The fellow we bought the house from 3 years ago was a house flipper. He did a ton of work to bring the place up to date, although most of what he did has a handhewn charm that wasn't up to the professional level we would have liked. One of the big improvements he did was replace the windows with modern, double-paned windows. Thank goodness.
For some unknown reason ($$$) he left 2 of the original windows. Maybe he thought they would act as a time capsule to demonstrate the historical origins of the house (which they do). But one of these beautiful, historical, woefully drafty windows is right off my office and is one of the reasons I am dressed in scarfs and gloves all winter.
In the Master Plan, the historical window and patio door will be replaced. We're going to knock out the entire wall they are on and fill in the side porch to create a dining room. So for now, it makes no sense to replace these windows. But... wrapping them in plastic wrap to reduce the draft is our low-tech solution to slowing down the breeze.
Eventually I see this beautiful window becoming recycled into yard art, or becoming a building block for a greenhouse.
