By Shannon McFarlin
Paris, Tenn.–The home where future Tennessee Governor and U.S. President James K. Polk stayed in while campaigning in Paris was honored with an historical marking from the Captain Charles Barham Chapter of the Colonial Dames.
It was a perfect Saturday afternoon for the outdoor ceremony marking the Alexander/Townsend Home at 7115 Hwy. 54 in Como. The home is now owned by Tommy and Melanie Townsend. A large crowd of Colonial Dames and local history lovers were on hand for the ceremony, which included posting of the colors by the Tennessee State Guard and speeches from Colonial Dames officials who came from as far as Alabama and Texas for the event.
Mary Stagg Johnston, Honorary President General of the State Colonial Dames Society, spoke about the historical significance of the marking and noted that the local Chapter has been responsible for conducting research and producing historical markings for 19 structures in the Henry County area (including the Alexander/Townsend Home).
The home was built on a 1,000 acre plantation in 1835 and over the course of its history has served as a stagecoach stop, voting precinct, mail stop and a stopping off point for Civil War soldiers. During the stagecoach days, the home was a stop for the stages which ran from the Tennessee River to the Mississippi River.
James K. Polk spent the night in the house on November 30, 1838 when he was campaigning for governor. He won the campaign and was elected 11th President of the U.S. in the 1840s. (Polk wasn’t the only U.S. President to stay overnight in Henry County—Andrew Jackson stayed at the Carter Hotel in Paris on a trip with his wife, Rachel, to visit Jackson, Tennessee, which was named for him).
Tommy Townsend spoke about his personal history with the home and the 35 or so years it has taken he and his wife to restore and renovate it since they purchased it.
As a child, Townsend remembers thinking it was a haunted house. The late Lucy Alexander Yates lived in the house, which had no water or heat.
After the purchase, Townsend said he learned it was a log house–”It had always been covered in weather boarding, so I didn’t realize there was log under there”. He described the painstaking restoration efforts, noting, “We looked all over for buried treasure” and did find some artifacts in the walls, including old newspapers, books dating from the 1800s, and carbide lights. The Townsends have the artifacts displayed in their basement.
The renovation process included stripping the weatherboarding to expose the logs. The logs were then treated and chinked with a mortar and lime mixture. Townsend noted that he and Melanie did much of the renovations while living in the house and holding full-time jobs.
“So I went from thinking I wanted to tear it down to what it is today”, Townsend said. “My Dad said ‘I’ve spent my life trying to get out of a log house and you’ve spent your life trying to get into one.’”
Melanie Townsend said, “We’re proud of this special honor. It’s been a real labor of love—most of the time. We’ve put our hear and soul into it.”
A photo montage was displayed which showed the renovation process of the home.
Photo: Melanie Townsend address the crowd at Saturday’s historical marking ceremony. Shannon McFarlin photo.