The Andrews House  3-3-07

Located in a quiet neighborhood just two blocks from downtown Winnsboro, the house at 211 Church has a rich and interesting history. The two-story wood-framed dwelling stands on just under an acre of ground midst towering pecan trees.

This old and dignified home was built in 1911 by Bob Wilkinson on property he bought as a Winnsboro hardware merchant. He and his wife lived at this address only a short time, choosing to build elsewhere in town. In 1913, Roland G. Andrews purchased the white-columned house on Church Street. He and his wife, Maggie, moved into this dwelling following a fire that destroyed their Winnsboro home that year. Prior to their move, the inside of the house was gutted, the floors were replaced with fine oak wood from Mr. Andrew’s lumber mill and the interior was rebuilt to suit the “exquisite tastes” of the new owner. The Church Street house was to remain in the possession of the family until 1978. The history of this old home is woven inextricably with the life of this remarkable man who was known to many as the flamboyant “Merchant Prince” of Winnsboro.

In 1889, Roland Andrews married Maggie Norris of Tennessee. Immediately following the wedding, the couple began their life together in this small East Texas town. In just a few years, Andrews built a thriving business empire. His aggressive advertising slogan was “R.G. Andrews, Merchant, Dealer In Everything.”

To accomplish his purpose to sell merchandise ranging “from the cradle to the grave,” Andrews, in 1896, built one of the largest and finest two-story buildings in East Texas. In this big office on the corner of Main and Broadway Streets, Andrews sold fine clothes, millinery and ladies ready-to-wear garments. The mercantile complex included furniture, glass and Queensware; a dry goods store; a grocery store, a hardware store, an undertaking parlor; a harness and saddlery shop; building materials, window glass, paints, motor vehicles and a stock of buggies and wagons. One writer said “We might call R.G. Andrews ‘an early day Sam Walton (Wal Mart)’”

Andrews ultimately became head of the largest mercantile establishment in Winnsboro, with “substantial farming, lumber milling and banking interests.” The Winnsboro Free Press called his establishment “the largest trade emporium in Northeast Texas.”

Andrews was a leader in civic, community and educational affairs. He served Winnsboro as mayor for three terms and without remuneration. In 1902, he was instrumental in creating what was to become the Winnsboro Independent School District. He built the Winnsboro Public School building for the district. “After their bonds could not find a market, he took them at par and built this magnificent school house, donating $5,000 himself.”

A man of considerable generosity, he advertising in local papers, during a severe drought in 1905, that “he would assist all (farmers) to make a crop.” And that “he would furnish them all with corn and provisions.”

In order to do this, he was compelled to mortgage his property so that he might furnish thousands of farmers who could not pay him anything.” In 1909, he leased the first floor of his two-story brick building on Main Street, along with furnishings, to the U.S. Post Office.

The influence of R.G. Andrews went far beyond community involvement. He is recognized as “one of the founders of Southern Methodist University.” He was twice elected as delegate to the National Democratic Convention. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1910.

An active leader in the Methodist Church, he was serving as chairman of the board of stewards at the time of his death in 1918.

Sally Lucy, the only child of R.G. and Maggie Andrews, lived the longest in the house on Church Street. Born in Winnsboro on Christmas Eve, 1909, Sally Lucy was four years old when her parents moved into the two-year old dwelling. The family had been rendered homeless when their attractive Winnsboro home was hit by lightning and destroyed by fire. With the exception of the few years she was away attending a music conservatory and SMU, Sally Lucy was to occupy the Church Street residence for more than 65 years.

R.G. Andrews died suddenly on February 8th, 1918 at the age of 49 and Mrs. Andrews took on the awesome responsibilities of the Andrews enterprises. In 1928, Sally Lucy Andrews married James Edward Old in the “music room” of the home at 211 Church Street. At the time of their wedding, James Old was an instructor in English at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, where they resided until 1933.

That year, the couple moved to Winnsboro and took up residence in the house adjacent to the Andrews house, where Sally Lucy’s mother lived. Later, they moved into the old house with Mrs. Andrews, who died in September 1935. Mr. Old became a local attorney, a successful businessman with farming interests, and later served as Wood County Judge.

He was active in community and civic affairs, and was widely known for his active involvement in the Boy Scout movement throughout the state of Texas. For a period of time he headed the local draft board. The Olds had two sons, James Roland and Gwynne. After Judge Old’s death in 1966, Sally Lucy continued to live a very active life in the stately old home.

Sally Lucy Old was an accomplished musician. In the “music room” of her home, she taught piano and organ to young people in the Winnsboro area. She served as organist for the Winnsboro United Methodist Church for many years. Having attended SMU, she maintained close connections with the university and the Dallas First Methodist Church. She played the organ in concert at First Methodist in Dallas in 1929. Mrs. Old performed for weddings and many other events and her home on Church Street was Winnsboro social center for several decades.

Over the years, the residence came to be identified by citizens of the community as the Sally Lucy Old House.” Mrs. Old continued to live at the Church Street residence until she sold it in July 1978 to Larry and Valetta Ramsour, from Lake Charles, Louisiana. On January 1st, 1979, Mr. Ramsour established a non-profit organization and engaged in evangelistic and mission work in the United States and the Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal, maintaining his office in the home. Mrs. Ramsour was a teacher at Winnsboro Elementary School from the time of their move to the town.

Since the purchase, the Ramsours have sought to maintain the historical integrity of the old house. Gradual improvements to the property have honored this intention, resulting in a home that is attractive and livable. The residence has been on several historic home tours fostered by the Wood County Historical Commission. Additionally, guided tours have been made for school groups, including the Nati9onal Junior Historical Society, as well as annual tours by combined third grade classes from the Winnsboro Elementary School

The attic area and its contents were featured in the Tyler Sunday Courier-Times-Telegraph on October 7th, 1984. Later that year, The Globe, a nationwide tabloid, published an article titled, “Gadzooks, Look What’s In The Attic.”

It can be truly said that the house on the corner of Church and Elm has been, through the years, a center of activity and purposeful endeavors which have made their mark upon the lives of many throughout the East Texas area and beyond.