First Period houses were constructed during the first century of English colonization. Although surviving examples are quite rare, there are believed to be 59 houses in Ipswich, Massachusetts with some First Period elements. The 1712 John Lummus house on High St. was restored in 1964 by Phillip Ross, who apparently never installed railings on its front stairway. The present owner of the house contacted me about making and installing authentic First Period posts and railings similar to the Parson Barnard house in Andover.
Front entry stairway in the Parson Barnard house in Andover, from the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS). At that time the house was believed to have been the home of Governor Simon Bradstreet.
Stairs and railings in the Parson Barnard house today.
The stairway and second floor hall no railings after the 1964 restoration.
View from the top of the stairs after the posts and railings were installed. Posts are 3″ Douglass fir. The top rails are Crown 6310 red oak, and the balusters are 13/4″ Crown 2105 primed balusters. The paint color is Benjamin Moore Webster Green HC-130. The tricky part of this job was that the top rail and a couple of the balusters had to be notched at the second floor overhang and the upper post.
View of the new posts, railings and balusters from the lower winder
Gordon Harris 
Job well done, looks great
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