The Bennett House - A Podcast

The Bennett House was built by Macon, Georgia heiress Mary Ayers Harris in 1902.
Over the course of time, the home would be owned by several different families. The Bennetts were able to purchase the home in the 1970s.
Today, Darin McClure a good friend of the Bennetts owns the home and he is restoring the structure to its former grandeur.
Ethiel Garlington, executive director of Historic Macon Foundation, explains what it takes to restore a home like this.
Photography and Production by Elliot James
"Secret Garden" by Scott Holmes. (CC BY-NC 4.0)

[@hollyb5446]

I’m so thrilled to have found this. I had the pleasure of meeting the Bennetts back in the late 1990s. Through an odd collection of events (from my admiring Gilbert’s old cars he parked in back, to neighborhood petitions and a yard sale), I connected with Susan (??) Bennett and was invited to their home (at the time, I believe it was referred to as The Bennett Building). I quite literally went to their home the night before moving to Atlanta. I wish I had had more time to get to know them, and the house. I have always regretted not having a camera with me as I had no idea the treasures I would see inside. We sat for a long time with their mastiffs on the front porch, drinking gin and tonics. They invited me in (I had a friend along). The house was piled high with newspapers and other random things. Then Gilbert showed me a photo from the 1800s (?) of an aqueduct with a keystone…then pointed up to the keystone in your video (@6:24). Then we got to spend time around the spring, whispering to one another. I will never forget that visit or the house. Coincidentally, I married a Bennett. :) I’m so glad to know this house is being restored. What a treasure.

[@darinrmcclure]

That spring looks awesome

[@geneharris4953]

For the record. Her name was Mary Ayres Harris.