Editor’s Note: The following is the third in a series of stories highlighting homes and other structures that will be featured during the Highland County Historical Society’s annual Tour of Homes and Historic Buildings on Sunday, June 11 from noon to 5 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for children 12 and under. This story features the Jenkins home, located at 11728 SR 72, Leesburg.
The Colonial style Shaker saltbox house sits on top of a hill just outside of the village of Highland overlooking 14 acres with amazing views and a beautiful creek that flows through the scene. The house is a replica of an early 1800s New England home.
Built in 1998 by Ralph Pertuset & Sons, it was first owned by the Pitzer family. Rick and Jennifer Jenkins purchased the home and acreage in 2014. Since then, many changes have come about.
When you step through the door you step back in time nearly 200 years. Wide plank floors have a patina far beyond their years, beamed ceilings overhead come right out of a gone-by era, and the period style fireplaces add to the feeling of age and style. But with the addition of walls of built in cupboards, a walk-in pantry, Colonial style lighting, enlarged doorways, and a great room addition, the Jenkins have a home that is as functional and convenient as anything you might think of as modern.
It has been carefully planned and restructured to be the perfect backdrop to their collection of colonial and early primitive antiques. When you visit, spend a little time sitting on the bricked patio, walking around the lawn taking in the views, and be sure not to miss a walk through Rick’s barn out back. It, too, is a welcoming space.
The Highland County Historical Society is happy to be collaborating with the Brush & Palette Guild in an effort to raise awareness of its talents and to help it promote its 60th show and sale at Southern State Community College in Hillsboro Saturday and Sunday, June 24-25. The historical society is featuring artwork of the homes or buildings on the tour at each of the sites. By attending the tour, you will have an opportunity to see some work created by these talented artists and talk with them about their organization and upcoming event. Kim Giordano will be the featured artist at the Jenkins home.
Submitted by Avery Applegate, Highland County Historical Society.
