Ancestor of Forest Merry (Wava Davis), Prettyman Merry (1742-1817) was awarded 2000 acres near Covington, Kentucky, based on a petition on May 9, 1780 that was granted on March 10, 1784. On this plot of land he built a house that still stands today.
From a 1974 research paper by Patricia Shadwick: "Prettyman Merry built his four-room home well. It is built of field-stone with the walls two-foot thick. The stone was laid in loam sand with joints pointed. Giant hand-hewn black walnut logs with the bark left on were used as joists in the cellar to hold up the super-structure of more than 2,000 stones. Four different kinds of lumber -- black walnut, white pine, ash, and poplar -- were used in the construction of the "Landmark." The white pine floors still existing on the second floor of the building were hand grooved with a great degree of craftsmanship and black walnut door sills are now worn thin by the erosion of many feet. The construction is of pre-revolutionary style, typical of homes in the earliest colonial days of Virginia, Pennsylvania and New York. The eastern and western walls encompass the chimneys that carried smoke from the five fireplaces that heated the interior in the cold winter months. These were probably very adequate because of the insulation afforded by the thick stone walls. There were fireplaces in each room and the basement,. the one in the basement being used for the cooking of meals for the household."
The present residents are restoring the house.
We snapped this picture of a picture of one of the fireplaces from a photo album-- outside in the rain!
The beautiful front door is original to the house.
Original fountain in front yard.
This shed in the back was used as slave quarters at one time.
