country house

this house is one of my favorite houses around. i have been going here for over 15 years to take photographs and each time i go back i am mesmerized. it is so simple and quiet and so beautiful. enjoy.

photographs and words by rinne allen

house on a hill

photograph by kristin karch

a forgotten home

we were driving through milledgeville, georgia and this home caught my eye.  this traditional southern home was by far the largest, most stately home on the street.  It made me wonder, why was it left here to rest...why was it forgotten.  

it is now in major disrepair, covered in vines...left for the squirrels but was once a home to someone.

photographs and words by kristen bach

hawkes creek farm

i visited yvonne at hawkes creek farm this weekend. a glorious fall day to visit a real treasure. the house was built in 1840 and is largely intact. all wood walls inside and patina to die for. when you first come in the driveway, it is all but obscured by the deep shadows of ancient oaks. inside is poetry…..

photographs and words by rebecca wood

italianate

i drove by this old italianate home when i was visiting rural illinois this summer. even though it was rough around the edges, it's beauty made me pull over for a closer look.

photographs and words by kristin karch

old stairway

photograph by kristin karch

lathe and plaster walls remain

photograph by rebecca wood

light

photograph by kristin karch

old walls

i visited this little old house to take pictures before the new owner renovates. I was taken with not just the house, but also with the layered crumbling walls. I love seeing how many shades of paint and patterns of wallpaper were built up like memories over a lifetime. if it were up to me I would live in it just the way it is.

photographs by kristin karch

church-wadell-brumby house

     the church-wadell-brumby house is believed to be the oldest surviving house in athens, built back in 1820 by alonzo church, a math professor at the university. the athens-clarke heritage foundation saved the home from demolition in 1967 and moved it to its present location at 280 east dougherty street. it now serves as the athens welcome center and a house museum, so all can appreciate its attention to historic detail.

photographs and words by kristin karch

crumbling history

this house is a favorite of mine and has been visited by rebecca a few times as well. it used to have a "for sale" sign that is gone now, so i am hoping someone is going to give some love to this ca. 1820 home. here are some photographs of the crumble before it all changes - for good or bad.

photographs and words by kristin karch

lexington beauty pt. 2

last week i posted about this wonderful house that sits on a hill right by the road in lexington, ga. i usually don't enter old houses because of instability, but i just peeked in, since the door was open… and it took my breath away! i had to explore! how i would have loved to go upstairs but too risky, seeing what shape the house was in. the entry way was a wide hall with low ceilings and wide boards. the living room had pink plaster over horsehair and lathe that was starting to fall down. it was originally two rooms up and two rooms down with a central hall , then two rooms got added off the back. i think i may have to revisit and explore more!

words and photographs by rebecca wood

lexington beauty

i've driven by this old place for more than 30 years, always wondering about it and why no one was fixing it up. i finally stopped to explore, and had so much fun! it is in pretty bad shape, and normally, i don't enter an old house because of safety issues, but the door was open, and i would just carefully peek inside…then i couldn't resist. the house is really old, evidenced by low ceiling and wide boards. i was dying to go upstairs, but couldn't trust the underlying structure. as usual, there's room added on on the back,and later a bathroom tacked on as well. it really may be too far gone now, but what a gem! next week i'll post about the inside!

lathe & plaster

photograph by rebecca wood

mimi's dahlia farm

this is where we all learned to love dahlias. our friend mimi, and her late husband, gary, started growing dahlias a few years ago. it was the first place i ever saw mass quantities of dahlias growing, and i've been in love ever since. her place is a wonderful country drive away and down a red dirt road. the house and outbuildings are from the 1850's, when it used to be a 1300 acre plantation.

october is prime dahlia time, with blue blue skies to enjoy it in.

photos and words by rebecca wood

one room house

i recently visited sautee - nacoochee, up in north georgia. there is a georgia folk pottery museum there that has great dioramas of the history and uses of the pots traditionally made in that area. very nice and worth a visit. 

on the premises is a restored old one room cabin typical of the hills. it has two doors and one window. of course, all that wood and the spartan furnishings are enthralling, but i'm pretty sure whoever lived there would gladly trade places with me!

this house doesn't even have a wooden front porch floor, just red clay and two stones for a front stoop. anything beyond this was getting fancy.

photograph and words by rebecca wood

deserted homeplace

spied this beauty on the way to a friend's house on a winding road. what a grand place it was in it's day! where i could peek inside i saw an upright coal burning stove in the parlor, and as you'll see in the kitchen, an amazing enameled cookstove, too heavy to move. there was an enclosed well off the kitchen. it was situated on a hilltop with old trees nearby for shade. one can only wonder what life was like there in the quietude of the mountains.

photographs and words by rebecca wood

dream a little dream

i often end up here when driving out in the country. it's a little old store on a crossroads near bostwick. it has roses and iris out front. it's hard to see in, but looks like there's stairs in the back leading to an upstairs apartment. out back is a huge chinaberry tree next to a catalpa tree. pastures all around for miles. it has a for sale sign on it...

photographs and words by rebecca wood

the nolan house

recently, I revisited one of our favorite spots...just outside of town. This house is abandoned, but someone has taken the time to board up the windows since my last visit. While it makes for dim light within the house, it will help it stay a little more protected.

words and photographs by rinne allen