The Sabin House

Built c. 1850
Salvaged 2005
Reconstructed 2006

Located at 215 Washington Drive
Jonesborough, Tennessee
Directions -
Map of 215 N Washington Dr
Jonesborough, TN 37659-1139, US

Built approximately 1856, this home was once situated on many acres on the hill which now overlooks the Jonesborough Library and Visitor's Center.   The home was demolished in January 2005, and is being rebuilt on Academy Hill using original materials by Debord Construction.

You can read more about the history of this home as documented on the Washington County TNGenWeb Project Website

Articles published on the history of The Sabin House:

"Full-time specialist to help maintain area's history"Published in The Johnson City Press Tuesday, January 25, 2005

"The Legend of Guy Sabin" Fall claimed life of Jonesborough's first fire chief in 1888 Published in The Johnson City Press on Monday, May 2, 2005

History rebuilt - A 150-year-old Jonesborough house, taken down to make room for a hotel, gets a new lease on life. Published in The Johnson City Press on Sunday, April 9, 2006

Historic Preservation Efforts by Jonesborough/Washington County Heritage Alliance Concerning 220 Sabin Drive, Jonesborough, TN

The Smith House - 220 Sabin (The Sabin House)

The circa 1850 Smith House at 220 Sabin, purchased by Blue Sky Hospitality, LLC in 2004, was outside the historic zone and therefore was not protected by the Jonesborough Historic Zoning Commission.

It was the goal of the Heritage Alliance to preserve for future use the interior and exterior historic character-defining material of the Smith House for future use in a modern home, the front of which would be a reconstruction of the two-story section of the Smith House.

The Alliance partnered with William Stout to produce computer-assisted drawings of the Smith House in as much detail as possible.

Bob Lilly labeled materials removed from the Smith House and placed those labels on CAD drawings. He also did computer-assisted drawings of several of the structural details of the house.

William E. Kennedy, William Stout, and Paul Kennedy provided photo documentation of the property.

William Stout provided for the sawing of lumbar from four large cedar trees on the Smith Property.

Sammy Susong provided transportation of well-labeled and organized salvaged material to William Stout's property for temporary storage.

The Alliance hired Bob Lilly and Tom Brown to conduct and supervise the work carefully disassembling the Smith House in such a way as to assure that all of the materials could be used in a new structure.

William E. Kennedy and Tom DeBord contributed the funds necessary to pay the expenses of salvaging the Smith House.

The Carter County Sheriff's Department provided prison labor to help disassemble the Smith House and to clean approximately 20,000 bricks.

The Public Works Department of the Town of Jonesborough transported the bricks stacked on pallets to the town garage for temporary storage.

Tom DeBord of DeBord Construction received the transfer of the salvaged materials and assumed the responsibility of incorporating them into a modern home, the front section of which was to be a reproduction of the two-story section of the Smith House.

The staff of the Heritage Alliance administered the bookkeeping duties and handled the agreed contractual payments for the labor and supplies involved in the salvaging of the Smith House.

Blue Sky Hospitality contributed the materials of the Smith House and fully cooperated in the salvage process, which took nearly three months.

About Jonesborough, Tennessee:

• Located in Northeast Tennessee's scenic mountains, Jonesborough, Tennessee was the first town founded in the region in 1779.
• The first capital of the “Lost State of Franklin” in 1784.
• The first town in the new state of Tennessee in 1796.
• Site of the first regularly published abolitionist periodical in 1820.
• The first Tennessee town listed on the National Register of Historic Places 1969.
• Site of the first National Storytelling Festival in 1973.
• Jonesborough was awarded the designation of Dozen Distinctive Destinations by the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2005.
• The National Storytelling Festival began in 1973 with an audience of 60 people. Today, the festival draws a crowd of 10,000 to this small town each year.
• The city of Jonesborough began offering guided tours, Jonesborough's Times and Tales , in the early 1990s. The tour has won local, state and national awards for its interpretation and preservation of history.
• The International Storytelling Center opened in 2002,  creating a year-round   destination for visitors who enjoyed storytelling. An ongoing slate of programs, including the Teller-in-Residence program, attracts visitors to Jonesborough throughout the year.

Reconstructed and Offered For Sale By:
Debord Construction
(423) 926-7802
(423) 794-7802
info@sabinhouse.com