kennebunk River to the Colony Hotel, Walker's Point, Boon Island, Nubble Light, and the Narragansett Hotel, The Black Pearl brings back the roaring 1920s as few houses can.

The House

Surrounded by sea roses, this ideal retreat is sheathed in classic red cedar shingles accented with dark green shutters. Entering through the side porch with butler's pantry, visitors are treated to fully restored classic beadboard walls and glowing red-cedar floors that bring the Arts & Crafts period to mind. The living/dining room has a large working fireplace, built-in bookcase, and a wonderful sun porch with all original wicker. Every room across the front and sides of The Black Pearl is illuminated with majestic seashore views. The first floor includes bathroom with modern shower; the second floor delights with three-plus bedrooms (three across the front and one in back with a built-in captain's bed and convenient laundry center) plus a bathroom with an old-fashioned clawfoot soaking tub.

The Beach

On unforgettable mile-long Gooch's Beach, a favorite for surfers for its dramatic waves, children for its lovely crescent of sand -- the finest in Maine, and romantics for its dramatic sunsets -- you can still find large pieces of brain coral from the days when it was used as ballast and then discarded overboard by the great trading vessels, the mouth of which is on the north end of the beach.

Recent Renovations

We recently reshingled the house, refinished the hardwood floors, put in a new furnace; a state-of-the-art, on-demand hot-water system; all-new stainless steel kitchen appliances including the Advantium Oven, G.E. stove and refrigerator with icemaker, Kohler Cooksink; and installed Deer Isle granite counters. We have kept all the original beadboard, so the cottage still looks much as it did when my husband's grandmother commissioned it.

Stickley Furniture

We also had many of the original pieces of furniture in it refinished and have added Stickley pieces over the years, including a full suite of livingroom furniture. It comes completely furnished down to the towels and sheets and the assorted Fiesta and Stangl ware and our collection of books by local Kennebunkport authors such as Kenneth Roberts, Booth Tarkington, and Margaret Deland.


For Reservation Info

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