By Angela Evans
Leigh Carter/Caswell Messenger The James Malone
House on U.S. 158 has recently been added to the
National Register of Historic Places.
Jun 24, 2008 - 11:09:31 pm CDT
Managing Editor
The original, beautiful golden hardwood floor was hidden beneath two layers of plywood, and a layers of acoustic tile and drywall covered the original bead board ceiling in the kitchen. The living room was pink, and blue, and green.
"It was pretty ugly," Chris Holaday says, of the James Malone House he owns with his wife Sue.
The Holadays bought the home in October 2003, and after four years of giving up weekends to scrape, paint and renovate, their labor of love has paid off.
The home became the 21st in Caswell County to be added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 30.
Chris said he and his wife moved to Caswell from Durham, and both work at Sports Endeavors in Hillsborough, he as lead writer and she as human resources manager.
They had been interested in owning an older home for a restoration project when a friend from work told them the James Malone House was for sale.
The home was built about 1860 for a then-prominent tobacco farmer, James Malone. Much of the interior woodwork including trim and mantelwork was done by Thomas Day.
Chris attributes the listing on the national register to the architectural significance of the home and its Thomas Day features.
The home will also be featured in an upcoming book on interior architecture by Thomas Day to be written by UNCG Professor Jo Leimenstoll. The book will be available in 2009.
Chris said the couple have made every effort to keep all the Thomas Day details, restoring the old, while adding just a touch of modern comforts.
The heat in the home is provided by a gas pack, and Chris says, they hope to replace the water heater with an on-demand system very soon. The kitchen, which was originally "who knows what" according to Chris, is now the pride of the home.
"It feels like a whole new house to have a nice kitchen," he said.
Despite its new features, Chris says he found some of the homes original features to be the most fascinating, and at the same time the most tedious to restore.
One mantel and a staircase had been painted to look like marble. Layers of paint covered the original design, but once he discovered it, Chris said he has spent several hours carefully scraping away the layers to reveal the marbled look.
"Everything takes a lot longer than you think it's going to take," he said. "You think it's going to take a weekend; it takes two."
The work, back and knee aches may not be worth it in the end financially, he says, but "in terms of rewarding to us, yes, it is."
None of the furnishings in the home are original, but the couple have shopped auctions and ebay and done lots of research to try to keep the home's decor in the correct period. Now, with items they've acquired at the ready, it's just a matter of figuring out where it all should go, Chris says.
The home is 95 percent finished, Chris says, and the couple has already entertained family at Christmastime.
Chris says they look forward to the possibility of an open house or joining a homes tour once the work is complete. They would also enjoy seeing any old photos Caswell residents may have of the home through the years.
Meanwhile, Chris says, there are always little projects to be done and the couple would like to thank several neighbors who have pitched in on the effort including:
Jeff Nidle and George Henderson of Leasburg, and Lloyd Blalock of Prospect Hill.
Preservation specialist Noah Read of Glencoe
Sara Lachenman of Durham, who researched the house and submitted the documentation for review.
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May 9, 2008
The Director of the National Park Service is pleased to send you the following announcements and actions on properties for the National Register of Historic Places. For further information or if you would like to receive this list weekly via e-mail, contact Edson Beall via voice (202) 354-2255 or E-mail: Edson_Beall@nps.gov
WEEKLY LIST OF ACTIONS TAKEN ON PROPERTIES: 4/28/08 THROUGH 5/02/08
KEY: State, County, Property Name, Address/Boundary, City, Vicinity, Reference Number, NHL, Action, Date, Multiple Name
NORTH CAROLINA, CASWELL COUNTY,
Malone, James, House,
7374 US 158,
Leasburg, 08000367,
LISTED, 4/30/08
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To see the National Register of Historic Places application form to to National Register.
More photographs are in the Caswell County Photograph Collection.
For more on James Malone and his family to to the Caswell County Family Tree.
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