|
|
The Saga of the Josiah DeLoach House
Shelby County, Tennessee
Contributed by Robert Paty
rep1935@qwest.net12 February 1998
Preservationists, Hospital Clash Over Historic Home
by Jacqueline MarinoBaptist Memorial Hospital says those who want to save the historic DeLoach House in Collierville have two options: Move it or lose it.
Much to the chagrin and surprise of local preservationists, Baptist announced before Christmas that it would not be able to work the antebellum house into its plans for a new hospital, which will be built north of Highway 72 /Poplar Avenue near Shea Road. Baptist has given groups and individuals interested in moving the house until Friday to contact the hospital. If no moving arrangements are made, Baptist will auction off anything of value from thehouse and then demolish the structure, says Jim Vandersteeg, administrator and chief executive officer.
“We are trying to work with everyone,” Vandersteeg says. “We want to keep it in Collierville. Our last desire is to tear down the house.” Judi Thumser, leader of the group of citizens working to preserve the house, says hospital officials led them to believe the old home would fit into its plans for a new 60-bed, $38 million facility. Instead, Baptist has decided to build doctors´ offices on the site.
“I think it´s pretty sneaky and underhanded of them to do this,” she says. “The history of this house stretches from northern Mississippi all the way to the White House, and they´re going to tear it down?” She says the group does not want to relocate the house from where it was built more than 150 years ago, because the move is too costly and would diminish its historic significance. According to Union General Ulysses S. Grant´s memoirs, he stopped at the DeLoach House on a sweltering summer day in 1862 for a glass of water. When the Civil War ended, Grant, who was elected president in 1869, promoted its owner, union sympathizer and distinguished Shelby Countian Josiah DeLoach, to the office of postmaster. The house´s location adds to its historic importance and suggests the DeLoaches´ prominence in Shelby County society, says preservation consultant John Hopkins. The Greek Revival house stood along a major road that connected the Cherokee nation with other tribesin the Memphis area. Later, the road was traversed by settlers, and one of West Tennessee´s first railroads was built nearby.
Hopkins says the wooden building´s architectural details and finishes are on par with other antebellum residences in Memphis. “I´d say it´s a very good kid brother to the Hunt-Phelan Home,” he says. Built in the early 1800s, the Hunt-Phelan Home opened to the public in 1996.
Thumser´s group has written politicians and historic societies. Currently she is circulating about 80 petitions to try to keep the house from being torn down. She says negotiations with Baptist are ongoing.
31 January 2001
Mid-South Resident to Move, Restore And Preserve Deloach House
Collierville, Tenn., Jan. 31, 2001 - Officials at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Collierville announced today that Mid-South resident Bill Fitch has offered to relocate, restore and preserve the Deloach House, located on the hospital's campus.
Fitch, who has an interest and experience in restoring and preserving historic buildings, will have the home moved to Holly Springs, Miss., in the near future. He communicated with family members of the home's former owners and has their support for the project. The Josiah Deloach House was built before the Civil War, and it is said that Gen. Ulysses S. Grant stopped at the home while Union and Confederate troops were in the area. "To remain consistent with the mission of Baptist Memorial Health Care, the hospital could not use health care funds to restore or preserve any type of real estate that is not health care related," said Jim Ainsworth, administrator and CEO at Baptist Collierville. "We have to commit our resources to providing high quality health care services to our community." Ainsworth added that Baptist representatives are pleased they could find a party interested in moving, restoring and preserving the historic home. Officials have spent the last few years looking at various options for the future of the building. Once the house is relocated, Baptist will break ground on the first phase of a planned 180,000-square-foot physician office complex. Phase one will include a two-story, 40,000-square-foot facility, slated for completion in spring 2002. The complex will sit on a 19-acre tract adjacent to the hospital's main campus. Trees on the home site will be preserved. "Building this complex is an important step in meeting the ever-growing demand for space and expansion of services at Baptist Collierville," Ainsworth said. "We are already approaching a 70 percent occupancy for the new building and want to continue to meet the health care needs of the Collierville community." Baptist Memorial Hospital-Collierville opened in 1999 and includes a 24-hour, full-service emergency room; six suites for labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum; five surgery suites; an intensive care unit; 48 acute care beds; 16 outpatient beds; cardiac rehabilitation; outpatient rehabilitation; and a Sleep Disorders Center.
3 July 2001
24 August 2001
