Interesting twist on how the name "Garrett" became 'Garred' in this area...and how the name stuck as Garred
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Posted: 5:32 PM Nov 28, 2009
Eastern Ky. entrepreneur wants to restore estate Even with decades of decay evident, the old stone-walled home near Louisa's city limits has caused thousands of passers-by to imagine what the place was like when it was alive and what could be done with it today.

LOUISA, Ky. (AP) - Even with decades of decay evident, the old
stone-walled home near Louisa's city limits has caused thousands of
passers-by to imagine what the place was like when it was alive and
what could be done with it today.
For years, vines grew up the old walls and weeds obscured the
nearby family cemetery by midsummer. Vandals have marked the
interior and exterior of the home with graffiti ranging from
phallic symbols to the names "Foghat" and "Punkey Brewster."
Significant interior portions remain relatively intact. A bright
blue room can be seen to the left of the front door and a wooden
stairway is visible from the front windows. Heavy floorboards are
in place, although missing in many places, and old paint inside and
out is checkered and peeling and bricks are missing or misplaced
from the tops of four chimneys.
While the main house is multicolored sandstone, rear portions of
the same structure as well as a shed and a three-bay garage, are
built from what look like WPA cut stone typically used for many
area gymnasiums and public buildings.
With Martin County entrepreneur Jim Booth as the new owner,
however, the property is already starting to echo its former glory.
The area around the house has been recently landscaped by
excavator and bulldozer operators who cleared the generations of
weed growth and gave the land a gentle slope. Hydroseed grass was
being sprayed over the grounds Nov. 9 as the heavy-equipment
operators loaded their machines, thankful to have finished their
work before winter weather set in.
Booth said he hasn't decided what to do with the old house and
property.
"I am proud to have had the opportunity to purchase the
Garred-Burgess estate on Route 23 in Louisa. I realize there is a
lot of history regarding this property and the Burgess home and am
now in the process of restoring the grounds surrounding the home,"
Booth said.
"The home is in very bad condition, but I believe structurally
it can be saved and remodeled at some point in time. I do not have
any immediate plans for the property, but I am looking forward to
the development and potential of this parcel."
According to the official history of Lawrence County, the
structure is known as the Garred-Burgess House, and has been called
"the most commodious stone house in the Sandy Valley." The home,
as well as a burial vault and chapel, are listed on the National
Register of Historic Places.
The two-story sandstone house was built by Ulysses and David W.
Garred around 1850 using hewn stones of irregular shape and size,
including several "extraordinarily large" stones. The property
was purchased by Ulysses and David Garred's parents, David and
Jennie, in 1820. The front of the house has five widely spaced bays
for windows and large masses of stone were left bare, and the ends
of the main block have no window bays.
Local historians note "Garred" wasn't the family's actual
name. The name change resulted from David's construction of a Greek
Revival style burial vault in about 1835. The vault was the first
of its kind to be built in the area and was used as a landmark by
riverboat captains because it could be seen for two miles in either
direction.
While the sides of the vault were made of native stone, the
east-facing entrance slab was marble quarried in Vermont, then
shipped to Kentucky from New Orleans up the Mississippi River and
the Ohio River before being delivered to the Louisa area and hauled
by an ox team to the burial vault site.
Once the Vermont marble arrived at the homestead near Louisa, it
became apparent the family name, "Garrett," had been spelled
incorrectly. Since a correction would have involved too much time,
money and effort, the mistake remained intact and Ulysses, who was
elected to the state legislature in 1848, adopted the spelling and
passed it along to following generations.
The Garred brothers divided the family property later in life,
with Ulysses taking the stone house and surrounding land while his
younger brother David adopted the adjacent property to the south.
The stone house later served as a hotel, and was described in
1887 by William Ely in The Big Sandy as "second to no other
hostelry in the valley."
The stone house was most recently home to Dr. Francis E.
Burgess, who practiced medicine in the home for many years and
often wrote poetry about topics dear to his heart including the
sandstone domicile.
Former Louisa Mayor Bill Jackson said the cut stone home, as
well as a nearby Methodist church building vacant for decades, are
among Lawrence County's most significant historical structures.
"Those two things are part of our heritage and we've lost most
of our heritage," Jackson said. "Theres been no modernization
and that house, in itself, is a museum."
While it may be impractical, Jackson said he would like to see
the old home restored without the addition of modern appliances or
utilities, "just to show how turn-of-the-century people lived."
Jackson said his mother-in-law often spoke about things inside
the home when Dr. Burgess lived there, including a collection of
cast iron cookware and everything needed to make lye soap. Jackson
said he didn't know Dr. Burgess well, although he often received
phone calls from him.
"He used to call me when I was mayor and read me poetry,"
Jackson recalled.
In his poetry, Burgess often wrote about the people, land,
animals and commerce of the area. His passion for the old stone
home and surrounding land was apparent in an abundance of his
verses.
"Many people tried to get to get that property from him, but he
wasn't interested in anything they had to offer," Jackson said.
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Information from: The Independent
http://www.wkyt.com/home/headlines/77728337.html