Bringing Back Sligo

Yikes!  Why didn’t someone tell me it has been six weeks since I last wrote a blog post…and even then it wasn’t much of a post.  I was planning on writing something about the Civil War in Fredericksburg and how it affected the Ferneyhough family at Sligo but maybe I’ll take a minute to catch everyone up on how things are progressing at the house.

In November we had an open house tour given by the Historical Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. (HFFI).  About 100 people showed up and, I think, all were delighted with the tour and the state of the house.  My mother-in-law went on the tour hoping to go “incognito” which she was for all of two seconds and then she was accosted by my girls screaming “Grammy! Grammy!”  Regardless, she was absolutely thrilled with the tour given by HFFI which included historical aspects of the home and surrounding area, the families that have lived in it, and our plans for the future of the house.  I enjoyed meeting some of the folks at the end of the tour and even learned some new information about Sligo.  For instance, the property wasn’t on city water until the early 1980s.  I was surprised at that.  I also learned that General Thomas Posey and his second wife, Mary Alexander, likely might have lived at the property as when Mary Alexander’s first husband passed away he would have left his estates to the children.

Over these last few months the progress on the top two floors of the house has progressed rapidly.  The bathrooms are all but complete and the bedrooms have been painted and light fixtures installed.  On the first floor the kitchen still has some work until completion but that is because one cabinet was damaged in transit and one cabinet not delivered at all.  We have made decisions on just about everything else such as light fixtures for the downstairs rooms and the appliances for the kitchen.

In the basement the apartment is starting to take shape.  The walls for the bathroom are up and the  windows are being repaired.  The brick has been repointed and where there were dirt floors is now cement.  The HVAC system, which is the same mini split system as on the top two floors, has been installed and electrical wiring is run.  The addition of insulation in the ceiling has given the basement a more cozy feeling and while its still a little dark and scary it won’t be for long.

The grounds are in desperate need of work but until the trucks are done driving in and out it seems rather pointless to try and do anything.  Also, its cold and currently its raining and I have a sleeping pooch next to me so the last thing that sounds like fun to me right now is yard work.  Also, did I mention how many times I got poison ivy this past summer just by looking at the yard?  No less than five times and all of varying degrees of intensity.

We are hoping to move into the house by January which we are all ready for.  I never would have guessed we would still be living with my mom nearly 1.5 years later.  She probably didn’t expect that either.  Sorry, mom.