On a College Hill slope in Providence, your Joseph Haile House, also called the Gardner House, rises three and a half stories in brick. It is a 3+1⁄2-story brick structure, and it appears taller than that because of its hillside location and its raised basement. The house is a well-preserved example of Federal styling and underwent a careful restoration in the 1930s by George Warren Gardner, who filled the house with early American furniture.
The Gardners bequested the property to Brown University, and Brown uses it to house visiting dignitaries. The building’s preservation and significance were recognized when it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. Stand close and notice how the brick holds the slope, how the raised basement lifts the main floors, and how the overall massing reads from the street.
You are at a house that carries layers of care: original Federal styling, a 1930s restoration, and stewardship by the Gardners and Brown University. Notice the façade rising up, the raised basement that adds height, and the College Hill streets where the house sits within the neighborhood.