This somewhat eclectic Craftsman is indicative of the variety of architecture in Shingler Heights. It was built by J. S. Betts for his daughter Annie Betts Ketchum and her husband Ralph Parker Ketchum. Thanks to Michael Massey for the identification.
Shingler Heights Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
This was also the home of my grandparents, Mr. And Mrs. FRANK HARDEN MURRAY. My mother, Marjorie Murray Shingler and sister, Patricia Murray Snelling, grew up in the home. My mother married James Simon Shingler, III, the grandson of, James Simon Shingler, Sr., who built the Sparrows Nest in Ashburn, Ga.
My parents, Bill and LaVerne Searcy once owned this gracious house. Momma totally revived and redecorated this old girl to her former beauty in the early 80’s. Then an electrical house fire in the attic happened right before my wedding in 1983 causing major damage to the house. It didn’t stop the reception which was planned there though! Momma jumped into her industrious and creative way of pulling things off, picking the lovely hydrangeas from around the house, decorating the back yard and we came back from our honeymoon to a lovely garden party filled with family and friends. A couple of years later we brought our first baby home there to meet his grandparents, Aunt Dawn, Uncle Christopher, and great grandparents, William and Hazel Searcy. There were many fond memories made in this beautiful house. I will always remember the magnificent large rooms and windows that filled the house with light, the tiny bathrooms, coal burning fireplaces, massive French doors adjoining the dining room and living room, the Black Bart stove, and the peaceful expansive front porch (except when the trains came by!). *One structural note I will add is that when the house was repaired after the fire, the dormer was moved to a more aesthetically pleasing position than the original. (Momma insisted!)