The Freestone Count Historical Museum invites the community to celebrate the Littlejohn Open House this Saturday, October 15, 2022 from 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. at 302 E. Main Street in Fairfield, Texas.
Work began almost three years ago on the museum grounds to create a reproduction of the 1908 Littlejohn Farm House, originally built in Shanks community south of Kirvin.
The patriarch of the family was John Thomas (J.T.) Littlejohn, a farmer and traveling minister from Webster County, Georgia who moved his family to Texas in 1885 eventually settling in Freestone County. In 1900, J.T. and his son, Lonnie, bought the original 100 acres in the Shanks community.
Assisted by his father, Lonnie soon designed, engineered, and started building a home for the family, finishing the basic unpainted house in 1908. It was a pinwheel design featuring four bedrooms opening onto covered porches.
LITTLEJOHN FAMILY CIRCA 1900: J.T., Anna, Minnie, and Lonnie Littlejohn (front L-R), Rosie, Ella, and Fannie Littlejohn (back L-R).
The original house had neither electricity nor indoor plumbing. Kerosene lamps were used for lighting. A water well was located 50’ from the east porch corner and provided water for drinking, cooking, and bathing. An outhouse, supplemented by chamber pots at night, provided the only toilet facilities.
Over the years, the Shanks community declined and the Littlejohn home and farm changed hands. By the 21st century, the Littlejohn House was deteriorating quickly, neglected for decades due to the production of natural gas on the farm.
Architect Dick Clark of Austin first saw the century-old Littlejohn House in 1995 when he attended a funeral at the Shanks Cemetery with his longtime companion and Littlejohn descendant, Sherry Matthews. Dick was immediately impressed with the architecture of the house, designed by someone who had never formally studied architecture, and decided it should be preserved.
Dick died of leukemia in 2017, but he left funds to continue efforts to save the house.
DICK CLARK III, FAIA 1944–2017: During his 45 years as an architect, Dick designed more than 1,000 residential and commercial projects and won more than 70 awards, including the prestigious title of Fellow from the American Institute of Architects in 2013. He earned multiple design degrees from The University of Texas School of Architecture and Harvard Graduate School of Design and opened his firm, Dick Clark Architecture, in Austin in 1976.
On Oct. 14, 2019, FCHM board members Linda Mullen and Don Awalt met and signed, a building contract with the Dick Clark III Foundation donor advisor, Sherry Matthews (formerly Sherry Smith of Teague and representative of the Littlejohn family), to proceed with the reproduction of the 1900s Littlejohn home, situated on a nearly 300-acre farm, from the Shanks community.
Original plans were to have the uniquely designed home moved and restored. After much research and consultation with historic architect Mark Thacker of Tyler and others, the Littlejohn family learned that the structure was not stable enough to be transported and less than 15% of the original house could actually be restored. A reproduction of the home, with its southern wings angled at 45 degrees, three porches, steep gabled roof with geometric wood shakes on the gables, and tear-drop wood siding has been built, using artifacts from the original home and new materials that will retain the authenticity of the original construction. The 1908 farm house was designed and built by Lonnie B. Littlejohn (inventor of many unique vegetable and fruit cross breeds, a four-wheel drive mechanism, and a steel tire).
Campbell Custom Homes of Bullard, TX has overseen the reproduction. Foundation work began in early Dec. 2019, with the floor being completed by mid-January and the roof being completed by the end of February. By the end of April, the siding had been completed and painting had begun. By July 24, 2020 the construction phase of the Littlejohn House was completed; with the kitchen floors, walls, doors and cabinets crafted of woods from the original house.
The museum board is very thankful to the Dick Clark III Foundation for completely funding the Littlejohn project. Clark was an award-winning FAIA architect who admired the Littlejohn house and was among those who wanted to see it restored.
Make plans to join them this Saturday in showcasing their newest Freestone County treasure.
For more information, visit their website at freestonecomuseum.com
