We are so proud to own such a majestic and stately old home, now the Old Caledonian Bed & Breakfast. There are many beautiful features to see at the old Ruggles-Evans-Dent House. But, many of the more interesting and historical features are hidden in plain sight. Here are just a few:
- The black walnut trim found in many of our rooms are made from wood not only original to our 1849 house, but also to the property itself. The trees were growing on-site when the house was built and were milled to specification and put into the house during construction.
At the time the milling of such hardwood was a relatively new technology. Adding the facts that the cut of the wood is unusually tapered and so artistically fitted might help explain how original owner Elijah-Starr Ruggles squandered much of his inherited wealth on the house and had to flee the state in debt.
- When Elijah-Starr Ruggles fled, the property reverted back to the original title holder, a farmer named James Evans. His family sold the house to W.J. Dent in 1911 (hence the name of the house on the National Register of Historic Places, the “Ruggles-Evans-Dent House). The family name Dent may be familiar to Missourians as the root of the name of Dent County, MO, and also the last name of Ulysses S. Grant’s wife Julia, who was W.J.’s cousin.