A contender for Buckhead’s oldest house has been hiding in plain sight in Peachtree Hills without any historic designation or protection. And now it’s changing hands.
The lack of historic status has continued because the owners who rehabilitated it in recent years didn’t want the attention. But there’s been a change of heart now that they’re moving and selling in a market where teardowns for bigger, newer digs are common.
“It just cannot get torn down. It cannot get torn down,” said Nonnie Preuss of the farmhouse at 183 Lindbergh Drive, which she and husband Andreas bought 16 years ago. They believe it dates to the 1880s and belonged to a woman from the Plaster family, who once owned thousands of acres in the area and whose name is memorialized in Plaster Avenue a block to the west.
In a drone view of the historic house, at center bottom, much of the land in the background was part of the historic Plaster estate in the early 1800s. Credit: Heery Brothers/Sotheby’s International Realty
An aerial view of the historic house. Credit: Heery Brothers/Sotheby’s International Realty
The farmhouse at 183 Lindbergh Drive in Peachtree Hills may date to the 1880s and is a contender for Buckhead’s oldest surviving house. At left is a holly tree planted as a memorial to a service member who died on the way home from victory in Europe in World War II. Credit: Heery Brothers/Sotheby’s International Realty
Listed at $1.275 million through the Heery Brothers at Sotheby’s International Realty, the house went under contract the week of Sept. 6. Nonnie Preuss said the prospective buyers’ intense inspection process encouraged her that they intend to keep the house intact, but time will tell.
Time is something the house has seen a lot of — in Buckhead terms. Based on expert research, local lore and Nonnie’s collegiate training in architectural history, the Preusses know the house dates to at least 1893, when tax records began, and believe it was built in the 1880s.
That would make it a rarity in Buckhead, maybe even unique. White settlers established the community in the 1830s after Native Americans were forced out of the area. But the oldest original houses on the traditional lists of such groups as the Buckhead Heritage Society date to the early 1900s. Some older buildings stand in Buckhead today: an 1830s house at 1450 West Wesley Road and a farmhouse (circa 1845) and enslaved people’s cabin (circa 1850) at the Atlanta History Center. But all of those were moved here from other parts of metro Atlanta in the 20th century.
New Orleans natives who met while working in television news, the Preusses were living in Garden Hills in 2004 when Andreas got stuck behind a mail truck on Lindbergh and noticed the house hiding in plain sight. It sits at the southeast corner of Lindbergh and Branch Avenue, atop a wooded rise and set well back from the street. He immediately recognized its historic character — and a “for sale by owner” sign out front. By 2005, the couple owned it.
While the house had been heavily modified over the years, Nonnie says, the evidence quickly proved their instincts about its history true. A lot was still intact, like horsehair plaster and hand-carved rosettes on doorframes. “Every floorboard is original,” she says. Even some of the drastic changes spoke to the age of the farmhouse; it had obviously lacked an indoor kitchen and bathroom until those were added in the 1920s and ’30s. While property records go back to 1893, “it’s definitely older in its bones than that,” Nonnie said.
The previous owners acquired the home in the 1980s and carved it up into individual rental spaces like a combo of rooming house and duplex. Nonnie said she saw right through all that later work: “I just see a house saying, ‘Make me one again. I don’t want to be cut up like this.'”
The Preusses embarked on a $400,000 renovation and rehabilitation. Historic bits like stair treads that could not remain in place were repurposed for such uses as shelving (and with such whimsical touches as a secret compartment). Old fixtures for gas or early electric lights were reconfigured to hold modern bulbs. The hand-carved rosettes were machine-duplicated for the other door frames. When some of the original plaster was removed from a brick wall in what is now a bathroom, the couple kept the rest in place as a dramatic cutaway view like something out of a history museum. “Everything that could be retained, we found a 21st century way to use it,” says Nonnie.
The work also included modern air-quality systems, as Nonnie runs a Pharr Road business called Wellness Within Your Walls, which certifies ways to remove toxins from homes. “This house has been my guinea pig,” she says. (For the real estate agents’ sales video of the house after all that work, click here.)
Original plaster, made with horsehair, was left partially exposed on a brick wall in the bathroom as part of the rehabilitation. Credit: John Ruch
An original, hand-carved rosette on the front door. Credit: John Ruch
The living room of the house in a real estate sales photo. Credit: Heery Brothers/Sotheby’s International Realty
“I know this is a cliche: ‘If these walls could talk.’ Oh my God, my walls talked,” said Nonnie. Almost literally — as the old additions came down, they found newspapers, dating from the 1920s to the 1970s, that the workers had inserted as mementos. “When I peeled all of these abominations off… something had possessed the people… to put a newspaper of the day in the wall,” she said.
The Preusses decided to follow suit, inserting a “time capsule” in the wall of their new kitchen. “It has every single newspaper [found during the rehabilitation], plus the 2005 AJC and little trinkets that my … 4- and 7-year-olds at the time decided to drop in,” said Nonnie.
Despite all that history, the house has somehow avoided attention of preservations, from informal local histories to official designations like the National Register of Historic Places or City of Atlanta landmarking.
“I was shocked it had no historic preservation paperwork,” said Nonnie. Then again, she was happy to keep it that way. “I just didn’t want to be on people’s radar. I didn’t want to be a destination,” she said, fearing “strangers showing up at my door.”
Strangers showed up anyhow. Among them was Thornton Kennedy, a local history buff and columnist for the Northside Neighbor newspaper who had spotted the house. Nonnie says Kennedy provided a lot of expert historic information about the house, but the Preusses declined to cooperate with any published article for years. The info included the tale of a tall holly tree next to the front porch, which had been planted as a memorial by the family of a World War II service member who died in an airplane crash on his way back after the Allied victory in Europe. “I won’t touch this holly,” Nonnie says.
A neighbor working on an advanced degree in history offered the suggestion that the house is tied to the descendants of Benjamin Plaster, who got the thousands of acres of land in the 1830s as a grant from the state for his service in the War of 1812.
Then there were the strangers with the more recent personal history that any house accumulates. One was “this gentleman who was dying of cancer, and he just showed up at my door, and he didn’t live in Georgia anymore, and said, ‘I had to see this house before I die,'” recalls Nonnie. “We sat in the living room and cried.”
Now the Preusses’ own piece of that history is coming to an end. They’re empty-nesters looking to downsizing, as we say in modern lingo. They own a summer-camp business in the Nashville area, so that could be home. Or they might try the RV lifestyle, roaming the roads. “We are about to be cast to the wind,” says Nonnie.
But they want the Buckhead house to remain very much in place. That’s why they decided to start talking about its history. In June, Kennedy finally wrote his column. Amogn the readers was Laura Dobson, a Peachtree Hills preservationist who was involved in the successful effort to save part of a historic book bindery a few blocks away in a Peachtree Road condo project. “I sure would like to see that house protected in some way…,” said Dobson.
Nonnie said she hopes all the rehabilitation work will make a buyer say, “Holy cow! It’s a house built in the 1880s that is built up to 2020s code!””That’s why I just pray nobody tears it down,” she says.
The most expensive home sold in Buckhead last month, according to MLS data, was this stunning condo at the St Regis that I sold for $6.1 million (the highest condo sale of the year). I am proud to say that I brokered three of the top ten deals last month, including a private sale not listed below that closed for $6.8 million.
According to FMLS records, August saw 88 single-family homes sold in Buckhead, between $525,000 and $5,150,000. The average sales price was $1,391,258.
Below are the top 10 homes sold in Buckhead in August 2021. Looking to sell your home in Buckhead? Contact me for the most informed advice and best marketing in Buckhead or learn more about my track record here.
Stunning newer construction home in Buckhead. Set back behind the gated entry is this beautiful traditional estate sited on a 2+/- acre lot with large front and back yards, welcoming facade and incredible outdoor entertaining space including the walkout level pool and outdoor kitchen.
88 W Paces Ferry Road NW UNIT 1440, Atlanta, Georgia 30305
Sold 08/05/2021
3Bedroom(s)
3Bathroom(s)
37Picture(s)
4,994Sqft
Exceptional residence in the prestigious St Regis Residences, in the heart of Buckhead with the finest amenities available. This home exhibits the ultimate attention to detail from the expansive living spaces to the sophisticated finishes. Unobstructed panoramic views through the walls of windows are enjoyed from every room.
Heart of Tuxedo Park, located at the corner of Valley Road and Tuxedo. This gated English Manor estate features, lovely renovated main residence, two guest houses, tennis court, pool, putting green, playhouse, six car garage, flat, walk out, beautiful mature landscape. Originally built by the developer of Tuxedo Park, Charles Black as his personal home on one of the premier lots in Buckhead.
Your Sanctuary will be ready in July. Get involved now to pick your finishes with the home and pool! Custom metal doors open to highly desirable walk out main level entertaining living lanai w/wood burning fireplace, stone patio & skylights, stone decking overlooking Saltwater heated pool & spa in the private yard. This New Build offers everything the Modern Homebuyer desires.
A custom-built masterpiece in ideal Historic Brookhaven location! Situated on a gorgeous level lot across from Capital City Club, this home boasts a 3-car garage, 6 fireplaces, a huge outdoor entertaining space perfect for gatherings small and large.
Walk to Pace Academy from this brand new custom home in Paces Walk designed by Greg Bush and constructed by top-quality builder Macallan Custom Homes that will be ready to close in June! Situated on just under an acre with a main level walk out yard and pool, wide open living spaces with 12’ ceilings, and lots of light streaming through 10’ steel framed windows and doors.
Extraordinary fully integrated modern smart home with exquisite design and every convenience you can imagine built by Bella Fine Homes. Entertainers dream home with resort style outdoor living. No detail overlooked. High end finishes and top quality energy efficient maintenance free building materials. Gated entry.
Custom designed and built, this estate-scale home rests on a stately 1.12-acre hilltop in prestigious Tuxedo Park. Built by Mark Palmer and designed by architect Ken Lynch, the exterior consists of brick and limestone construction with a timeless slate roof.
75 Finch Forest Trail, Sandy Springs, Georgia 30327
Sold 08/09/2021
6Bedroom(s)
7Bathroom(s)
74Picture(s)
6,470Sqft
Old world elegance meets modern day massive renovation with a fresh transitional feel. The original cottage has gone through 3 major renovations/additions to what you see today. Rare and completely private 2.4+ acre retreat has exceptional quality finishes right down to the studs.
Don’t miss this home by acclaimed Harrison Design on three-plus acres with one of the most spectacular settings in Buckhead/Sandy Springs! Close in, yet you will feel miles from the city. Tucked away off the beaten path, this home and setting is one-of-a-kind.
