Craven's-Watkin's House was affectionately known as "Arcadia" which first belonged to Miss Sallie Milhado. Originally from Norfolk, Virginia, Miss Sallie operated Arcadia as a boardinghouse, where she raised her sister’s children—who called her “Lallie Miladdie”.
Sally Milhado and family
She was described as unique, remembered for her mint juleps, squirrel tail hat, thunderstorms, and Maud, her horse. One day when Miss Sallie was riding with Mrs. Mooney in a carriage drawn by Maud, Miss Mooney fell out and was left by the roadside as Miss Sallie sought safety from the thunderstorm at home. Who is to say if they stayed friends after that mishap, but that was just who Sallie was. Cary Grayson, who boarded at her hall, arranged for her to meet President Woodrow Wilson in Washington, cautioning her to be dignified, and doubtless also warning him what to expect. When ushered in, Miss Sallie clapped him on the back and said, “I’m glad to see you, old top!” Upon another meeting (set up by his personal physician, Admiral Grayson), after shaking hands with the president, she took off her gloves and said no one would ever wear them again. And she never wore them, but unfortunately they have now disappeared. Miss Sallie claimed to have never read a book and had once started a short story for a magazine before being interrupted. Archie Butt, the Sewanee alumnus who perished in the sinking of the Titanic, commented that she didn’t need to read a book for she already was one.
Duval and Florence Cravens and their family lived in the house after Milhado. Duval Cravens was superintendent of the Sewanee Military Academy and had previously lived in seven different houses across the Mountain. Florence Cravens had a talent for gardening and playing hostess so settling in Arcadia was a dream come true:
“The greatest day was when Mother and Dad bought Arcadia. Everyone else thought that they had lost their minds (possibly even Dad). The house had belonged to Miss Sallie Milhado, and as children we had spent time with her. She rode horseback sidesaddle, smoked, and she also killed rattlesnakes. During storms however she would hide in a closet or under a bed, taking us with her. When we moved to Arcadia, Mother was finally happy with the size of her dining room. Some of our most vivid memories are of the dinner parties that our parents had for friends, both on and off the Mountain. Like all the ladies in Sewanee, she entertained visiting parents, trustees, and regents.” – Virginia “Sis” Cravens Ravenel Paine
After Mrs. Cravens’s death in 1978, the Watkins family owned the house until recently a young Episcopal priest bought this house in 2016.
Carpenter, J. (Ed.). (2007). Sewanee Ladies. Sewanee, Tennessee: Proctor's Hall Press.
Chitty, A. B. (1978). Sewanee Sampler. Sewanee, Tennessee: The University Press.
