Isaac DeVault Mansion, ca 1852
The Isaac DeVault mansion, ca. 1852, on Hwy 11E just south and across the highway from Rocky Mount. Isaac DeVault was my great-great grandfather. My grandmother Margaret DeVault Woolf, Isaac's youngest grandaughter, took me here when I was very young, back in the 50s.
The DeVault brothers, Valentine and Frederick, bought this land from the Massengills, the original settlers of the property, in 1825. Then, amazingly, direct descendants of the Massengills bought the property back 100 years later. Sally Massengill, who lives there today, has done a world class job of having the home restored to its original splendor. It may be the best restored privately owned antebellum home in Tennessee.
When I first visited here in the 50s, the house was completely surrounded by brush; small "weed" trees, no more than 1-2 inches in diameter, completely choked the front yard you see here. It was a jungle right up to the front steps. The house desperately needed paint and had obvioulsy not received the best care in the half century since Isaac died.
Yes, the sky was that blue on Nov. 3, 2007, the day I took this photo. It was just about the deepest blue sky I have ever seen. The wonderful morning didn't come with proper sound, however. The new car dealership just south on 11 E had a very loud speaker system. As I'm taking my photos, I can hear, "David, pick on on line 5. Harry, pick on on line 2, please...."
