Spencer Judd lived with his father (in the house later known as the Weber House) until he went in business for himself. He first worked with his older brother, H. 0. Judd Jr., who was also a photographer, however when his brother left Sewanee for Chattanooga Spencer Judd started his own studio. The University News (1876) reported, “C. S. Judd will open a Gallery at Sewanee about the middle of May.” Judd would have been about 20 years old at the time. At one point there were apparently two Judd studios in Sewanee. One was located next to the Barbot and Pillet tailor establishment (Cocke House) and the other behind Spencer’s house. He was an artist in portraiture (often set in an “outdoor” garden) especially of children, and took beautiful photographs of Sewanee scenery: waterfalls, views, cliffs, and laurel. For more than 30 years, Judd’s studio was a fixture in Sewanee and numerous children on the Mountain were photographed by him. Many of Judd’s photographs are found in the University Archives but others are in collections across the southeast. After Judd’s death, his wife continued to live in the house until renting it out for a few years before her death in 1949.
Mrs. Bertha Graves, a beloved figure at the Sewanee Military Academy, bought the house in 1950. She served as dietitian and stenographer for the school. She was known to manage the dining hall with brute strength, never letting a boy go disciplined or worse of all, hungry. Mr. and Mrs. E.P. Govan were the next owners from 1962 until approximately 1969. Other individuals who also owned the house include the Napiers and Jane Burson along with Tupper and Frederica Saussy. The Saussy's lived there from 1978 until 1997.Archie and Helen Stapleton are the current owners of this house.
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Gailor, C. (1970). Old Sewanee Houses; The First Fifty-Years, 1860-1910. Unpublished manuscript, The University of the South, Sewanee.
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Spencer Judd lived with his father (in the house later known as the Weber House) until he went in business for himself. He first worked with his older brother, H. 0. Judd Jr., who was also a photographer, however when his brother left Sewanee for Chattanooga Spencer Judd started his own studio. The University News (1876) reported, “C. S. Judd will open a Gallery at Sewanee about the middle of May.” Judd would have been about 20 years old at the time. At one point there were apparently two Judd studios in Sewanee. One was located next to the Barbot and Pillet tailor establishment (Cocke House) and the other behind Spencer’s house. He was an artist in portraiture (often set in an “outdoor” garden) especially of children, and took beautiful photographs of Sewanee scenery: waterfalls, views, cliffs, and laurel. For more than 30 years, Judd’s studio was a fixture in Sewanee and numerous children on the Mountain were photographed by him. Many of Judd’s photographs are found in the University Archives but others are in collections across the southeast. After Judd’s death, his wife continued to live in the house until renting it out for a few years before her death in 1949.
Mrs. Bertha Graves, a beloved figure at the Sewanee Military Academy, bought the house in 1950. She served as dietitian and stenographer for the school. She was known to manage the dining hall with brute strength, never letting a boy go disciplined or worse of all, hungry. Mr. and Mrs. E.P. Govan were the next owners from 1962 until approximately 1969. Other individuals who also owned the house include the Napiers and Jane Burson along with Tupper and Frederica Saussy. The Saussy's lived there from 1978 until 1997. Archie and Helen Stapleton are the current owners of this house.
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Gailor, C. (1970). Old Sewanee Houses; The First Fifty-Years, 1860-1910. Unpublished manuscript, The University of the South, Sewanee.
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Mrs. Sessums, mother of Bishop Sessums, and her sister, Mrs. Tucker, acquired Palmetto in 1880. For many years Mrs. Tucker ran it as a combined boarding house for summer visitors and dormitory for students. When Mrs. Tucker died in 1909, Palmetto was obtained by the University. It then had a wild life. Reportedly, the matron had very little control and students used to shoot through the ceiling, playing a game called “Corners.” Freshmen were expected to dash towards the walls of the second floor while upperclassmen would shoot the center of the ceiling. However, Arthur Ben Chitty noted this was probably an exaggeration as other sources only go as far as saying a student would shoot the ceiling to wake up the house. It was likely this happened only once or twice.
Palmetto was razed in 1931. When it was being demolished, a championship ball marked "C.B. Ames, 1884" won by the Hardee Second Nine (baseball team) was found in the wall.
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Chitty, A. B. (1978). Sewanee Sampler. Sewanee, Tennessee: The University Press.
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After Mrs. Coley’s death in 1887, the house was bought by Robert Colmore. This was one of the various houses he lived in before buying the Guthrie House on North Carolina Avenue in 1905. Various families occupied this house after Mr. Colmore. Mrs. Ivy Perrin Gass and her family lived there when she was matron at SMA in 1899 until she married Bishop Theodore DuBose Bratton, who presided over Missisippi and was ninth chancellor of the University. The house was finally pulled down when the Sewanee Military Academy swimming pool was built.
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Gailor, C. (1970). Old Sewanee Houses; The First Fifty-Years, 1860-1910. Unpublished manuscript, Sewanee: The University of the south, Sewanee.
M.Harris, personal communication, 1957
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Major MacKellar (“Major Mac”) lived in this house for many years. He was Vice-Chancellor Hall's brother-in-law and taught at the Sewanee Military Academy and the University until his death. Arthur and Elizabeth (“Betty”) Chitty then lived here for over 50 years (1948-2002). They hosted multiple students in the spacious house. Arthur Chitty was a notable historiographer of Sewanee. The Chitty House has been owned by Marcia Mary Cook since 2004.
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Major MacKellar (“Major Mac”) lived in this house for many years. He was Vice-Chancellor Hall's brother-in-law and taught at the Sewanee Military Academy and the University until his death. Arthur and Elizabeth (“Betty”) Chitty then lived here for over 50 years (1948-2002). They hosted multiple students in the spacious house. Arthur Chitty was a notable historiographer of Sewanee. The Chitty House has been owned by Marcia Mary Cook since 2004.
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Major MacKellar (“Major Mac”) lived in this house for many years. He was Vice-Chancellor Hall's brother-in-law and taught at the Sewanee Military Academy and the University until his death. Arthur and Elizabeth (“Betty”) Chitty then lived here for over 50 years (1948-2002). They hosted multiple students in the spacious house. Arthur Chitty was a notable historiographer of Sewanee. The Chitty House has been owned by Marcia Mary Cook since 2004.
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Major MacKellar (“Major Mac”) lived in this house for many years. He was Vice-Chancellor Hall's brother-in-law and taught at the Sewanee Military Academy and the University until his death. Arthur and Elizabeth (“Betty”) Chitty then lived here for over 50 years (1948-2002). They hosted multiple students in the spacious house. Arthur Chitty was a notable historiographer of Sewanee. The Chitty House has been owned by Marcia Mary Cook since 2004.
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