Walnut Hall
David W. Thompson died in 1864. His daughter, Susan, and her husband, James Neal, took possession of the house and lived there until the latter part of the nineteenth century. The Neal family was followed by the Forsythe family who occupied Walnut Hall until 1914. Ownership and occupation of Walnut Hall between 1914 and 1985 is unclear, but in 1977, Howard Gregory acquired Walnut Hall with the intent of undertaking its rehabilitation. Very little progress was made, however, and the Gregory family sold the Gregory Farm including Walnut Hall to Ralph and Ruth in 1985.
Walnut Hall had been a landmark in Mercer County for over 150 years, and was fondly remembered by Ralph from his childhood days in nearby Harrodsburg. Ralph and Ruth decided that a full restoration of Walnut Hall was in order, and when finished, it would serve as their primary Anderson Circle Farm residence. While the house had unlimited potential for restoration, it suffered from years of neglect. At the time of purchase, the house had not been occupied for many years. It was being used for hay and grain storage…..along with providing a good roosting place for the farm chickens. And if that was not enough, the house had been retrofitted with substandard plumbing and electrical facilities that violated essentially every building code ever written…..a restoration challenge indeed.

With a dream in mind, Ralph and Ruth assembled their design and construction team. Ralph selected Architects from his engineering company, the Belcan Corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, as a first step in the planning process. David Millet, an interior decorator from Cincinnati, Ohio was selected to furnish the house with authentic furniture, draperies, carvings and pictures. Jerry and Paul Wilson, brothers and owners of the Wilson Brothers Construction Company located in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, were selected as the contractors. The selection of the Wilson Brothers was perhaps one of the best moves ever made with respect to the restoration. They were highly motivated to perform restoration work, and possessed the craftsmanship to perform. This team has remained in place for many additional restoration efforts on both the Anderson Circle Farm and the Harrodsburg area.

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