A Classic Tabby Home in Coastal Georgia Could Soon House a Project
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Sunday, April 30, 1995 INDEX Peach Buzz Crossword, Jumble The Atlanta Journal Talk shows C7 The Atlanta Constitution A classic tabby home William Haynes'home in coastal Georgia is one of a hand ful of historic tabby houses still standing. Tabby could soon house a is an oyster shell mortar used as building material • project teaching largely in coastal . areas during Georgia's Colo young artisans nial days. restoration skills. dMiiStaff pnjuj*photos vyby iMARLENE W"u\i_o>ic T*fW&KARAS T« d protect By Jingle Davis "I'm not interested in Ashantilly just being a STAFF WRITER house museum if it could be productive," Haynes said. "I want it to benefit the people in this county. That's the main thing." arien A private home in His idea for the center was born six years ago coastal Mclntosh County, long after his elder sister died and another, now 99, ranked among Georgia's poorest moved to a nursing home. Widowed and childless, counties, is slated to house a Haynes worried about what would happen to the unique training center home, owned by his family since 1918, after he capitalizing on the area's rich was gone. historic and natural resources. "I knew my out-of-town Owned by book publisher William G. Haynes relatives would sell it Jr., Ashantilly Place, built in the early 1800s, is immediately," he said. one of a handful of historic tabby houses still Haynes' plans for Ashantilly standing. Tabby, a picturesque oyster shell were fleshed out with help from - mortar, has been used for centuries on the the University of Georgia's Southern coast dating to native inhabitants, Institute of Community and Area Spanish settlers and British colonials. Development and the Coastal Haynes, 86, is donating the three-story Georgia Regional Development Palladian-style residence and surrounding 80 Center's advisory council on acres to the Ashantilly Center, a nonprofit historic preservation, as well as students at the corporation that will run the project. Center Savannah College of Art and Design, who wrote instructors will focus on teaching historic restoration skills to local youths. Please see RESTORE, C6> nday, April 30.1995 ***** NEWS store: Owner wants keep home productive itinuedfrom Cl tionwide in historic building inter proposal as a class techniques. The National Park :t. Service recently opened the Na fund-raising proceeds as tional Center for Preservation ;s hopes, the center could Technology in Louisiana, he said. is early as next year, with The Ashantilly Center would rst six students learning be the first in Georgia to focus on on historic restoration by historic building techniques, he iting Ashantilly, damaged said. 1937 fire. Eventually as Haynes hopes to teach book as 12 students would at- design. After studying fine art two-year courses, said and printing in New York, he ;s, who will retain a life es- founded the Ashantilly Press, i the property, one of a limited number of pri hantilly will also be open vate letterpresses still operating >nferences, weddings and nationwide. His work, which has MARLENE KARAS / Staff T courses in such subjects won numerous awards, was re ivironmental preservation cently praised in a book by Mar Historic house: The living room of Ashantilly Place in Dar- )lk arts and crafts, includ- tha Jane K. Zachert. ien reflects its antebellum history. Haynes aims to preserve rullah basketweaving and "Haynes is, in fact, one of that the house, which has been in his family since 1918. lilding, according to Caro- nearly extinct species, a scholar- Yiesner, a planning com- printer," Zachert wrote in "Fine ; member. Printing in Georgia, 1950s-1990, eg Paxton, executive di- Six Prize-Winning Private of the nonprofit Georgia Presses." for Historic Preservation His books, done in handset lanta, says the Ashantilly type and featuring pressmarks r is an idea whose time has hand-carved by Haynes, are col lectors' items. However, he said he tabby construction on his financial rewards have not >uilding is extremely rare been great. se you have an intact house "I never made any money at :anding. For that alone, the it, but it was a happy life," he ;t is worthy of interest and said. d attention," he said, hantilly was built in about ?y coastal planter Thomas ing, who operated the s largest cotton plantation irby Sapelo Island and re- traditional tabby construc- i the Georgia coast, cording to Paxton, there jen a surge of interest na COASTYLE Coastyle lives to be read another day! Now, once a month, make that the last weekend of Back in the long, hot summer days, when we first each month, you will find a Coastyle inserted into started publishing WEEKEND, it was never our inten WEEKEND. Handle it like you would a Sunday tion to stay away so long from our first publication, newspaper magazine. Find a comfortable chair, a fresh Coastyle Quarterly, but newspapers just demand so cup of coffee (decaff is not as much fun, but complete much of your time, and we are the first to admit, we ly allowable) and get ready to visit with an old friend. strayed and delayed. .BUT, NOW WE'RE BACK! Each month we will bring you features about coastal Coastyle was originally a quarterly. For ten quarters, style, coastal life, and coastal lore, exactly how we did or thereabouts, we produced a glossy, slick color maga with Coastyle, hence the name. Don't get confused with zine, focusing on our beloved Golden Isles. We charged other newspapers' inserted publications. There is only $2 for them. Can you imagine that, charging for a pub one Coastyle and you can only find it in WEEKEND. lication? Well, we have seen the light, and free is the Just consider it dessert and it's our treat. definitely the way to go! COASTYLE AUTUMN, 1997 CONTENTS: 4 GEORGIA-pLORJDA . 6 GLYNN COUNTY HISTORIC SURVEY 12 STKACHAN COTTAGE 16 BILL HAYNES & ASHANTILLY 18 CELEBRATIONS Entire contents copyright ©1997, Coastyle Graphics and Publishing. All rights reserved. Editorial offices: 1624 Frederica Rd., St. Simons Island, Georgia, 31522. Phone (912) 638-8631, FAX (912) 634-1514, e-mail: [email protected] On the Cover: This is the souvenir program for the i 937 game between Georgia and Florida.The Gator's team was led by Captains Walter Mayberry and nWillis, while the Bulldog team featured names such as Hart man, Troutman, "owns, Haygood, Roddenbery, Lumpkin, and Mims.The game, played sixty years o, was won by Florida 6-0.The program sold for 25 cents. Bill Haynes §> Ashantilly Press by Jerry Merwin with assistance from Jamie Griffith Merwin ill Haynes enjoys books, both for Florida State University. She had friends decided that they would spend the reading and as'art. If you think of from library school who worked in the inheritance money on rebuilding the Bart books as the only books that New York Public Library. Frances's house at Ashantilly. Bill was able to help are art, you probably have not seen a friends arranged for Bill to fill in at the his parents with the repairs necessary to book printed by Bill Haynes at the New York Public Library for a page who make the house livable again. Ashamilly Press. Bill started Ashantilly was on vacation. Bill says, "I filled in for In 1940 the United States was prepar Press in the mid 1950s and it became the morning page. The job consisted ing for World War II, which meant known as an outstanding, award-win mostly of putting books back on the building materials were scarce. Bill visit ning, private press. He learned about shelves." Haynes worked in the morning, ed wrecking yards in Savannah and printing in art school and through work first in the children's collection, then Charleston looking for materials from experience. These influences convinced went to the adults' collection, while he homes which had been built in the same him that books could be printed in an went to art school in the afternoon. Then period as Ashantilly, around 1820. He artful way which would increase the they gave him an evening job, in addi was able to get doors, windows, mantels readers enjoyment. tion to the day work. During this time, for fireplaces, molding, trim, etc., and According to Bill, "My family and Bill says, he worked with a lot of nice stored them in the house. They were able friends thought 1 had some talent for people, people with whom he remained to get the roof on and replace the win art." His interest in an began with his friends for a long time. On his days off dows and doors before the money ran experience modeling clay. The clay came Bill visited museums and art dealers. out. Soon after that the Second World from Black Island Creek in front of the During these years in New York, Bill saw War started, Bill was drafted and had to Haynes family's home, known as exhibitions of books in the Library's leave Ashantilly again. Ashantilly, near Darien. The house collection which were real treasures. Bill trained at Camp Stewart (now was built by Thomas Spalding, who He admired the books and realized known as Fort Stewart) near Savannah is better known for his plantation their significance, but did during the Fall of '41. His unit went on home on Sapelo Island. Haynes n't yet realize that he maneuvers near Chester, South Carolina. talked about his experi wanted to be a printer. Bill was born in Columbia, SC, and had ences with printing This experience was friends there. He decided that while he and with life very influential, was in South Carolina he should visit his in general though, on decisions that friends in Columbia.