Holly Rood celebration marks preservation milestone

Had it not been for the efforts of his­toric preser­va­tion­ists, the hill­top where Holly Rood stands would have been a park­ing lot.

Plans to destroy Winchester’s most his­tor­i­cal­ly sig­nif­i­cant ante­bel­lum man­sion were halt­ed when the Clark County Historical Society inter­vened in the 1970s to save the prop­er­ty that had orig­i­nal­ly been the home of Gov. James Clark, an ear­ly advo­cate of pub­lic schools in Kentucky. A mem­ber of Henry Clay’s Whig Party, Clark was also a judge, state leg­is­la­tor, con­gress­man and U.S. senator.

The Federal-style red brick house was built between 1814 and 1816 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

The house had been the board offices for Winchester’s inde­pen­dent city schools until they merged with the coun­ty dis­trict in the 1960s. Left vacant, it had fall­en into dis­re­pair. The school board was going to demol­ish the build­ing and pave the site until the Clark County Historical Society intervened.

According to local his­to­ri­an Harry Enoch, the school board was will­ing to deed the house and the half acre it occu­pies, but legal­ly the recip­i­ent had to be a gov­ern­ment enti­ty. So the Clark County Fiscal Court and Winchester Board of Commissioners cre­at­ed the Clark County-Winchester Heritage Commission in 1976 to become the new own­er, and the new board raised mon­ey to restore the man­sion at a cost of just under $200,000.

“It’s a major accom­plish­ment that the com­mis­sion was able to save it,” said Steve Justice, the group’s vice president.

Fifty years lat­er, the com­mis­sion and the Friends of Holly Rood will cel­e­brate the anniver­sary with what Justice called a “big to-do.”

The cer­e­mo­ny, which will fea­ture a procla­ma­tion by Mayor JoEllen Reed and County Judge-Executive R.J. Palmer, will be part of the eighth-annu­al fundrais­ing din­ner, Pig Pickin’ for the Past. The event will be on the man­sion grounds at 28 Beckner St. on Saturday, Sept. 26, from 4 to 7 p.m.

Dustin Howard, super­in­ten­dent of Clark County Public Schools, will be on hand for the cel­e­bra­tion and will deed a small piece of prop­er­ty to the com­mis­sion that was not includ­ed in the orig­i­nal trans­fer in 1976. It includes the part of the lawn where mon­u­ments hon­or the Clark fam­i­ly, who are buried on the property.

“It’s been a year in the works, but the rest of it will be deed­ed over,” said Sheila McCord, the Heritage Commission pres­i­dent. “We’ve been tak­ing care of it all that time.”

McCord said there will be a plaque placed on the front of the man­sion hon­or­ing those who worked to save it half a cen­tu­ry ago.

Tickets are $20 and will be avail­able on site and from board mem­bers. Tickets for chil­dren 10 and under are $5.

Constable David Puckett’s busi­ness, Pooh’s Que, and the Clark County Constables Association, will pre­pare the pulled pork bar­be­cue and oth­er food for the dinner.

“The food is always good,” and the con­sta­bles have pro­vid­ed it since the begin­ning, McCord said.

There will be live music to enter­tain the guests while they enjoy their meal.

There will also be a silent auc­tion dur­ing the event, and the recip­i­ents of this year’s schol­ar­ship to Bluegrass Community and Technical College will be announced.

In addi­tion, the com­mis­sion will present two his­toric preser­va­tion awards dur­ing the event. One is for the Aisling House, the man­sion on Belmont that was restored by Sarah and Nicholas Seiber.

“The oth­er one’s a secret,” McCord said.

Holly Rood is rent­ed out for wed­dings, recep­tions, show­ers, par­ties, din­ners, teas, meet­ings, and oth­er events, and the pro­ceeds from those rentals are used to pro­vide for the main­te­nance of the mansion.

The Friends of Holly Rood, a group of vol­un­teers, han­dles the sched­ul­ing and main­tains the house and grounds.

The com­mis­sion sup­ports Holly Rood, presents his­toric preser­va­tion awards, spon­sors his­tor­i­cal mark­ers, con­tributes to the BCTC schol­ar­ship pro­gram, and spon­sors an annu­al field trip to the Kentucky Capitol for junior high school students.