Porter House, Mississippi Heritage Trust Award

The Porter House Honored by Mississippi Heritage Trust
233 Oak Street - Raymond, Mississippi

The Porter House, located at 233 N. Oak Street in Raymond and the new home of Friends of Raymond members Jeannie and Bob Chunn, has been recently honored by the Mississippi Heritage Trust. The restoration project undertaken by the Chunns saved the Porter House, an antebellum house listed in the National Register of Historic Places, from virtually certain total disintegration at its original site approximately three miles from Raymond. After the purchase of the house in spring, 2004, several months of activity to prepare for the house to be moved followed. Rotten sills were replaced, the floor joist system was strengthened, walls were braced, and the roof was removed. And, a circa 1900 orchestral grand piano was firmly fixed in place. An experienced house moving company was engaged to carefully carry out the transport of the two sections of the house to the new site behind the Courthouse in Raymond.

Jeannie Chunn accepts from MHT Executive Director David Preziosi the Mississippi Heritage Trust Award of Excellence for the restoration of the Porter House

Meantime, the lot in Raymond (which had not been occupied for 25-30 years) had to be cleared by bulldozer and backhoe. Foundation trenches were dug, rebar put in place, and a concrete foundation was poured to the exact measurements of the house. The lot, most recently owned by Robert E. Biggs, Jr., has its own interesting history, as in 1844 it was the site of a girls school known as the “Methodist Female Academy” which served as a Union hospital following the 1863 Battle of Raymond. Unfortunately, all vestiges of the school buildings are gone except possibly what appears to be some foundation stones.

At the appointed time when all preparations had been made, the Porter House was moved to its new site. The move was an exciting effort, and many Raymond residents turned out to watch. Both sections of the house were moved over two days 1.2 miles down a specially improved dirt road, down Highway 18 and Hinds Boulevard, then back up Clinton-Raymond Road and to Court Street.

Once in place, the two sections were leveled and brick piers built to support the front, circa 1850, structure. The circa 1830 rear ell is once again supported by the original native stones thought to have been quarried at nearby Mississippi Springs. When the original roof rafters had been replaced, a new roof was installed. Then the tedious restoration of the house commenced. The original stone fireplace had been taken down and the stones moved to the new site and the fireplace reconstructed as a part of the project. Heart pine floors and ceilings were cleaned and refinished. The total restoration of the house was completed in the fall of 2005.

At the 2006 annual conference of the Mississippi Heritage Trust held in Cleveland, Mississippi, the Porter House restoration project was recognized by its selection to receive the prestigious Heritage Preservation Award of Excellence.