"I'VE ALWAYS KNOWN WE WANTED TO DO SOMETHING WITH THE PLACE," SAYS JESS MCNEILL, who is the sixth generation to live in the Americus, Georgia, farmhouse first purchased by his ancestors in 1853. "When MeriBeth and I got married, we knew it was where we wanted to wind up, but we also knew that since it was almost 200 years old, [restoring] it was going to require a lot of effort."
Well before the couple was ready to tackle fixing it up, they unexpectedly crossed paths with architect Jim Strickland of Historical Concepts and shared with him their dreams for the old family place. "I'll never forget it," says MeriBeth. "He sketched it right there on a bar napkin and said, 'If you want six more generations to live here, we need to rebuild it. Keep the soul of the home, but rebuild a modern-day version." In 2016, just after the arrival of their first son, the McNeills decided it was time to revive the farmhouse. "I reached out to Jim, who already had plans drawn, and within a month we were disassembling it literally board by board," says Jess.
The team took great care to preserve everything they could-down to the fireplace mantels, studs, and floor joists. "We were able to repurpose almost every piece of wood and brick that we took out," says MeriBeth. “Just about anything that isn't painted is from the original structure."
Bu hikaye Southern Living dergisinin October 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Bu hikaye Southern Living dergisinin October 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Forging a Legacy - A Fredericksburg, Texas, couple is creating a new class of heirloom cast-iron cookware
When Jay Mallinckrodt pitched the idea of crafting cast-iron cookware to his wife and business partner, Heather, in 2020, she was hesitant. I immediately said no, she recalls with a laugh. But I finally agreed as long as we made something that we would actually want to use ourselves. Like many others during the initial throes of the pandemic, their multigenerational family operation, Heartland Enterprises (which specializes in machining parts for jet engines and gas and oil equipment), was seeing a lull. “No one was flying; no one was drilling, says Jay. So we had time to try something different.
A Butterfly Haven - In the Texas Hill Country, a conservationist is helping monarchs adjust to the changing world
Twenty-four years ago, Monika Maeckle bought a small property on the Llano River in Central Texas as an escape from fast-paced San Antonio. A journalist and marketing professional by trade, she didn't at first realize the value of the location on which she and her husband would later build their ranch. She also had no idea how this decision would eventually transform her life.One October evening a few years later, a friend invited Maeckle to their nearby house, which sat on a watershed with several large cypresses. All these butterflies dropped from the sky and started to gravitate toward the trees, she recalls. Stronger people who could swing a big 12-foot-long pole began trying to capture them, and we waited. By the end of the evening, we'd tagged a couple hundred butterflies, and I left there enchanted.
Oktober Feast!
While I respect your right to serve spooky food in October, you won't find any gory grub at my house this month. Instead, I'm hosting a gathering that's inspired by biergartens across the pond. The focus of the menu is a fondue made with Gruyère cheese and crisp Riesling-like beer-cheese dip but more elevated. It's served with a smorgasbord of dippers such as smoked sausage, grapes, apples, and a few amped-up store-bought snacks, like Mustard-Glazed Pretzel Bites and Smoked Paprika Potato Chips. (Just one taste, and you'll want to add this spice to every bag you open.) Pour yourself a Cider Shandy, and get ready for a good time. Prost, y'all!
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Roll With It
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VIRGINIA PASTORAL
IN MIDDLEBURG, THE COMMONWEALTH'S MOST STORIED SMALL TOWN, OCTOBER WELCOMES A HOST OF TREASURED TRADITIONS
TAKING ROOT
Turn the season's freshest veggies-beets, parsnips, sweet potatoes, carrots-into colorful fall sides
THE FAMILY PLACE
When it came time for a young Georgia couple to make an 1800s farmhouse their own, they took it apart piece by piece-then rebuilt it into a home ready to welcome the next generation
Loving Life in Fayetteville
This Northwest Arkansas college town is easy to love and hard to leave
The Road That Raised Me
This lesser-known drive offers the most breathtaking views in the Smoky Mountains
