On the top of a grassy hill off Tuckaseegee Road in west Charlotte stands a big white farmhouse with a wraparound porch and a red brick chimney.
This house has stood here since 1844 — two decades before the start of the Civil War. This month, something new appeared in the front yard: a For Sale sign.
"We just hope we can find somebody who falls in love with it and can keep it going," said Susan Ward, who owns the home with her partner, Doug Bradley.
They walked through a downstairs room, as Doug ran his hand along a wall made of pine.
"Every one of these boards is hand-planed," he said, "And you can’t even get your thumbnail in here, that’s how tight the carpentry is. And that’s all original."
He pushed one panel near the floor, and it swung open to reveal a hidden passage into a closet beneath the stairs. It’s anyone’s guess what it held 180 years ago.
"See the stains on the floor there?" Doug said. "Maybe they used it as a root cellar — kept or stored food in it or something."
Walking through the backyard yields more surprises, like the stone foundation of an old outhouse that Doug believes, based on its size, was a "two-staller."
There are also apple trees, a peach tree, three old wells and three outbuildings — one from the 1800s, one from the 1920s, and another that Doug built himself.
A history rooted in Charlotte's gold rush
It goes without saying this home is one of very few pre-Civil War structures still standing in Charlotte.
The house at 4928 Tuckaseegee Road was built by a wealthy gold miner named Richard Wearn, who moved to the United States from England by way of Scotland, and settled in Mecklenburg County in 1831. It's unknown if the family owned slaves.
The property changed hands several times through the years, and even spent time as a botanical nursery. It was eventually auctioned to investors, who in 2013 planned to tear it down.
That’s where Susan and Doug came in.
"We saw a story on the news one night about it," Susan recalled.
The home was headed for demolition unless the developer could soon find a buyer. Curious, Doug and Susan decided to check it out.
"We came over to see it one day," she said. "The kitchen door was open, and we just came in and looked around."
The home was dark and covered in dust, but Susan thought it was beautiful. Doug, having worked on historic home restorations before, had the skills to fix it up. He said he's not afraid of an old house.
"I came from Boston. Old houses are common. I went to college in Charleston. Old houses are common," he said. "But people in Charlotte, they like shiny and new. You know, they don’t like old."
The average age of a home in Mecklenburg County is just 34 years, meaning the average house is two years younger than the average resident here.
In 2014, Susan and Doug purchased the property for $30,000 and got to work updating, restoring and making it comfortable.
'This is a proud house'
Now, 11 years later, they’re looking for someone new to take over, as they move back to their other home in Dilworth — where there’s a paid-off mortgage and no steep staircase.
"We kept it going and now it needs somebody that’s gonna be — what’s the word? — a steward who can take the house to the next level and make sure it survives into the next century," Doug said.
They think the home could become a museum, a bed and breakfast, an antique store, office or wedding venue. Doug evoked the Paul Revere House in Boston, built in 1680, and now a museum.
"It’s in the middle of a city, tall buildings around it, and it still sits there, but it’s proud," he said. "This is a proud house."
Charlotte may be a tear-down city, but this home has survived, reminding us of the people who made Mecklenburg County what it is today.
For the right buyer, the couple is asking $350,000, and a little love for a piece of history.
