The Leslie-Alford-Mims House or the Mims House, as the locals call it, is a historic Holly Springs landmark, listed on the National Register of Historic Places by The United States Department of the Interior and is a Wake County Historic Landmark. The original house is circa 1849, east wing circa 1876, west wing circa 1900. It has always been a mystery to me. It does not face the road but at a 90-degree turn, so you really never face the front. It’s shrouded in 4 huge magnolia trees. It has been vacant and left for disrepair since we have lived in Holly Springs, 10 years. I have always said it should be made into a bed and breakfast or something great to draw business into Holly Springs. We are primarily a bedroom community with few businesses, compared to other nearby towns. It has always held a mystique for me.
Not too long ago, I noticed that there was some repair and painting going on. The magnolias were trimmed and it looked like there was something happening to the old home. I knew there was too much to be done for someone to be living it was basically inhabitable. I had heard rumors a family with big dreams purchased it. Little did I know that I would find out and possibly have a personal connection with the new owners.
We had our one-year anniversary and were looking for a bit of publicity. Your Door and More contacted Mayor Sears and inquired if there were any Holly Springs landmarks that he thought would be a benefit to the town’s local art collection. Mims House was his first choice since it is part of the seal of the Town. We were so excited since it held such mystery for us. Lisa took the initial photos. Lisa went on a typically fall morning; the pictures have a foggy dew about them. It added to the allure. I found there were some details she did not get. Later that day, my husband suggested a trip to the library. I needed to get some more shots so I said, “can I go too but we can stop off to get some shots of the Mims.” The kids agreed and off we went.
My husband and I started discussing and taking pictures. The trees were such an issue I took successive prints to create a panorama-like picture. We could see someone working in the house. That someone opened the front door and said, “Excuse me, can I help you?” We both stood there for a few moments and just looked at each other. I approached and explained what I was doing. We greeted each other and shook hands. My husband stuck his hand out and said, “Hi, my name is Jim Priest, this is my wife Brenda Priest.” The man said, “Excuse me?” We repeated. He said, “My name is Charles Priest!” We all again just stood there in utter silence! Apparently, Charles’ family is traced his family, except one family member a few generations back, lost in Canada, which is where my husband’s father is from. We all had tingles on the back of our necks.
After the ice was broke, I explained what we were doing and he invited us in! Wow! Turns out Charles and his girlfriend, Jessica have purchased this house to be a wedding facility, bed and breakfast and Day Spa. They already own one Spa in Cary, NC. Theirs will be the first wedding! They gave us a tour of the 38-room mansion. Giving details of what will be where, what each room was and we walked up to the third floor and told us the widow’s walk balcony is where the bride and groom will eat their first meal together. We toured until the light faded, as there was not electricity yet.
We said our farewells I the dark. I gave them our company information and asked if we could contact them to see if we could do business. My mind was reeling with excitement of the tour and the possibilities of business transactions.
All the while doing the actual illustration I kept replaying the tour in my mind…this was the teacher’s wing which will be turned into suites…this is the bride preparation room and the groom’s room…here is where we will reconstruct the porte-cochere for the limos to pull up…on and on it my mind swirleded.
It was so much fun to work on this project. Who knew a when we went looking for a bit of publicity for Your Door and More, it would lead to so much, guess that is what life is all about!
Brenda Priest and Lisa Drymon
