"Mystery at the Loyd Homeplace": How did it begin?

All my life, I've loved writing. I especially loved it in my early grades in school when we were encouraged to let our imaginations run free. And in my 33 years of teaching young writers, I accumulated a briefcase full of my own stories because I always wrote when my children wrote.

But it was not until late in 2006 that I felt inspired to write my first book. It was that December when I first shared the kernel of my idea with Judy and friends Charlie and Liz. I had no timetable, but that would take care of itself.

My book would be a mystery, based on a Loyd family story passed down for four generations from the Civil War. At the time of the war the Loyd homeplace was in danger of being burned by General Sherman's marauding troops as they assaulted Atlanta in the final year of the fighting. Because the hilltop was the second highest point in the county, Confederate lookouts observed Union troop movements from that spot as the enemy approached Atlanta.

Although the Battle of Peachtree Creek was fought just a few miles from the house, the Loyd homeplace was somehow spared. Peachtree Creek crossed the southern portion of my great great-grandfather Jabez Loyd's original 600 acre land lot.

Not only was the house spared; it is still standing. This picture shows the house as it appears today. It is now a clubhouse for the Chateau Montagne Apartments.
When it was converted into a clubhouse, some changes and renovations were made. But see for yourself how the basic character of the house has been retained. The picture below is the oldest existing picture of the house, circa 1910.

Pictured above, from left to right: Joseph Alford Loyd (my great-grandfather), Mary (Mollie) Louvinnie Echols Loyd (my great-grandmother), Joseph Carl Loyd (my grandfather), and his sisters Jewel and Ruby.

In black-and-white, as below, the similarities in the old and new versions of the house are still striking.

And viewed from a little farther away, it's easy to let this setting conjure up a mystery, such as the one in my book.

It's thrilling to me to imagine the original foundation of this house perhaps being laid by my great great-grandfather Jabez Loyd and his three young sons, Joseph Alford Loyd, John Ellis Brown Loyd, and Samuel Parks Loyd. In truth, we are not certain of the year of the house's construction, but it certainly pre-dates the Civil War.

Particularly intriguing to me is the fireplace, which is central to the mystery in my book. It amazes me to think of Loyds of three generations ago cooking over and warming themselves by this fire.

This is the chimney for that fireplace. It doesn't look like any structural changes have been made. Again, the black-and-white photo seems appropriate.

In spite of a new roof and flashing, the rock masonry appears to be the original.

According to my father, this massive elm tree in the back yard could be as old as the house itself.

The greenery on these huge branches is an astonishing little plant called Resurrection Fern. In dry weather it shrivels and turns brown. When it rains, it springs back to life and turns green. It resurrects. Very fitting, because for me to even be in these surroundings resurrects images and visions of my ancestors and the lives they lived here.

Inside the house, the renovations have been more extensive. My father could not recognize much original construction. But the huge beams overhead appear to be part of the old house.

This old pump organ is not from the homeplace; it's one our family bought at a Chamblee antique store. But it represents the pump organ Daddy says was in the old Loyd homeplace. You see, his grandparents actually had an entire room that was set up for circuit-riding preachers to stay in when they came to the area to preach revivals and such. Daddy described every detail of that room.

In fact, Daddy, Marvin Ellis Loyd, was my main source and inspiration in moving forward with my book. The dozens of questions he was able to answer for me lent a higher degree of accuracy and authenticity to the book.

Below, Daddy is pictured beside a plaque that has been on the porch of the Loyd homeplace since the 1960's when the property was sold. We are delighted that the owners have preserved and maintained the old house so well. And though it's on private property in a gated community, the owners welcome visitors who are interested in the old house. Several people who have read my book have already visited the house when in Atlanta.

The plaque is not 100% accurate. But at least the owners saw some value in researching and preserving the old house rather than demolishing it and putting up some contemporary clubhouse. The dates below are not correct, but we're not really sure when the house was built, or by which Loyd it was built, Joseph Alfred, Jabez, or maybe even Jabez's father! We may never know, but it's fun for me to try to work it out in my head.

Just last year, we took Daddy to the old homeplace. I needed his help to try to reconstruct a map of the areas around the old house, since no other structures are still standing. Even though his vision is poor, he was able to stand in the back yard and front yard and give me excellent descriptions and estimates of where various things were located.

I can now include in my books the diagram below, showing the relative locations of such things as the barn, orchard, hog pen, various sheds, smokehouse, and where early paths and lanes led.

Sharing my family history with young readers (and older ones) has been very fulfilling to me. More about that in an upcoming blog post. After all, I haven't really told you what the MYSTERY is yet!