George Wright Young House

The Mitchell – Foster – Young House is a historic house located just outside Oxford, Mississippi off the highway to New Albany. The house, thought to be one of the oldest standing farmhouses in the county, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.BackgroundBeginning when the original 1839 land grant was issued, the property was an active working farm until mid-1942 when then owner George W. Young became infirmed and left to live with relatives in central Mississippi. After he vacated the house, it was then rented for several years. It subsequently was closed and remained unoccupied for over six decades.Over time, weather and decay caused all out buildings, including the barn, to fall but the house remained primarily due to the integrity of the corrugated metal roof. The house’s isolation in the woods hid and protected it from potential vandals.Rotting at the corners where vines and moisture encroached finally undermined the integrity of the structure and the unoccupied house was in danger of collapsing in 2005, when a plan to repair it was created. Those plans were abandoned when termite and other animal-caused damage was discovered. The house had been originally built too close to the ground, making it impossible to avoid future similar damage if the house was simply repaired without a proper higher foundation. Alternatively, a plan was implemented to completely restore the house by dismantling it nail-by-nail and board-by-board. A newly built barn housed the methodically marked and cataloged timbers and boards, until a new, raised foundation was built. Then, in reverse order, the timbers and boards were reinstalled.Several unanticipated and yet to be explained building techniques and materials used in the house’s original construction were discovered during the restoration process. Additionally, a detailed review and assessment of each prior owner was performed using property and US Census records. Collectively, they established more clearly the phases and dates of construction.