Bringing Back Sligo

Category: Main House

• Just A Few Updates

  Posted at 10:04 pm by Lauren Tepaske, on November 12, 2018

  Everyone asks what our time frame is for moving into the Cottage House.  I tell folks that Marcus’s estimate has us moving in after Christmas.  I say since we’re throwing out arbitrary holidays I’m gonna go ahead and guesstimate that we’ll move in around Easter.  Or maybe National Doughnut Day (it might not be a holiday to you but it is to me).

  As it currently stands, the Cottage House does not have interior walls but it does have a new roof.  It also has new electric wiring throughout and the rooms and closet space for each have been roughed out but again, no walls.  Unfortunately, it will need new floors throughout as the current wood floors are just a mess, having been rotted through.  The kitchen is in surprisingly good shape and we won’t change much except to remove an exterior door and turn it into a wall for more space.  It also needs windows to be replaced and a new HVAC system installed.  Also, it needs a bathroom.  All of the aforementioned needs to happen in the next 6 weeks for us to move in “after Christmas” hence the reason for my disbelief.

  We are also in the process of employing Dovetail Cultural Resource Group to help us with the Virginia Landmarks Register (VLR) and National Historic Registry (NHR) and the tax credit process.  I did a little bit of the research on my own and we made it through two rounds of the VLR process but, as we got deeper, I realized my knowledge of historical research was limited and it is much more involved than just filling out a paper with what we think we know and getting approved for thousands of dollars in tax credits.  I don’t know why the government doesn’t just hand over money willy nilly?

  And, as far as the Main House and any updates with that…there aren’t any.  Marcus has talked about being in the house by his birthday next year which is in August.  My guesstimate for that move-in date is National Sibling Day 2020.

  Posted in Cottage, Life, Main House | 1 Comment

• A Belated Halloween

  Posted at 5:10 pm by Lauren Tepaske, on November 1, 2018

  Happy Halloween!  I know, it’s a day late and a buck short.  Is that the saying?  I tend to get those wrong.  Earlier today I told Marcus that by doing something I would only be adding “fuel to the fodder” and as I said it I knew it was wrong but I didn’t care.  And yes, it’s most redundant but let’s just go with it.

  For a hot second (now I know that’s correct) I had toyed with the idea of having a little Halloween ghost hunt party at Sligo but I lost my nerve.  Plus, it gets complicated with two little ones who actually participate in trick-or-treating and once they heard about the idea of a party they thought they would be involved and everything fell apart before it even began.

  Also, I don’t really think the house is haunted.  It is scary looking but that’s only because of its current state of disrepair.  Besides, when I took our dog into the house he seemed right at home.  He is a giant galoot but I figured if there were an otherworldly presence then an animal would be the one to sense it.  I was concerned he would start staring at something only he could see and he never did so either the house is not haunted or he was too busy being a pain in the ass to notice (honestly it’s probably the latter).

  I am surprised that we didn’t get any calls from the police this past weekend or last night.  I figured there would be kids daring each other to go up to the house on Halloween night.  One day I hope I can be at the house giving out giant candy bars to those brave kiddos who make that long walk up the driveway.  There was a house like that in my childhood neighborhood.  It was scary only because it was old and big and had a small family cemetery behind it.  I remember building up the nerve on the last Halloween living in that particular neighborhood and was greatly rewarded with a giant candy bar so now I’m ready to pay it forward.

  Anyway, on to Thanksgiving and then Christmas we go.  The plan is to be the living in the Cottage House after Christmas but at this exact moment there aren’t any walls and the floors are rotted so…maybe it will be Easter by the time we move.  Again.

  Posted in Cottage, Haunted, Holidays, Main House | 1 Comment

• Excitement

  Posted at 10:11 pm by Lauren Tepaske, on August 26, 2018

  We had a little excitement over the weekend when ADT called to inform us of a potential break-in at Sligo.  As luck would have it, we were close and able to meet the police at the property.  Also as luck would have it, I was about three beers and two glasses of wine into the afternoon (before you judge, it was my girlfriend’s birthday and I don’t drink like that all of the time…I mean, I might do that every other day, but definitely not every day) and was looking especially cute.  I only mention that last part about looking cute because, as it turns out, the responding officers were extremely good looking and it was just really a nice chance to meet the friendly neighborhood enforcers of the law, possibly exchange numbers, find out if they’re single, and overall get a really nice sense of community.  I should mention that I did not drive myself, Marcus was with me and he was sober and even he admitted the police were attractive because he’s that confident in his masculinity and our relationship.  Also, my going on and on about exactly just how cute these police officers were had nothing to do with my alcohol consumption.

  

  I’m not saying the officers looked like Channing Tatum but they looked like Channing Tatum (at least in my drunken mind).

  To get to the real meat of the story (see what I did there?), it turns out it was a false alarm or, if someone had been trying to get in, they were gone by the time we got there.  Unfortunately, someone shattered a storm door on the Cottage House, I’m guessing in an attempt to get in.  The best part about that is one entire side of the Cottage House is covered with a tarp and the perpetrator(s) could just as easily have lifted the tarp and entered that way but, I suppose criminals aren’t always known for their common sense.

  It isn’t surprising that people are still coming onto the property.  It has been vacant for so long and the Cottage House was clearly a place that squatters would frequent.  From day one I have been concerned that as work starts, people will come along and trash what we have done.  At the moment, one or two more broken window panes won’t hurt but once the real work starts and they start messing with my home, well, then I may have to send a petrified British soldier after their asses.

   

   

  Posted in Cottage, Grounds, Life, Main House | 6 Comments

• Sleeping

  Posted at 7:47 am by Lauren Tepaske, on August 9, 2018

  Marcus travels a lot.  It’s become only slightly easier to deal with as the years go by but, with that being said, every new house we move into brings with it a period of time in which I have to readjust.  Mostly the readjustment period is me dealing with irrational fears of being home alone with the kids and something scary happening like an intruder or a fire but it has definitely resulted in a few sleepless nights.

  I may or may not have mentioned the fact that I’m a worrier.  Someone needs to be in this family.  For example, I am the type of person that takes the tornado warnings seriously, gathering the children and pets and huddling in the bathroom.  Marcus is the type of person who sees the warning and rolls back over to sleep.  So, I don’t know if that’s a worrier problem or just a protective mother problem but either way I suppose it’s a problem when it affects my sleep (’cause Lord knows I love my sleep).

  So, now I find myself having sleepless nights worrying about how I’m going to fall asleep the first night that Marcus is gone and I find myself alone in the new house.  For one, the house has been vacant, and the whole area knows it, and I’m worried someone is going to try and get in.  Secondly, I’m worried that the house is so old the wiring will set it on fire.

  I’m also worried that the ghosts are going to get me or are going to mess with my girls Scratch that, I’m more worried about them messing with me…the girls can fend for themselves in this case.  If something sits on my bed in the middle of the night, I’m out (and there’s a very real chance of this happening because we have a cat and I’m more of a react now ask questions later type of person).  It’s every man for himself in the night if ghosts are involved.

  There you have it.  I can’t sleep for fear of not being able to sleep.  That could be the very definition of crazy.

  Posted in Haunted, Life, Main House | 3 Comments

• Virginia Landmarks Register (Sort of)

  Posted at 10:18 pm by Lauren Tepaske, on August 8, 2018

  We have started the process for registering Sligo with the Virginia Landmarks Register (VLR).  Surprisingly, it does not appear that anyone before us has attempted to do the same.  I am fairly certain the house would not qualify for the National Historic Registry but it may qualify for the VLR.  This isn’t to say that our application will be approved; I don’t know what exactly they’re looking for and it’s doubtful that just the age of home will land it on the registry but it’s worth a try.  If we can get it on the registry then we may qualify for tax credits which will help immensely.

  It saddens me that the property was left to fall apart for so long but I also understand how a home this size and age can get away from a person.  For comparison’s sake, our current house is a mere 27 years old and it was in such a state of disrepair that it was foreclosed because the owner couldn’t keep-up with the repairs.  I think it goes without saying that it was Marcus who found both Sligo and our current home.  I also did a little house hunting and kept finding perfectly fine homes without holes in the ceiling or nests in closets or ancient animal carcasses in the basement but I guess because they didn’t have any of those issues they weren’t interesting enough for Marcus.

  Some of you may have looked-up the Zillow listing of Sligo and seen the interior pictures.  I had, too, before seeing it in person.  The pictures still didn’t prepare me for what the house looked like in person.  Some of you might have wondered what I thought when I saw Sligo for the first time, in person.  Take it away Tyra:

  

  My literal reaction to walking into Sligo for the first time.

  I don’t mean to be dramatic but…maybe I was a little dramatic.  To be fair, this was the first thing I saw when I drove up the driveway:

  

  The vulture tree.

  That boded well for the rest of the viewing.  The next thing I noticed was the smell.  It turns out the cottage had a fresh animal carcass just inside the door and the smell was permeating the perimeter of the property (alliteration!).  Sorry, I didn’t get a picture of that; I pretty much avoided that area like, well, like a dead animal was near by.

  Once inside the main house, the first room I entered was the kitchen which is located on the south of the house (and trust me I usually have no clue which way is north, south, east, or west but I’ve been looking at maps for the VLR application and feeling frisky).  Directly to the right of the entrance was a small room which was full of random stuff.

  

  One corner of the kitchen, stacked with books.

  

  A view of the rest of the kitchen area.

  

  The small room off the kitchen and also the scene of Marcus’s accident. (Picture pulled from the Zillow listing.)

  As I walked past the kitchen I entered a dark hallway and what used to be a bathroom.  Past that was a second small room and then the two main rooms of the first floor plus the foyer which is a room in itself.

  

  The downstairs “bathroom.”  (Picture pulled from the Zillow listing.)

  

  The second small room off the back of the house.  (Picture pulled from the Zillow listing.)

  

  The foyer. Pretty sure the graffiti on the wall, to the left, does not say “Good luck you.”  Also, the door that is closed in the background of the picture is the second room off the back of the house.  (Picture pulled from the Zillow listing.)

   

  As I continued walking through the house I came to the two main rooms of the house.  Both were left in a state of disrepair with quite a lot of old and broken furniture and just general stuff piled in corners.  However, the one thing I saw and grudgingly admitted was amazing, were the very large, double pocket doors that separated the two rooms.

  

  The large pocket doors that separate two rooms on the first floor.

  From there, I gingerly picked my way over the broken glass and trash bags full of stuff and headed up the stairs.  The stairs are in amazing shape and are about four or five feet wide.  At first I thought maybe the stairs were so wide because of the style of dress in the 1890s but now I’m not so sure.  I was envisioning hoop skirts for that time period but after a quick Internet search I know that’s not correct.  Too bad because I was really hoping for a Scarlett O’Hara moment and maybe even a dramatic goodbye kiss with Marcus at the front door (not insinuating he’s going to leave me but we’re only just at the beginning of this renovation process and we still like each other).

  The stair banister is slightly worrisome for me (Hello, my name is Lauren and I’m a worrier) because it stands about four feet tall but Marcus pointed out it would be he or I that would be more likely to fall over since it hits at our hip or lower.  So, as long as the ghosts are friendly and aren’t the pushing kind I’ll be fine though I might avoid walking on that side of the stairs until the ghosts and I have established boundaries.

  The three rooms upstairs were all in relatively good shape with the exception of the broken windows and plants growing through them oh, and the nests.  Have I mentioned the nests?  The bathroom upstairs was in the worst shape of all the upstairs space though it would appear that some work was being done before the previous owners left.  After the second floor I went to the basement which I touched-on in a separate post but can’t stress enough just how dark and creepy it was.

  I suppose that’s it.  I just scrolled to the top and saw that I originally started to write this post about the application with the VLR so, my apologies, I know I went off on a tangent there.

   

  

  Thanks, Tyra.  You have such a way with emotions.

   

  Posted in History, Main House | 4 Comments

• The Windows

  Posted at 8:09 am by Lauren Tepaske, on August 4, 2018

  The windows are amazing.  In the front room of the first floor they are at least 8′ tall.  (It should be noted that the ceiling height is a whopping 12.’  I have no idea how to decorate for 12′ high ceilings.  I mean, I have a hard time hanging pictures at eye level…or just level, really, so this will be a personal challenge.)  I won’t even go into the question of decorating the windows and how I’ve sat and pondered over what kind of curtains and curtain rods or shades or blinds or posters or sheets or aluminum foil or whatever we’ll be able to afford when this is over and we’re house poor but we’ll still need to cover the windows.  *deep breath in, breathe out*

  About 50% of the windows have broken panes of glass and all of them are in varying states of deterioration.  Mother Nature has also done an impressive job of reclaiming her space and ivy is climbing through the glass that is broken.  Our oldest daughter was particularly thrilled by the ivy through the window and argued for it to remain.  She is quite the nature lover and we would do anything for her but this won’t be one of them.  She also wanted a life-size, mechanical dragon that can fly her around the world which we were, shockingly, unable to deliver so she’s used to overcoming her disappointment in our failure as parents.

  I believe we would like to save as many of the original windows as possible.  At the same time, I’m of the opinion that if some of the windows turn-out to be “new” then those should be replaced.  Really the only certainty is that the plants cannot stay.

  

  Master bedroom window.  Photo credit, Johnna Hetrick.

  Posted in Main House | 3 Comments

• The Basement

  Posted at 8:11 am by Lauren Tepaske, on August 3, 2018

  Of all the places in the house, the basement is by far the spookiest mostly due to the fact that there is an absolute lack of light.  There are windows but those are boarded up and, even if there were working lights, I have a fear of turning on a light and a spark flaring up and a line of fire trailing up a wall, burning down the house (seriously, watch The Money Pit if you haven’t already).

  On a recent trip to the house I was able to ascertain that there are not any human remains in the very large trunks that have been left behind so that was a relief (and if you think that thought didn’t really cross my mind you would be wrong).  The entire basement would be fantastic for a Halloween party or a seance or even a virgin sacrifice if that’s what you’re into.

  

  Why?

  In the end what I really want from the basement is a full apartment that can be rented on Airbnb or a space for guests to stay in (I won’t charge family and friends the full Airbnb price but you’ll still need to bring your own linens).  Renovating the basement comes with it’s own set of challenges, a lack of light being only one of those.  From the outside entrance to the basement is an old coal pit and where the boiler is currently located.  Saving this would not only preserve the history of the house but also add a uniqueness to the space as the current plan for it is to be a kitchen.  From the old coal pit would be a bathroom, a living space, and a bedroom.  Both the living space and bedroom have exposed brick walls and beams and I wonder what their use was 100 years ago.  If anyone out there is an old home expert I would love your opinion!

  

  The coal pit, where a future kitchen will be.

  

  The future bedroom.

  

  The future living space.

  Posted in Haunted, Main House | 6 Comments

• The Contractors

  Posted at 8:58 am by Lauren Tepaske, on July 31, 2018

  Marcus and I recently re-watched the 1986 Tom Hank’s classic, The Money Pit for what I deemed to be “research purposes.”  Granted, I’m not divorced from a millionaire conductor and Marcus isn’t the lovable Tom Hanks (though sometimes he does find himself in unusual predicaments) but perhaps the trial and tribulations the movie characters face while renovating their home may mirror our own in the future.

  

  Is this our future?  Hauling hot water up a ladder to the second floor?

  Throughout the movie, the characters are told it will take “two weeks” for the job to be complete.  Currently, we are being told work could be completed by Christmas.  Based on my extensive knowledge of home renovations (I have none) and what the movie has taught me (because movies are truth), I’m guessing work will be complete by Easter.  This isn’t to discount the work of the contractor, this is because the house is big and who knows what might happen as work gets underway.  Speaking of the contractor, Rappahannock Restorations will be the primary contractor for the main house.  If you have a chance, click on their name to be routed to their website where you can see pictures of some of their previous work.  Marcus was particularly excited to discover they had worked on the Pump House in Fredericksburg.

  For the cottage and barn, Elemental Energy Solutions (EES) will be performing the work and have already begun on the cottage.  After a harrowing encounter with a groundhog (or shall we call them “attic-hogs” in this case) the team has torn down the back-side of the cottage, which was completely damaged by the hole in the roof, and started to rough out the new wall and that portion of the roof.

  

  Photo credit, Adam Greico of EES.

  So far, with the exception of that aforementioned attic-hog incident (a groundhog, startled that humans were actually in his space, ran up the arm of an unsuspecting EES employee) , work has started and is progressing without a hitch.  If we’re lucky, truth will not be stranger than fiction and all will continue to proceed smoothly.

   

  Posted in Barn, Contractors, Cottage, Main House | 2 Comments

• The House Wants Blood

  Posted at 8:00 am by Lauren Tepaske, on July 27, 2018

  I have jokingly stated that this house is haunted but, in all seriousness, this house is haunted.  At the very least there is a petrified British soldier lurking around, thinking he’s still alive, fighting a war.  This doesn’t even take into account the people who most certainly passed away peacefully in their beds and whose souls wander the halls of the home they once inhabited.  While the current house did not witness the horrors of war who’s to say what negative energy may be within the structure and land.

  The day we closed on Sligo Marcus took his brother, Jonas, to see the house.  It’s probably worth mentioning at this point that the house has been vacant for 10 years and, as such, has suffered it’s fair share of vandalism (which is only one of the myriad of reasons I was hesitant to buy this house).  So, when Marcus and Jonas arrived at the house they noticed a window had been newly broken.  I don’t know why Marcus felt compelled to fix the window (the house did it) because half of the windows are broken anyway and going to be replaced so what’s one more?  But, attempt to fix it he did and, in doing so, accidentally hit his right pointer finger on the broken glass which promptly “gushed blood” (his words, not mine and Lord Almighty am I glad I wasn’t there).

  You can then imagine my surprise when a few hours later I called to ask how the closing went and discovered Marcus and Jonas were at the hospital because Marcus needed stitches.  Imagine my even further surprise when I called hours after that and discovered they were still at the hospital because, as it turns out, Marcus had not only cut his finger he had severed the tendon by 50%.

  There are a few of you reading today that know my husband, Marcus, on a personal level and there are a few of you who do not.  For those of you who do not know Marcus very well, know this:  Through the years he has been known to break bones, need stitches, collapse lungs (twice), electrocute himself (resulting in hospitalization), and, in general seriously injure himself frequently.  In 2010 he fractured his skull and six weeks later fractured his collar bone.  Since then it’s mostly been black eyes and maybe some stitches here and there but this is all to say that Marcus was long overdue for another serious injury.

  Marcus’s injury has since resulted in a surgery which has left his right hand incapacitated at the moment.  The timing couldn’t be worse as we gear-up to move and still have many, many projects to finish at the current house (remember that fixer upper before this fixer upper).  Will the house be happy and leave us alone after this?  Or is this just the beginning?

  

  Thank you, Marcus and Jonas, for sharing this extremely close-up picture of a gaping wound.

  

  Marcus’s current situation.  I can’t lie, I laughed a little when I saw this picture of Marcus’s hand after the surgery.

  Posted in Haunted, Injuries, Main House | 1 Comment

• The History

  Posted at 3:16 pm by Lauren Tepaske, on July 26, 2018

  Did anyone else start humming “The Addams Family” theme song when they saw that house?  No?  Just me?  Given the age of the home and the history of the land I’m just going to assume that one day I’ll be home alone and I’ll hear a little boy upstairs, bouncing a ball, asking me to play with him.

  

  Please do not ask me to play with you…

  Speaking of the history of the land and house, I have done some research and all online therefore it’s not completely reliable but I’ll proceed as if it is.

  The original owner of the land was Roger Dixon and the oldest part of the home’s foundation that still exists today dates from about 1770.  Apparently there is a piece of the cellar wall that is 18 inches thick and which is the original portion of the house.  As I have spent all of 10 minutes in the cellar I cannot say where that may be definitively but once the house is a little more walkable I’ll be sure to investigate.

  I digress.  Roger Dixon was a businessman and owned a mill and the area referred to as “Hazel Hill” in Fredericksburg, VA.  Upon his death in 1771, the property passed to Roger Dixon’s widow who eventually sold the portion of the land known as “Sligo” to Charles Mortimer, physician to Mary Washington and first mayor of Fredericksburg.  In 1786, Charles Mortimer sold Sligo to Michael Ryan.

  From here things get tricky.  It would appear that Charles Mortimer owned Sligo along with two others:  Lucy Minor and William Smith and somehow a man named Gen. Posey comes into the picture.  I have to be honest, I am not entirely sure what happens at this point with the property.  The more I try and comprehend what happened the longer I stare at the computer screen and ohmygodmybrainhurts, am I drooling?  Let’s just skip this part as there are a lot of deaths and widows and deeds.

  The next owner of Sligo is John Lewis, Fielding Lewis’s oldest son, who purchases the home from Gen. Posey in 1794.  However, John Lewis and his family do not own the property for long because in 1795 John Ferneyhough Sr., an immigrant from England, purchases the home and it stays in the Ferneyhough family until 1903.

  John Ferneyhough Sr. was a coach and carriage maker who aided in the Revolutionary War.  He also owned a public ice house which sat on today’s Sophia Street in Fredericksburg, VA.  From what I gather the original house was a one story, wood frame home and John Ferneyhough Sr. owned over 30 slaves.

  

  Chair of John Ferneyhough which can be seen in the Mary Washington house.  Image retrieved 31 July 2018 from http://jfjm100.com/the-virginia-museum/the-peter-scott-shop.html

  None of the documents I have seen indicate how many homes have stood on the site.  Soon after the end of the Civil War the Ferneyhough family left for Richmond and did not return to their home until 1865.  In 1889, the home that stands today was built.

  In 1903, Hazel Hill and Sligo was sold to Henry Warden though it was at Hazel Hill that Henry Warden and his family lived.  Grace Warden, Henry Warden’s daughter, married Sydney Shannon and in 1907, Sligo was occupied by P. L. Shannon, Syndey Shannon’s father.  With that being said, both Hazel Hill and Sligo fell under the name of the Grace Warden Shannon Estate.  For those Fredericksburgians reading, the name Shannon may be familiar as it is Syndey Shannon, Jr. who brought to fruition Shannon Airport and who once owned the golf course that the lovely Central Park sits upon.

  There were rumors many years ago that the property was used as a hospital for wounded British soldiers during the Revolutionary War.  It was more probable that it was used as a hospital for the Gunnery Factory which sat near by.  It is also said to have been a hospital for Federal soldiers and the land was used for drills.

  Finally, I leave you with this little tidbit:  “One informant, Mrs. Daniel, says that as a child…she was told that on the grounds of “Sligo”…was found a prisoner (presumably British) who had been put in an iron cage and left to die.  She said as well as she could remember he had been petrified.”  So…yeah.  Does anyone have a room I can stay in?

  N. M. Deaderick, 2 June 1937, Works Progress Administration of Virginia Historical Inventory, “Sligo” – Site.

  N. M. Deaderick, 14 June 1937, Works Progress Administration of Virginia Historical Inventory, “Sligo.”

   

  Posted in History, Main House | 6 Comments

• Recent Posts

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