DESTROYED BY FIRE

Where the "the old homestead" stood 1891- 2009.
(W.D. Wade Homeplace)

At 5:30 AM on the morning of Friday July 3, 2009, Bettye looked out the west kitchen window of our house to see the W. D. Wade homeplace fully engulfed in flames. I immediately called 911 and they were aware of a fire in our area, but could not pinpoint the exact location. Evidently the glow could be seen all the way to Athens.

Being a two-story frame house sitting on top of a hill, the fire was like nothing I had ever seen. I went up later and talked with the fire fighters and they said their experience led hem to believe the fire actually started about 2:00 AM.

The cause of the fire to my knowledge has never been determined. The electrical service had been disconnected several years and someone had dug up and stolen the copper line from the propane tank to the house.

The age of the house can best be determined by a story that has been passed down that dates the house to a time when Ulys Wade was about one year old. It seems the house W. D. and Jane and family had been living in was located where they wanted to build their new house.

The plan was to jack up the old house and roll it across the road on logs. Since this required several days to accomplish, the family was in and out of the house as need be. When the time came to actually start moving the house Jane suddenly remember Ulys was still inside. Ulys was quickly retrieved and the house was moved as had been planed. Ulys was born July 21, 1890, so the new house was probably constructed in 1891.