History

The house was originally built in 1889 as a single story structure by Clarence C. Dubose, the editor of the Shelby Sentinel, a local newspaper. The house was purchased from the Dubose family by John S. and Ada Pitts in 1900. The Pitts family built the additions to the original structure, making it the fine example of Victorian architecture that you see today. In 1924, Ada Pitts sold the house to the Wingard family who later divided the upper floor of the house into apartments. Early on, these apartments were used by student teachers from the University of Montevallo while they performed their student teaching duties at the Columbiana Elementary School. At the time the Elementary School was located just across the street. Today, the Elementary School building still exists and serves as the Shelby County Board of Education. In 1934, Mr. Wingard sold the house to his daughter, Agnes Armstrong. Mrs. Armstrong and her family resided in the home until 1978, when upon her death she gave the home to her granddaughter. It remained in the family until 2002, when it was sold to Andrew and Diane Moore after the home fell into serious disrepair.

Restoration

The restoration took five(5) years to complete. The first part of the restoration was to stabilize the house from further deterioration. This was accomplished by putting a new roof on the house, then moving on to tackle the porches. When the house was purchased, the original wraparound double porches were no longer present and only the front double porches existed. At the time the house was sold, the porches would not hold the weight of a person safely. The Moore's decided to restore the porches that existed when they purchased the house in phase one of the restoration, and wait to do the wrap around porches in phase two. The paint on the exterior of the house was peeling away to exhibit weathered wood underneath, so the next step was to paint the exterior of the house. After careful examination, the original color of the house was discovered and the present day color was chosen. There was very little evidence of the original trim colors, so with the base color in hand research was done into coordinating period colors that would have been used on the trim in the early 1900's. After careful consideration the house colors were established and painting began in earnest to stabilize the exterior of the house. The interior and exterior restoration process was done simultaneously and depended greatly upon the weather, so it is difficult to determine when the focus was shifted to the interior of the home. Within the five(5) year process the house was restored back to its original splendor, much to everyone's amazement, including the Moore's.

With restorations, there is generally an animal story that leaves a lasting impression. This house had its own resident squirrel that lived between the interior and exterior wall of the turret. This squirrel made its presence known any time the scrapper/sander was anywhere on the turret by scrambling out of the hole quickly and returning inside. Squirrels and restoration work are just not a good mix, and soon the squirrel found a more peaceful home in a hole in the neighbor's pecan tree. The squirrel can still be seen scrambling out of the hole in the pecan tree surprising any unwanted visitors.