Some historic homes are preserved by restoring their walls, replacing their old roofs, and repairing the damage.
asserted
homes → preserve → damage
But the Randolph-Lucas-Jones House in Atlanta required something else.
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House → require → something
It needed a police escort, utility crews to lift power lines out of its path, and a roof hinged down so each half could clear the route.
uncertain
half → need → route
Built in 1924, the 8,000-square-foot mansion was moved about 2 miles in 2013 after its new owners stepped in to save it from demolition, according to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation.
uncertain
owners → build → Preservation
Built for a Jefferson descendant
The Georgian Revival-style home was built in 1924 for Hollins Nicholas Randolph, an Atlanta attorney and businessman and the great-great-grandson of Thomas Jefferson.
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home → build → Jefferson
The house was designed by architect P. Thornton Mayre, who also helped build the Fox Theatre.
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who → design → Theatre
The home’s design was based on the plan of Randolph’s ancestral home near Charlottesville, Virginia.
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design → base → Charlottesville
The Randolphs lived there for about a decade before selling it to Margaret Lucas in 1935.
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Randolphs → live → 1935
Her husband, Arthur, operated several cinemas around the city, according to Rough Draft Atlanta.
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husband → operate → Atlanta
She stayed until her death in 1987.
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She → stay → 1987
The house later became a fixture of fiction, too.
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house → become → fiction
A painting of it appeared on the cover of Anne Rivers Siddons’s 1988 bestselling novel
Peachtree Road.
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painting → appear → Road
In 1998, the Lucas family sold the property to the 2500 Peachtree Condo Association.
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family → sell → Association
During this time, the house was shifted forward on its lot, with plans to use it as a clubhouse and an event space.
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house → shift → clubhouse
Maintenance bills quickly ended that idea, and the house fell into disrepair.
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house → end → disrepair
By the autumn of 2012, the association held a city demolition permit and was offering the house free to anyone who could move it.
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who → hold → it
Roger Smith and his husband, the late preservation advocate Christopher M. Jones, got the news while they were at a function at the Atlanta History Center.
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they → get → Center
City Council member Mary Norwood pulled Jones into a corner for a private conversation.
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Norwood → pull → conversation
“Mary came up to us and pulled Christopher away into a corner for a private conversation.
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Mary → come → conversation
She told him the house was going to be demolished, and I think he decided that night we had to save it,” Smith told the outlet.
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Smith → tell → outlet
Their firm, NewTown Partners, focused on distressed historic properties.
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firm → focus → properties
Smith and Jones were chosen as project partners in January 2013.
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Smith → choose → January
They closed on the empty lot at 78 Peachtree Circle in Ansley Park on May 30, which became the house’s new location.
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which → close → May
They also agreed to donate a preservation façade easement to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, so the exterior could never be torn down.
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exterior → agree → Preservation
The project reportedly had a $1.5 million budget.
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project → have → budget
Taking a mansion apart to keep it whole
To save the mansion, it first had to be carefully dismantled.
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it → take → mansion
Preparations began in July, when the crew removed the brick façade and slate roof, significantly reducing the building’s weight.
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crew → begin → weight
The bricks were carefully set aside to be cleaned and reinstalled after the move.
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bricks → set → move
Adjustments were to be made inside: the second-floor doors and baseboards were pulled and numbered so each could return to its original spot.
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each → make → spot
The frame was split above the first floor, and each section topped out at 19 feet.
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section → split → feet
The move began on November 8, 2013.
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move → begin → November
A temporary road was built across a vacant lot opposite the Woodruff Arts Center, giving the trucks a direct run to the new address.
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road → build → address
The trip was 2.1 miles and took seven hours, according to the Georgia Trust.
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trip → take → Trust
The house was slowly moved using hydraulic lifts, the trust said.
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trust → move → lifts
Setting the house down was the easy part.
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Setting → set → house
The comprehensive rehabilitation began in 2014.
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rehabilitation → begin → 2014
Smith and Jones sold their own home and rented an apartment behind the lot to oversee the work.
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Smith → sell → work
Smith has described money as a monthly puzzle of what could be paid for and finished.
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what → describe → puzzle
“There was this misnomer that we had all this money to do this project, when actually it was a shell game every month to see what we could pay for and complete.
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we → be → what
This wasn’t your usual renovation; it took care and planning and research to get it just right.
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it → take → care
…and 4 more, not listed.
The Aporia
