Folsom descendants meet with county on historic house

ELIZABETHTON — The future of the Henderson Folsom house continues to be undecided following the latest meeting of the Building and Grounds Committee of the Carter County Commission. The house is owned by Carter County, but remains unoccupied since it was flooded by the Doe River during the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene on Sept. 27, 2024. The committee did unanimously pass a motion on Tuesday night to seek free donated services from an architectural or engineering firm to examine the house and provide an estimate of how much it would cost to repair the structure. The approval of the motion meant the committee will make that recommendation to the full county commission at its next meeting on April 20. Tuesday's meeting was also noteworthy because it was the first time the direct descendants of Henderson Folsom attended a meeting of the Building and Grounds Committee. Although several county commissioners have expressed their opinions on what would be the best alternative for the future of the house, and the Tennessee Historical Commission recently sent a letter on suggested solutions, the opinions of the Folsom Family had only been heard from telephone calls between family members and Carter County Attorney Josh Hardin. The reason for the lack of direct contact was because the Folsom Family moved away from Tennessee, mostly to Oklahoma and Arizona. The contact was more direct on Tuesday, with both Amelia Davis of Edmond, Okla., and Kathryn D. Nay of Green Valley (Tucson), Arizona attending the meeting. The two women are sisters and are great, great granddaughters of Major Henderson Folsom, the highest-ranking officer in the Confederate Army from Carter County. They also have a brother who was not able to make the trip. In response to the visit, the committee voted to go into recess and walk across the street from the courthouse to the Henderson Folsom house, where they viewed the grounds and the building. The family was interested in the condition of the house. Both women said the house was very important to them. "We came to Elizabethton every summer of our childhood," said Nay. She told the committee that her grandfather restored and maintained the house for many hears. When her grandparents became older, Nay said the family was concerned about the house falling into neglect. She said her grandparents did not want the house to become an eyesore and reflect poorly on the community. Rather than for that to happen, she said it was preferable to have the house torn down. Nay told the committee that another factor entered her grandparent's deliberations on what to do with the house back in the 1970's. That factor was the University of Tennessee extension agent for Carter County, Keith Hart. He was related to the family Ida Folsom Boren. As a result, her grandparents agreed to sell the house to the county, with the county extension office located in the house. Nay said she does not have a record of agreement between her grandparents and the county on the transfer of the property or other instructions Nay said no one imagined the extension office would remain with the house for over 40 years. The grandparents concern was to not have the house fall into disrepair. She said she thought there were two choices that could be made on the future of the house: "tear it town or rehabilitate the house for use by the county." Building Committee Chairman Aaron Frazier said the county is responsible for the property. He said the county has had control of the property for 47 years and has not adequately maintained it. Carter County Historian Lisa Germain said one plan would be to use the house as a museum for Carter County history and as the place for the public to come to request archives. She said the county now has over $1 million in taxes from use of the county's courts and archives. That money can only be spent on archival matters. She said if the house is used for the archives, the money could be used on the renovation. A separate building would house the archives. Committee member Angie Odom said the house is in a flood zone and therefore, the archives should not be stored in that location. Committee member Keith Range said that if the Folsom House is torn down, material from the house should be used to manufacture gazebos and other mementos to honor Henderson Folsom in a park built on the property. Fraizier said the house could be used as a museum, with the archives held at another location. Following the meeting, Nay said she was disappointed that the committee was not used to provide any funds to move forward when the house. She said the county has neglected the property for a long time.