Please note, this was an article I had written in 2017 for the 200th anniversary of Sharpsburg
Over 200 years ago a young doctor traveled through the wilderness to a peaceful valley nestled between a grove of trees and a babbling creek known as Miners Branch.
Bath County wasn’t established until 1811 so the area in which Dr. Berry came to at the time was still a part of Montgomery County.
Today the historic farm is remembered by many local citizens as the “old Parker Place”.
Brenda and Marvin Ball currently own the property where Dr. John Berry had a two-story brick home built in 1809, and the couple have lovingly restored the house and farmland to its former glory.
To celebrate Sharpsburg’s Bicentennial, Brenda hosted an open house at Ball Tara Farm last Saturday afternoon.
Visitors attended the event from all over the state of Kentucky but a few had special connections to farm.
Jane Foster Warner, who attended with her husband Jim and her son Jeff, stopped by for the opportunity to walk through the same rooms her mother did as a child.
“My mother, Lillian Colliver Foster lived here in this house when she was a little girl, along with 10 or more siblings,” Jane said. “I can just picture them all running and playing here in the yard or roaming the house as they went about their life here.”
As Jane and Brenda looked over an old black and white photograph that shows Lillian at the age of 13 and her brothers, Conway and John Paul, standing in the yard with their puppy, Brenda told the story of when she was removing wallpaper near the top of the staircase and discovered Lillian had written her name on the wall.
In the original barn that sits adjacent to the house, Emery Colliver, Janes uncle, painted his name across a beam.
Joyce Munday and Dorothy Matthews, the daughters of Callie and Floyd Robinson, were delighted to get to tour the home where their grandparents lived years ago.
“I remember visiting my grandparents when they lived here and where the side porch is now, well, it was a closed off part of the kitchen back then,” Joyce said. “Brenda and her family have really done an amazing job with the renovations and the old out buildings, It really looks wonderful out here,” Dorothy added.
Throughout the day droves of visitors toured the home and the grounds to get a glimpse of pioneer life and none were disappointed with the style in which Brenda has chosen to decorate.
As a country girl herself, Brenda’s passion for all things “old timey” can be seen throughout her home and gives a sense of how life was lived down on the farm over 200 years ago.
From local history buffs to lovers of antique décor, Ball Tara Farm was a true delight for those who toured the old house and out buildings.
While many toured the farm for its historical flavor, others stopped by to check out the little shop, Ball-tiques, which is housed in the tenant house on the farm.
But, for one family the bicentennial open house was a chance to revisit their beloved home.
For as long as most residents of Sharpsburg can remember, the farm was home to the Parker family.
Oscar and Elizabeth Ratliff Parker reared their children on the farm that was handed down to Mrs. Parker through generations of the Berry and Peck families.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Parker are remembered as beloved Bath County school teachers.
Mike Goodpaster and his mother were among the many who toured the farm and he recalled a time when he used to gig hundreds of frogs from the ponds and he also remembered that he portrayed Mr. Parker during a Tom Thumb wedding sometime in the early 1960s.
Saturdays open house brought the perfect chance for several of the Parker family members to revisit their old home place.
Suzanne Parker and her sister Laura Lee Parker Vanlandingham, were thrilled to be able to walk through their beloved home with their children and grandchildren.
“There are so many wonderful memories here,” Suzanne said as she stood in the small cobblestone courtyard at the back of the house. “The farm and the house look amazing and we are so pleased with all the hard work Brenda and her family have put into preserving the farm and the home.”
With tears about to surface, Laura Lee looked around the rooms as the thought of so many precious memories came rushing to mind of her family and the happy years they spent together on the farm.
As she stood in the middle of her old bedroom with her aunts, April Beckett Yeary, the daughter of the late Rebecca Parker was reminded of strong family ties and the love of family.
“Living on the farm was everything about family and being reared in large family where we were all so closely knitted together is the most precious gift our mothers, could have ever given us,” April said. “Just standing here and looking around this room and walking through the house has brought back so many wonderful memories. My mind takes me back to spending summer days at the creek, nights catching lightning bugs in the yard, climbing trees, listening to thunder, winters playing in snow, sleigh riding, and hoping school was canceled, waiting for all my cousins to arrive on Christmas day to open presents and Aunt Mary’s yeast rolls, all precious moments that I cherish forever. Family togetherness for the Parkers never just happened during the holidays, for us it was year-round. My sister and I were spent part of our childhood living in the house. It was for me the happiest time of my life as a young girl. I am extremely blessed to have called this farm home,” April said.
Laura and Suzanne and April agreed that the creek was one of their all-time favorite places to play when they were children.
“We are going to take the kids down to the creek today so they can see why we loved it so much when we were young,” April said.
Out on Peck Pike, down a winding driveway, the old home place still stands strong and proud as it continues to keep vigil over the rolling farmland, the creeks and the valleys.
Those echoes that filled the rooms so long ago are kept tucked inside the ancient walls of a place that stands as a reminder to Sharpsburg’s rich history.
