Hidden Mysteries

by Ronald J. Rollins

What You See Is Not Always All There Is To See!

Back in early April as my Search Team,  Jan Page, Sandra Doolittle and Myself, were out looking for more historical subjects in Harris County. We were talking about how most people see things in front of them and don’t really see what it may have been or is. I told them I remember a house in Durand that while being torn down a log cabin was discovered built in with the house in perfect condition and no one remembered it was built there. I then told them I thought I knew where another one may be like the one in Durand here in Harris County. We drove to the location at the site on Wright road just south of Lazy K Nursery .

It appeared to be an early 1920-style home with a large front porch and parts of the house jutting out from the center large living room. A normal house with timely additions built on over the years as a family expanded, much as we still do today. The home as I knew it belonged to the Moore Family. My only time in the house had been in the early 1970’s as I had rode with Pete Moore to the house to pick up a farm implement for the tractor that Pete wanted me to drive that weekend to a field  where he was planting in Soy beans near Johnson Island on the Chattahoochee River. This section of land was on part of what is now known as WMA Blanton Creek. Back then it was farmland Pete leased from the Smith family.

Well, the house as my group looked at it that day in April was very run down and as we walked around the grown up yard looking at the falling in section of the house I spotted it! I called the rest of my search party and asked can you see it? For a few minutes no one else did! Look, see where the wood on the outer wall has fallen away; It’s a veneer cover to match the rest of the house, look what is behind the wood planks. After a short pause Sandra says, ” I see it , I see “! Jan says where? I walk up closer to the wood siding and point at the 12” hand hued logs with their dove tailed corner joints. Large square logs stacked to the pole joice that held the shake-shingled roof. It had a small loft and windows , a plank floor. What we were all now seeing was an original early 1800’s Log home as built when the family first settled on this land.

We took pictures to preserve what was left intact as the roof of the improved house that had protected the log house for years was now falling in due to leakage and wood rot. The house had out lived the usefulness of the Moore family and has been empty for years now. The earth is now claiming it back. Soon it will be long forgotten. Our feelings were mixed as we stared in wonder

For more interesting History like this visit my site online.
Thanks Ron

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