ARTICLE: THE HOUSES THAT TOM BUILT by John P. Flannery

When we talk about the three houses that Tom Bullock built, where Tom and his wife, Mary Beth, live outside Lovettsville on Stevens Road, we are not talking about Mother Goose and what Jack built.

We are instead talking about a ten year undertaking of historic recreation from a recycled salvaged log out-building and a timber framed Federal Colonial plantation home circa 1829 from Central Southern Virginia (called “Oakland”).

We are talking about aged logs, bricks, mantels, a staircase, rails, windows, various, numerous artifacts, all consonant with the architectural details of another era.

“We had to live in a mobile home,” Tom said, “and it shook and shuddered when the wind blew outside.” 

To secure the materials, Tom cleared out honey bee hives, vines, critters from the original sites, took apart the buildings, labeled the parts, then reassembled them. 

What was lost or damaged, Tom duplicated with identical woods, following the original design, so that history past, Tom said, would “remain intact for future generations to enjoy.”

“The first of three houses we built was the kitchen house,” Tom said, “and it had bedrooms so we were done with shaking winds, next we built my office, called the ‘patent house,’ leaving a gaping space between for the third and main house, the plantation home and, guess what, it fit perfectly.”

Noting that this was accomplished faster than Jefferson’s building at Monticello, Tom mentioned, “You know Jefferson did go bankrupt – we nearly did.”

Mr. Bullock is the President of the Lovettsville Historical Society (www.lovettsvillehistoricalsociety.org/)  and President of his own company, Bullseye Restoration Inc.

“I was always building as a kid,” Tom said, “Lincoln logs, erector sets, and finally cars.”

“My father was stationed in Stuttgart, and married into the Kalber family,” said Tom, “so I got to return summers to Germany, when I was let out of school, traveling from Alaska, San Jose, Tampa, wherever my Dad was stationed;  in Germany, I found I loved the old stuff there, the museums, the festivals.”

“I studied mechanical engineering,” Tom said, “because I liked to build things.  On my summers in Germany, I built forts, also,” he laughed, “pits to lure other kids.”

“In high school,” Tom said, “I hunted for old bottles in abandoned houses.  In College, I was a  handy man at job sites.  When I worked construction, I could read plans when the other workers could not.  At 20, they’d look at me suspicious that I didn’t know enough but I proved I did, and filled in as a welder, brick mason, whatever the position, when it was needed.”

After college, Tom passed up Texas Instruments to work two weeks on and two weeks off at building sites, taking on jobs of his own in the off weeks, getting a rep and clientele, finally setting up his own shop, collecting books, knowledge, antique tools, even learning how to be a black smith, with his own forge.

That’s how Tom had the opportunity to restore and recreate historic homes and the thought to build his own.

 “The Lovettsville Historic Association is just an extension of my passion,” Tom said.  “Right now, I’m studying the cemetery for the First German Reformed Church.”  The Church was founded before 1748, east outside of Lovettsville on the Lovettsville Road.  “The congregation met in members’ homes and only built a brick church in about 1819,” said Tom, “and that church they tore down in 1901 to construct St. James in town with the same bricks.”

“The cemetery remains,” he said, “but the question I’m considering is whether there are empty sites in the yard itself, and whether all the graves are contained within the cemetery’s walls.  There are unmarked graves, head stones, and I suspect that there are graves outside the walls, perhaps hundreds more.   I’ve used dowsing with some success to locate the graves, and a probe to examine whether the earth has been disturbed because of the digging of a grave.  Some are suspect of dousing, using rods that indicate grave sites, but I’ve had good results.  In any case, we will have to consider using some sample excavations or ground sonar, a modern but expensive technique, if we are going to confirm this preliminary inspection.”

Getting back to “the house,” Tom said, “Mary Beth and I together planned our house.”  

“As for how we met,” Tom said, “I went to a New Years’ Eve party with “a girl I was seeing,  Mary Beth Griese came downstairs acting like she knew me, offering up a special bottle of champagne that, once consumed, I kept, and I left with the bottle.” 

Unbeknownst to Tom, Mary Beth looked everywhere for that bottle but couldn’t find it. 

 
“As I planned,” Tom said, “I sent the bottle to her with a handwritten note that I wanted to see her, and we did.  That’s how it started.  I believe Mary Beth still has the bottle.”

BLUEBIRDS IN LOVETTSVILLE by John P. Flannery

Betty and Chuck Hedges, Janet Locklear, and Holly Flannery

“The bluebirds almost went extinct in the 60s,” said Janet Locklear, the Loudoun County Bluebird Trail Coordinator.  Janet, on behalf of the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and Virginia Bluebird Society, came to the Dobbins Creek Hamlet in Lovettsville to find a trail for nest boxes to protect Eastern Bluebirds.

Janet said, “We still have non-native invasive species such as European starlings, and House Sparrows, and they are predators of the nesting Bluebirds.” 

Bluebirds remove parasites and insects that stall tree growth including those annoying no-see-ems, they carry seeds gathered in their feet, and assist in pollination.  Gardeners appreciate that bluebirds don’t eat earthworms.  Their blue plumage and reddish brown throat and breast catch the eye.  Henry David Thoreau wrote in his Journal in 1852, “The bluebird carries the sky on his back.”  Their pleasant song is pleasingly distinctive.

“Blue birds prefer to nest in the woods,” said Janet, “where there are cavity holes in dead trees, snags we call them.”  Bluebirds are second only to Woodpeckers for being cavity nesters.  But, unlike Woodpeckers, Bluebirds can’t make their own cavities.  Janet said, “snags are good.”  But many trees are being cut down, and there are fewer opportunities for the Bluebird, and so a nest box is the best alternative to protect the bluebirds from predators. 

Janet said, “Starlings aren’t small enough to get into the boxes we build, but House Sparrows are; so, we have to take other protections.”

As for how successful this program has been in Loudoun, “We had about 1,300 bluebird fledglings in 2012, also 673 tree swallows.” 

“It’s when children asked in the 60s, what a bluebird was that we appreciated what we were losing” Janet said, “and what’s exciting is that we have brought back the bluebird from extinction in our lifetime.” 

The HOA President of the Dobbins Creek Hamlet, Chuck Hedges and Betty Hedges, a Bluebird Trail Monitor in training, reviewed maps of the “conservancy lots” with Janet and Holly Flannery, a Lovettsville Bluebird Trail Monitor, to consider what sites might be suitable for nest boxes

The Dobbins Creek HOA clears trails in the community’s open spaces through their conservancy lots.  The four-some set out to consider whether that trail in place might be suitable and to flag likely nestbox locations. 

The boxes have to be spaced 100 yards apart.  Nearby trees, hedges, bushes and winter berries are a significant consideration for finding food and cover when the bluebirds have fledged.  Janet said, “Hedges are a refuge for bird life.”  Avoiding areas that have insecticides is also important.  Holly said, “Leaving snags is critical for bluebird survival.” 

13 locations were found by the foursome and Chuck said afterwards, “the Dobbins Creek Board is optimistic that this will contribute to the community’s ecological policy.”

The boxes may be bought, contributed or constructed by volunteers in such a fashion as to protect against snakes, raccoons, feral cats, and other predators.  They are often made so they are insulated against the cold for the winter.  Holly said, “Keep your cats in during the day and don’t put nesting boxes on your 3-board fences – these are called ‘lunch boxes’.”

Once in place, Janet estimated that, “13 boxes with 2 nestings through the seasons might produce a clutch of 5 fledglings each nesting, so it’s possible to have 130 bluebirds after the first full year.”  Anything else, “we may also have a fair number of tree swallows.”  There won’t be much competition because, although swallows are territorial, Janet said, “the swallows feed on the wing, and the bluebirds on the ground.”

Holly said, “We monitors must visit these boxes, once they’re in place, weekly to remove House Sparrows nests.” Chuck reassured that community members would want to volunteer.

As for what’s in store for these volunteers, Karen Louise Lippy, writing for Bluebird Life, said: “Each person who looks into a nestbox gets a magical window into the life of a bird.  This glimpse can give them an appreciation and respect for birds they would never get otherwise.”

FETA FANS ALERT – GOAT CHEESE IS COMING TO LOVETTSVILLE by John P. Flannery

Eight softly bleeping and extraordinarily cute dairy goats, weighing 100-120 pounds, from two to 4 years old, headed up by Sapphire, are strutting their stuff.

They are the prime source of goat milk and cheese for the Georges Mill Farm Artisan Cheese Company but they are on sabbatical right now, and not producing (http://georgesmillcheese.com/ ).

Molly and Sam Kroiz are in the process of obtaining the permits from the Virginia Department of Agriculture so that they can launch their sales to local farmer’s markets, restaurants and wineries by April 2013. 

“We have the goats producing,” Molly said, “and each goat produces about a gallon a day for up to 9 months.” 

“I’m finishing up the construction for the creamery,” Sam said, as an addition to the historic stone and timber bank barn nearby.

“We also hope to be distributing our cheeses retail here at the barn,” Molly said, “with the public visiting the creamery, and hopefully after that at a nearby wood cabin.”

Approaching the goats, she warned, “They can jump a 6 foot fence so we had to make this paddock board fence higher,” Molly said.  

Goat’s milk is considered similar to human milk, and those who have a low tolerance for cow’s milk drink goat’s milk, as many more do outside the United States. 

Molly said, “We didn’t see any serious production of goat’s milk or cheese in the region and it was one of the reasons we were interested to do this.” 

Goat cheese has been made for thousands of years. 

Molly and Sam will be making the tangy, creamy salty Feta that many know but also a semi-soft Catoctin cheese that has an earthy, mushroomy flavor. 

Their Dutchman’s Creek Chevre is a soft, fresh cheese named after the nearby creek. 

You can learn more about making cheese from one of Molly’s lectures – the next class is on February 20^th and you can register to attend at their web site.

Sam is Fran Wire’s grandson and he met Molly when they were out west with Sam working on marine fisheries and Molly studying the subject.  So this is a change that they didn’t expect.

As for what they have to offer, they said they know for sure the cheese is good because they’ve been making it and storing it and, best of all, “we’ve been eating it.”