Storybook Mansion -- Author Mary Mccarthy Wrote Her Tales In This Big Old Madrona House

IT'S THE OLDEST HOUSE STILL STANDING on the high Madrona ridge, overlooking Lake Washington, and like many old homes, it has a history.

In this case, it's one you may have read about in a Mary McCarthy book, such as "Memories of a Catholic Girlhood" or "How I Grew," which chronicles the late author's coming of age. Much of McCarthy's adolescence was spent in her grandparents' home, this very same century-old mansion.

If you visit it next Saturday, during the Madrona Home & Garden Tour, you can tromp up the grand newell-posted staircase to the third floor to see the dormered room where McCarthy supposedly returned as an adult to write parts of her most-famous book, "The Group."

You can pause on one of the three covered porches where McCarthy planned hijinks, and gaze at the 180-degree view of Lake Washington and (depending on the weather) the Cascade Mountains. And you can nestle into the wide window seat of the Victorian living room, where McCarthy spent long hours reading.

But if you've never read nor heard of the notorious Ms. M., a self-proclaimed "bright, wild girl from Seattle" (she was born here in 1912, attended Garfield High, among other schools, and then went on to become an internationally acclaimed author), you're more like members of the Dave and Sue Redhed family, who knew nothing of the famous author when they bought the aging, castlelike house 19 years ago.

"It wasn't that it was historic. We had eight children, ages 3 to almost 14. The house has eight bedrooms, four bathrooms and five fireplaces - about 6,000 square feet in all," Sue says. "It was big enough for us, plus it had a grassy yard and a wonderful view."

THE IMPOSING TURRETED HOUSE was built in 1891 for McCarthy's grandparents, the late Harold and Augusta Preston; he was a founder of the still-venerable Preston-Thorgrimson law firm. It was designed by Gaggin and Gaggin, the East Coast architects who designed the Smith Tower.

Mrs. Preston sold the house in 1957 for $18,950. There were three intervening owners before the Redheds came along, in 1972. During the years it has been rewired, reroofed, recarpeted and re-sided (in '60s-era blue aluminum) but, until this year, nothing "glamorous" had been done, the Redheds say.

At one point the family did think about restoring the house for nomination to the Historic Register. Dave and Sue even took a seven-week restoration class, several years ago, from Historic Seattle and Allied Arts.

"We learned a lot," Sue says. "Most important, we came away with the conviction that restoring our home wasn't our purpose; we were simply to maintain it as well as we could structurally, and furnish and decorate it in a way that would complement both family-raising and hospitality."

Hospitality is a big part of the Redhed life: "We always have other people living with us, traveling missionaries, a cousin or two, sometimes whole families," she says. "Scores of people have shared a meal, hundreds have toured the house, and it has hosted neighborhood meetings and countless other functions.

"From the start we believed God had a purpose for our being here. The house was not just ours, but was to be shared."

But through the years and the kids, that sharing left the house much in need of repairs and updating.

Three years ago they turned the well-trodden lawn into an edible landscape replete with berry bushes, fruit trees, raised vegetable boxes, an arbor, a courtyard and new decks. Dave and several of the kids built the white picket fence from a design that evolved many times on the family computer.

Late last year, with the home's 100th birthday approaching, the family developed a list of 87 large and small projects they wanted to do, all at once, and in time to be part of this year's home tour.

Some jobs were as simple rethinking the way the house is used. The family has many heirloom (but much-used) antiques from Dave's late father, including braided rugs, high trundle beds, artwork, tables and chairs. Some pieces needed refinishing or re-upholstering, others just needed rearranging or moving to different rooms. Most rooms needed painting, several got new drywall. Many carpets were replaced or added. A '50s-era second-floor bathroom (supposedly where the late Mrs. Preston had a luxurious marble-and-velvet bath and lounge) was gutted and redone.

THE FAMILY HIRED DESIGNER Kathleen Roark, who is also a Madrona neighbor, to shepherd the many projects. She hired painters and carpenters to do the heavy work, but single-handedly is doing the fancy paint jobs in the dining room and kitchen. In the dining room, where a massive 6-foot round table is host to many family dinners, she painted and then glazed the old flocked wallpaper on the walls to a dark, glowing green that sets off the expansive lake view.

Roark helped the family coordinate old and new in the kitchen. Some appliances were updated, the cabinets shifted about and then topped with faux-marble counters that she hand-painted and urethaned. She also painted and collaged a 4-by-6-foot cooktop island using the colors and floral designs of an Arboretum photo shot by Vicki, one of the five Redhed daughters.

The huge living room was organized into four conversation areas, including a picturesque, Victorian grouping in the front turret. New cushions will replace the once-carpeted window seat on the lake side, which had served as a stage for many impromptu family performances.

"In decorating, we weren't looking for a glitzy, dramatic `statement,' " Sue explains. "The goal has always been to have a comfortable, attractive, welcoming place to live in and share with others.

"If we could achieve a tone, it would be, as in the yard, simple exuberance."

Six historic Madrona homes and the beautiful Epiphany Church chapel are part of the 11th Annual Madrona Home & Garden Tour, next Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Allow at least two hours to see everything as well as to enjoy the rambling walk through the neighborhood. Small children are best left at home; there are lots of stairs to climb and the houses can get quite crowded.

The tour starts and ends at Madrona Elementary School at 33rd Avenue and East Union Street, where there is plenty of parking. There is a cafe for light refreshments in the Great Hall beside the Epiphany Chapel, and tour tickets include free coffee at the Hi-Spot Cafe.

Tickets are $7.50 in advance from area shops including Madison Park Books, City People's Garden Store and New York Deli, all in Madison Valley, and the Hi-Spot, 1410 34th Ave.; and $10 on tour day at the school. For more information call 329-8775.

CATHY REINER IS A REPORTER FOR THE SEATTLE TIMES NEWSFEATURES SECTION. GREG GILBERT IS A TIMES STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER.