About four miles out of Maysville off Kentucky 11, is a 286-acre tract now owned by the Sanders family, on which stands a lovely southern mansion.
The house was built in 1812, by the Greathouse family and is located at 6051 Key Pike. A 13-room dwelling, it was constructed of brick molded from clay excavated from the farmland. The spots were the clay were excavated are still apparent. The home was built three-bricks thick and originally had slave quarters where the garden now stands. This home also has an inlaid stone root cellar that was believed to have been an original ice house.
The Greathouse family arrived by flatboat coming down the Ohio River and it is said that an early barn was built from that flatboat on the property, but later burned. There have been several owners over the years, among them the Matthews family, Calvert family, Pfeffer family, Hardymon family and WH Duvall family. William H Rice married the Duvall’s daughter and they lived in the home, raising 10 children. One of which, was Harvey Rice, a well-known Mason Countian, who was born in the early 1900’s.
Much lore has proliferated about the northern side of the home’s shuttered windows. It is said that the then home owner’s shuttered and nailed the windows to show their dislike for the North during the Civil War. The family had decided to stay neutral and during a skirmish their son was killed. As a show of protest the owner closed the windows and ordered them to never be opened to the North again. The current owner stated that there are no windows under the shutters and that they have been completely removed and bricked up or possibly never existed. Either way, it is an interesting mystery.
Lacey Holleran is Maysville-Mason County CVB tourism director. For more on Maysville and Mason County follow the CVB on Facebook and Instagram page @VisitMaysvilleKY.
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