The Atkins-Sims House in Maysville
Circa 1855. Built by Abraham Atkins, it is reported to be the oldest brick home north of Athens in the state of Georgia. It was part of a large estate owned by Sherman Jackson Sims. Tragically he died of Typhoid in 1862 while serving in the Confederate Army, leaving his widow Amanda to run the estate and raise 8 children, When she died in 1905, much of the estate was subdivided and auctioned off. Some of the lots are now homes along Sims Street, part of Maysville's commercial district and property that became the railroad.
Andy Sarge
Andy:
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for putting this information on the web. We just purchased the Atkins Sims House and had the entire interior of the residence painted in various colors from the Sherwin Williams Historic Paint Colors. Also, we had 2 rooms of the residence that have Stunning Heart Pine Professionally Restored! In the next 2 weeks the exterior of the residence will be painted in the classic White found on most Greek Revival Architecture plus we will be adding Spruce Shutters from Pennsylvania painted in the traditional Black (we will not be painting any of the Beautiful Hand made Bricks). The residence served as a hotel from approximately 1880 to 1925 and a Mrs. Amanda Sims allowed a Baptist Church to meet in one of the Parlors and the Church was established in that very room! There is even a place on the home where a Civil War round struck the residence. It has been guessed that it was a 6 pound round fired from a great distance from the Residence as the damage was quite minimal. Oh the history of this place. So much more to share but not enough lines to in the comment section to publish.
Sincerely,
Trent and Kassie Perry
tperrye@aim.com
Trent and Cassie,
ReplyDeleteThanks som much for the information. I drove by the house a couple of days ago and it looks great. Good luck with you efforts. That is an area of Maysville that is overlooked for beautiful old homes.
Thank you for the kind comments. The exterior painting is now complete and the shutters have been hung. I am finishing some landscaping changes by the end of next week so drive by again soon to see the house. As an update on the history, The Baptist Church that met in the downstairs parlor appears to be Maysville Baptist. There were 10 Charter Members so they could have all fit easily in that room. The year that Church was established was 1878 and it appears that got their building completed in 1882. So for approximately 4 years, the Church met in the member's homes, and we know that Amanda Sims allowed the Church to meet at her house. The first Pastor appears to have been a Dr. Van Hoose. Another neat feature of the home is that the Brick Addition that was added between 1905 and 1907 included an upstairs bedroom. That bedroom is actually a 4 sided Brick bedroom as it has one wall that was the original house exterior wall plus the 3 other walls that were added by Dr. Ed Chandler were all Brick. That addition features what appears to be 12 inch thick brick walls. Abraham Atkins built the original part of the home with full 16 inch thick brick walls. WOW! What a craftsman of his day.
ReplyDeleteAs one last note, Amanda Sims sold part of her land to the Railroad from what I discovered in the amount of $5.00!
Hi Trent Perry I lived in this home from ages 6-11. So it would've been 1991 to 1996. Beautiful home, my parents still live in Maysville.
ReplyDeleteGreat to know that you once lived here too B Bradberry! The home is now decorated for Christmas so drive by the residence if you get the chance during the holidays. It continues to amaze me how well Abraham Atkins built the original structure as that part of the residence turned 163 this year and she is remarkably still in good condition!
ReplyDeleteHi Mr Perry! Do you still live in this house? My great grandparents, John Blake and Lucy Rogers, lived and raised their children there in the late 1800s(?) to early 1900s. My Mother was born in this house. I believe they ran a boarding house at some point. I have some old photos that I could share with you, if you're interested. We visited there many times in my childhood (I'm 63), until finally it was sold outside the family. I have a very few things from the house that I received as an heir. Thank you for loving it.
ReplyDeleteBarbara Causey
barbcausey@aol.com
Barbara:
ReplyDeleteYes! I still live here and I have found much about your Great Grandparents in old Society Pages in the Atlanta Journal and Constitution. Your Great Grandparents had their 50th wedding anniversary in the Dining Room here at the residence in 1922 and I have the article from the Paper! We are still actively collecting history for the House!! One your relatives gave us the original Coal Scuttle that was in the home from about 1907 until the last Roger's Decendant passed away in 1976 that was living in the Home. The Victorian Scuttle, which dates to the late 1890's now sits by one of the fireplaces downstairs!
Thank you for reaching out.
Trent Perry
tperry@aim.com
706-499-7688