Prospect Hill Tornado Restoration
Donation protected
As reported by Greg Moses in the Daily Post Athenian. A storm of historic proportions nearly erased a piece of local Athens, Tennessee history from the landscape. The historic Van Dyke Mansion was among the structures severely damaged by the tornado in the early morning hours of November 30, 2016.
The extensive damage included a total loss of the roof, along with the exterior walls surrounding an upstairs bedroom. A significant portion of the porch on two sides of the house was left shattered, with several of the two-story white columns splintered and strewn across the yard, along with dozens of the bricks that were made by hand on site during the home’s construction.
We purchased the home almost seven years ago and had been working over the past three to four years to restore the nearly 200-year-old structure to its former glory. We were about six months away from being in it!
Known as “Prospect Hill,” the home was built around 1833 by Thomas Nixon Van Dyke, a prominent Athens lawyer and judge who also served as president of the Hiwassee Railroad and was active in the civic endeavors of the city. The home was one of the largest in the area at its heyday and the then-80 -plus-acre estate boasted magnificent terraced gardens and well-appointed grounds – some of which later became Cedar Grove Cemetery.
The “showplace” during the Civil War entertained both Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest and Union General William T. Sherman, the latter taking up residence in the house while Van Dyke, a staunch Secessionist and Confederate sympathizer who was arrested in 1864 by Union soldiers, spent time in a prison camp until the war’s end, returning to Athens in 1866, where he would live out the remainder of his life.
It’s our respect of the home’s history and our attachment to “Prospect Hill” that led us to decide to make the necessary repairs and continue with the renovation of the house. Unfortunately, we could not obtain insurance during the renovation as the home was uninhabitable. We are asking for your help with our labor of love to once again bring “Prospect Hill” back to life.
An initial rough estimate for the roof and wall was $50,000 which would get us in the dry again!
The photos show the home when we purchased and before the tornado.
The extensive damage included a total loss of the roof, along with the exterior walls surrounding an upstairs bedroom. A significant portion of the porch on two sides of the house was left shattered, with several of the two-story white columns splintered and strewn across the yard, along with dozens of the bricks that were made by hand on site during the home’s construction.
We purchased the home almost seven years ago and had been working over the past three to four years to restore the nearly 200-year-old structure to its former glory. We were about six months away from being in it!
Known as “Prospect Hill,” the home was built around 1833 by Thomas Nixon Van Dyke, a prominent Athens lawyer and judge who also served as president of the Hiwassee Railroad and was active in the civic endeavors of the city. The home was one of the largest in the area at its heyday and the then-80 -plus-acre estate boasted magnificent terraced gardens and well-appointed grounds – some of which later became Cedar Grove Cemetery.
The “showplace” during the Civil War entertained both Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest and Union General William T. Sherman, the latter taking up residence in the house while Van Dyke, a staunch Secessionist and Confederate sympathizer who was arrested in 1864 by Union soldiers, spent time in a prison camp until the war’s end, returning to Athens in 1866, where he would live out the remainder of his life.
It’s our respect of the home’s history and our attachment to “Prospect Hill” that led us to decide to make the necessary repairs and continue with the renovation of the house. Unfortunately, we could not obtain insurance during the renovation as the home was uninhabitable. We are asking for your help with our labor of love to once again bring “Prospect Hill” back to life.
An initial rough estimate for the roof and wall was $50,000 which would get us in the dry again!
The photos show the home when we purchased and before the tornado.
Organizer
Jim-Lisa Long
Organizer
Athens, TN
