Blue Room

The Blue Bedroom is so called because of the blue wallpaper that has always hung there. The current paper was selected by Alice Hayes and will either remain, if possible, as it is period-appropriate, or will be replaced by a similar paper. The floor will be repainted in an historic color. Ceiling plaster will be redone, trim will be repainted, rewiring will be completed, and HVAC will be upgraded and modernized. Besides having a lovely view of the prairie through the west window, this room is significant for the part it plays in Audrey Niffenegger's best-seller The Time Traveler's Wife. The Blue Bedroom was the model for Henry's wife Clare's room, which enhances the mystique of Ragdale. In addition, the Blue Bedroom is the favorite haunts of the Ragdale ghost, purported to be Sylvia Shaw Judson, Howard Shaw's middle daughter and sculptor of the famous Bird Girl of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil fame.

Update on the Blue Bedroom - March 20, 2011

The Blue Bedroom, like all other rooms in the house, has lost its charming wallpaper, but once repairs have been made, the paper and the warmth will return. The bookcase on the far left is where a door once was that led to Alice's room. Stripping the wallpaper led to some fascinating discoveries about the decorating the Shaws did in this home. Layers of paper and paint from the past show color and pattern choices that will guide the renovation today.