Saturday, August 7, 2010

The Wade-Estes House


I'm a closet ghost. I absolutely love old houses, and this particular old house is all wrapped up in my heart strings.

Dang it. I want this house. I want it bad. It needs me and I need it. A hammock on the porch and chickens in the hen house. My life would then be perfect! All I need is $164,000 and a carpenter that works for free. And boarders.

And did I mention that it's 1/2 a mile from my hubby's summer home-away-from-home, Bear Mountain Blueberry Farm? It's a match made in heaven!

The Wade-Estes house was built in 1925 on the outskirts of tiny Clay, Alabama. It's a common sight to see "rock" houses around these parts, but this one is HUGE! It has FIVE bedrooms (and an AC unit to match), barn, chicken house, and shed. Oh, and a well on the porch. And a creek out back.
Is this not the best porch you've ever seen? Room for hammock, swing AND rockers! 
The house is on the Jefferson County Historical Society list of historic homes, but I'm afraid the old girl has fallen on hard times. She is a foreclosure, and I'm sure she'd be more desirable if she had some of her original acreage back. As it is, she sits on 1 1/2 acres of her original land. Sad.

Steps up to the wrap-around porch from the carport.











Back porch well

The creek

Inside the chicken house


Photog Babsy
...and a tire swing. You gotta love a house with a tire swing!
I'm afraid one day soon I'll drive by and it will be a pile of rocks with a bulldozer perched on top. But I hope not. Maybe someone with romance in their soul will snap up this baby and treat her with tender loving care. Sure wish I could be that someone.

This ole house once knew his children
This ole house once knew his wife
This ole house was home and comfort
As they fought the storms of life

If you know someone looking for historic loveliness (and not too far from I-59), take a look at this realtor's listing:
 Wade-Estes home listing
at

3 comments:

Wendy Haught said...

That is the most awesomest porch I ever did see! How do you keep finding these houses with wells on the porch? And a CREEK? Wow!

So when are you going back for pics of the interior?

August 8, 2010 at 6:02 AM
Anonymous said...

Gwen can tell that this house truly has a soul, and it NEEDS you! Holey moley, what a stunner. We have GOT to find a way make this happen. Somebody in our circle has to know somebody who knows Bob Villa...or at least some great carpenter who needs room/board and perhaps a stipend till the work is finished. Anyone-?

August 8, 2010 at 6:57 AM
Fotofule said...

I just posted a link to the listing so you can see a few photos of the interior. I can just SEE this porch strung with lanterns, with baskets full of corn to husk and peas to shell, paying customers gathered around for the opportunity to do so as they listen to a story teller spin tales and a banjo picker in the background for effect.

And I LOVE the pumpkin idea, which happens to be Stevie's second favorite thing to come out of the garden.

August 8, 2010 at 1:59 PM

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