Book excerpt: The story of life in New England from before the American Revolution to the twentieth century. Windows on the Past will take you on a tour of four centuries of home building, with fascinating interiors and furnishings; family ties to a wide variety of homes; advances in cooking, heating, plumbing, and lighting; the evolution of dining rituals; and classic landscapes, flower and kitchen gardens, and working farms. The book has been updated with new, richly illustrated chapters on the changing roles of servants in running the New England household and on the Historic New England Stewardship Program, which protects more than seventy-five privately owned historic properties. Through these windows on the past, discover Historic New England. Lavishly illustrated with 275 color and historic black-and-white photographs.