If walls could talk

In an attempt to preserve the history throughout Cherokee County, many business owners have opted to utilize historical homes for their establishments; rather than a conventional office building or space.

Jessica Wagner | Ledger-News Interior/wedding designer Christina Ray and The Wheeler House owner Lee Lusk stand on the porch of the newly renovated home. According to Lusk, prior to restoring the historical home, which was built in 1906, there were vines growing up the house and it was not up to code.

The Wheeler House was first constructed in 1906 for John F. Wheeler, former Ball Ground judge, and his family. Since the Wheeler family, the house has been passed to many owners, however, none of whom saw the potential in the house as Lusk did, he said.

“It has been a dream of mine since I was a child to own this house,” Lusk said, noting that he tried to buy the property several times before, but was outbid.

Recently, Lusk purchased the property and began restoring it. 

“You really don’t know what you are getting into, until you get started,” Lusk, who contracts historic homes, said of restoring the house, which was described as being run-down prior to him purchasing it. 

Over the past three months, Lusk has reconstructed the outside, while preserving the inside, which includes keeping everything original,  including the eight fireplaces, heart pine wood floors and elegant bathtubs.

As Lusk began restoring the home, he said he began to stray away from a residential property and started leaning more toward an event center for weddings and ceremonies.

“I’ve always known that it was a profitable house, and I have always thought that I could do better weddings than the ones I have been to,” he said.

After getting together with interior/wedding designer Christina Ray, the pair began mapping out the design of the house, which will have  a coastal plantation feel. 

“We want to stay true to the coastal plantation feel, while keeping with the history of the house,” Ray said.

Jessica Wagner | Ledger News Pictured here is the Sarah Dawson Parr room inside Tea Leaves & Thyme.

Kim Jordy, owner of Tea Leaves & Thyme, said the reason she chose a historical home in which to operate her business  was because she wanted to keep the ambiance of walking into someone’s home for tea.

“We wanted a place where you could walk in and feel the ambiance of a tea house. We wanted it to be elegant, comfortable and warm,” Jordy said. 

Tea Leaves & Thyme not only operates as a tea party facility; it also offers a full service lunch menu and brunch on Saturdays. The establishment offers afternoon tea and has 70 different varieties, with the peach tea being a fan favorite. 

Guests are also invited to dress in tea party attire as they enjoy one of the many original rooms that are named after women who formerly lived in the home, historically referred to as The Dawson Home.

“We just wanted to stay with the original house and what it had to offer. Each room is named after a woman who lived here in order to honor them,” she said, noting that the Sarah Dawson Parr room is a classic favorite.

Although Tea Leaves & Thyme currently operates out of The Dawson Home, the walls have confined many other families and businesses.

Prior to the tea restaurant and numerous rentals, the dwelling was the home of Sam and Georgia Carpenter Dawson. According to the Cherokee County Historical Society (CCHS), the home was built in 1909 and was originally surrounded by wrap-around porches.

In addition, the home had stained-glass windows, hand -hewn solid oak two-by-fours on the door frames, fireplaces and horsehair plaster walls, all of which still are present in the house.

Located just down the road from Tea Leaves & Thyme is the Ledger-News office, which also is based in a historic home.

According to Ledger-News Publisher Dave Caughman, the house was built in 1875 and was occupied, residentially, by a doctor for five years. Caughman said the structure remained residential until the late 1970s. 

Since that time, the East Main Street house has been used to hold an interior design business as well as many offices. 

Caughman said purchasing the house in the late 1990s seemed only right, considering he planned to publish a community weekly from the location.

“This house represents part of Cherokee County’s history and part of downtown Woodstock’s history,” Caughman said.

Because community newspapers are typically located within the downtown business district, Caughman said the house was a perfect match for what he was trying to achieve.

“I thought it would be fitting to be in this type of setting,” he said. ‘The house is a part of the history, and we are a part of the community.” 

Although the list of historical homes converted into businesses is long, many historic buildings around the county are being neglected or demolished to build subdivisions. 

In order to protect the history of Cherokee County, CCHS is working to protect homes like the William Andrew Gramling House, which was built in the early 1900s, along with other sites that may soon be forgotten.

For more information, contact the historical society at (770) 345-3288.