House on former mission land gets another overhaul – Tahlequah Daily Press

The house at 314 Academy St. in Tahlequah sits on land that was once part of the Baptist Mission, which encompassed more than 100 acres of land and featured a farm and orchards.

Portions of the land became the Academy Addition when the Department of Interior approved the plat on March 4, 1904.

An article in the Nov. 10, 1985, Tahlequah Pictorial Press traced the 314 Academy St. plat via then-homeowners and sisters, Betty Greenhaw and Frankie Roemer. The American Baptist Home Mission Society of New York sold the plat to D. Frank and Walter J. Pack of Tahlequah. They had civil engineer Frank R. Lewis survey the Academy Addition into blocks and lots. Pack and Frank sold the land to Fannie P. James and Cora B. Clever, who then sold it to J.N. Clark, who, in 1912, sold it to T.O. Graham. A house was built at 314 Academy St. in 1907, and the lot and building were sold to J.C. and Walsie Greenhaw in 1947.

The Greenhaws had five children - Betty, Frankie, Bill, Dale, and Carl - and the home holds memories of them growing up and of numerous family celebrations, including annual birthday parties for Walsie on Christmas Eve. Roemer's wedding reception was held at the house. J.C. died in 1959, and the children grew and developed their own families and homes.

Walsie filled the house and found company and helpers by renting out rooms to college students. She also devoted areas of home to her activities, including newspapers and quilting supplies.

"We spent many a happy day here. We had good neighbors," said Roemer. "My mother lived here until 1980, when she was killed in a car accident."

Roemer said she and her siblings would travel from their homes in Tulsa to Tahlequah and open the house on weekends.

"All the folks would come in and visit," she said. "This was always open house."

The area where the laundry room and a daybed are currently situated used to be a sunroom.

"It used to be all windows," said Greenhaw.

Roemer's daughter, Carol Burgess, recalls the area as being longer.

"Grandma had an old washtub where the washer is. She had a big quilting frame in here," Burgess said of the sunroom. "There's a closet there now, but there was a little room about the size of a walk-in closet, and that's where she slept. That's where I would read in the summers. There was a little door to the porch and the breeze would come in."

The old closet was large enough for a twin bed.

"The Sisters" - as some in Tahlequah called Roemer and Greenhaw, according to Burgess - began remodeling the home in 1985. Many within the family assisted in updating the structure. Herman Roemer, Frankie's husband, was in the construction business, and he enjoyed working on old houses. Burgess' husband, Steve, modernized the kitchen using his cabinet-making and engineering skills.

"It was a group effort. That was a lot of work. Mainly Aunt Betty and my father did most of the work. Betty outworked all of us," said Burgess. "We took one weekend when it was 107 degrees and painted the outside. We found the colors during a trip to Fayetteville. We wanted it to look Victorian, even though it wasn't."

Burgess said that when they remodeled, they found there was no insulation; it was just old newspapers. The transformation rid the house of the pot-belly stove and the second-floor sleeping porch, which had been added by the Grahams during World War II.

The Greenhaw house, as it came to be known, was sold by the family in 1994. The current owner is Sandy Crosslin, who bought it from her sister about 14 years ago.

Crosslin had been renting out 314 Academy St. to families and college students, but in November 2016, she and Denna Porter began to transform the house again.

"It had gotten run-down and it needed to be redone," said Crosslin. "Denna had been wanting to work on a house. This location was perfect - two blocks from downtown. It needed some TLC, so we gave it some."

The house still had wall heaters, and Porter said there were gas lines everywhere. Those were removed and all of the central heating and air conditioning has been updated. Also new are the roof, the windows, the lighting, and bathroom fixtures. The carpet was removed from the downstairs rooms, and all the floors are the original wood.

"The floors were stripped, but some paint was left to show the colors; it was green in the hall and brown in the bedrooms. We took it back as much as we could save," said Porter.

The wood on the stairs was replaced with 100-year-old barn wood, but the stair railing is the original.

Also original is the over 100-year-old, 6-foot claw-foot bathtub. The mirror hanging in the bathroom used to hang in a bedroom when it was the Greenhaw house. Barbra Cook, a Greenhaw granddaughter, wanted it to hang in the house again.

A built-in china hutch was removed from the kitchen, which has all modern appliances and marble countertops.

Two of the old windows now hang with wreaths in the dining room, and three panels from one of the old doors have been turned into signs proclaiming "Bath," "Stay awhile," and "Academy House, 1907-1917."

Academy House is now a business. Crosslin and Porter are renting the home for special occasions, as well as to short- and long-term guests.

The house has three bedrooms with queen-size beds, and the old sun porch has a daybed. The two bathrooms have showers, and a washer and a dryer are in the utility room.

Many of the wood furniture was left by previous renters and has been redone by Crosslin and Porter. A coffee table was once a toy chest. A side table in the dining room used to be in Crosslin's father's veterinary office.

They have decorated in their own styles. One bedroom has a "cabin-at-the-lake" feel, while another is bright and airy.

Guests have access to pots, pans, dishes, sheets, towels and more. Wifi is also available. Books and board games are in the bedrooms.

"It is not a bed and breakfast. We don't provide any service, no meals," said Crosslin. "They let themselves in the house with the keyless entry."

Guests have been renting Academy House since June.

"We've got a lot of good vibes and feedback from everyone and people who have stayed here," said Porter.

An open house was held last Wednesday, and many from the Greenhaw family attended.

"It looked so awful for so many years, it was sad to come by. It needs a family again, and this is the next best thing," said Burgess. "Maybe this will help to revitalize this street, maybe inspire everybody."

Her brother John was impressed and is glad they kept the wood floors.

"They've really dome a beautiful job. It's very different," said Greenhaw.

The Academy House operators said they love the house, and everyone wants to move in.

"We want people to feel at home; it's their home while they're away," said Porter. "We have worked really hard for months."

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House on former mission land gets another overhaul - Tahlequah Daily Press