“We’ve already restored several structures, some more than 150 years old, at the five-acre Yellow River Post Office Park site,” said District 2 Commissioner Howard. “Adding this related 1840 farmhouse to the collection of buildings already there – especially during our Bicentennial Celebration – is like putting frosting on the cake. It will help teach future generations about Gwinnett’s history.”
Howard added that the house had been on the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation’s Places in Peril before it was donated to Gwinnett County in 2017. “Thanks to the generosity of the Nash family, we have the opportunity to preserve this wonderful home.
The project includes securing the structure, moving it about 500 feet across the street, and placing it on a new foundation near the old post office. The work also includes salvage of the brick and stone chimneys, temporary bracing to protect it during the move, window removal and protection, weather-proofing the structure, stabilization and minor site work.
“Thomas Hudson established a plantation on the Yellow River in 1839 that covered 562 acres by the time of the Civil War,” Nash said. “He ran a store and post office in a building that is now preserved at the park site and built the Hudson-Nash House. William Nash bought the property around 1880, and it remained in the family until 1996. The farmhouse is notable because it is the only 19th century house that we know of in Gwinnett that has a detached kitchen that is still standing. I would love to claim a family connection to the house, but my husband is not related to William Nash to our knowledge.”
The farmhouse will undergo additional restoration work before it will open to the public, according to Community Services Director Tina Fleming. That work is expected to take place in 2019.
For information about historic buildings and sites in Gwinnett County and to explore an interactive historic site locator, visit the county’s official Bicentennial website at www.Gwinnett200.com.
