Inactive

The Owners happened upon Lake Rabun twenty years ago and decided to purchase a summer cottage. In the spring of 1996, they began clearing the adjacent lot in order to erect vintage log houses that would comprise their permanent, year-round residence. Six log cabins dating from the 1780’s through 1840 were purchased, dismantled and transported to Lake Rabun. The cabins came from TN, NC, KY and VA and each structure has its own truly fascinating history. Virtually all of the materials used are recycled from various old structures gathered from several southern states. The Cowans spent many hours searching for suitable doors, windows, flooring and so forth. The wonderful rock work was done by local Rabun County craftsmen and the interior flooring is interesting in that it is comprised of heart pine, black walnut and wormy chestnut. The garage is a former tobacco shed from the Southern Virginia dating back to the late 1780’s and is the oldest of the six cabins. The potting shed is from the 1830’s and was once a slave cabin from the plantation home of the Scott family, a former governor of NC. The kitchen cabin is circa 1838and is from Decatur County, TN. An early settler, Nathan Yearwood built it and family history tells us that one of the owners was shot and killed in the front doorway. The large yellow poplar logs are typical of a very well-constructed log house of the region. Yellow poplar was the material of preference for log home owners. The antique iron stove was patented in 1879 and is refurbished. The floors and counter fronts are heart pine. The counter top is wormy chestnut wood which no longer grow in America. The dogtrots or connectors are used to joint the cabins and supply space for closets, laundry room, etc. The wood is all recycled from old buildings. The large living/dining room is a cabin from Thompkinsville, KY. Benjamin Rush, the town doctor, built it between 1835 and 1840. The cup and sill beams are 32 feet long and the flooring is a combination of heart pine and wormy chestnut. Bedroom of L/R was attached to the main living cabin and is desirable because it is made up of hand hewn post & beams cut with broadaxes. The flooring is wormy chestnut. The dogtrot between the living area and the bedroom is made up of paneling and wainscoting that came from house near Hendersonville, NC that was built in 1792. Note the wide boards and decorative beading. The bedroom is from rural Danville, VA dated late 1790’s. There was a huge fireplace where the French doors now stand and when the building was disassembled, a letter was found behind the mantle described the Battle of Fredricksburg. Apparently, the youngest son of the wonder had written home to his parents and he boasts that “any man in my company can whip any 5 Yankees with a brick bat”. The bedroom is of very unusual construction in that the notches are full dovetail, similar to what one would find in a fine piece of furniture. The most recent addition was a cottage that was headed to England for an antique log cabin and was inadvertently left off the ship in New York City. The pine trees that were removed from the property were milled and used for sub-flooring and sub roofing. The entire building process took approximately 12 months.

Huge rock fireplace locally built extends to guest bedroom wall behind

Porch has outdoor kitchen, seating, and dining area

French doors open to porch

Perfect for snow day