Date: April 19 – 20, 2008

Click the button to see picture's of the Home Tour!

• A tour of historic architecture in the Bills McNeal Historic District. The public is invited to tour these historic homes and sites, noteworthy due to the fascinating histories and original furnishings dating back to the early settling of Hardeman County. Stroll under the ancient shade trees in this lovely southern neighborhood from antebellum homes to the gothic Episcopal church to the Polk family cemetery as you reminisce about by-gone days and relive historic events.

• Featured: The Pillars (circa 1828) The Columns (circa 1860)

McNeal Place (circa 1862) Polk Cemetery (circa 1845)

St. James Episcopal Church (circa 1870)

plus Maxwell & Bertin House and Garden.

• Tickets may be purchased at the Hardeman County Chamber of Commerce, 500 W. Market St. or by mail to APTA, P.O. Box 148, Bolivar, TN 38008. Cost is $20.00 each, (There is a 10% discount for pre-paid tours of 10 or more.) Children under 12 are free.

• Hours: Saturday April 19th: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

        Sunday April 20^th: 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

• Media contact: Paula Stanley e-mail at pstanley38067@yahoo.com or

(731) 376-2153, also Cissye Pierce at (731) 764-6243

Sponsored by: The Hardeman County Chapter of

The Association for the Preservation of Tennessee Antiquities

 We invite you to come and enjoy the wonderful stories of Bolivar’s heritage, its historic homes and their legacy. Included on the 2008 Bills Street Home Tour are:

• McNeal Place © 1862 – McNeal Place was built due to the death of the only daughter of the original owner, Ezekiel K. Polk. Mrs. (Ann) Polk was inconsolable at the death of Priscilla who was in her teens in 1854. Polk built the home on the west side of his property near Polk Cemetery where Priscilla was buried. Ann visited the grave each day. During the Civil War she had to have a special pass to cross the Union Lines.

The home is unique in that it was not designed by a local architect or built locally. It is believed the architect was Samuel Sloan of Philadelphia and the lumber was precut and barged from Cincinnati. The shipping stencils are still evident on the back porch latticework and the cook’s quarters mantle. Some of the features and materials used are imported from Europe. The entry hall dry-wall frescoes, the marble and granite, and graining on the interior woodwork were by craftsmen unknown in West Tennessee homes of the time. Furnishings and paintings are original to the McNeal family and their heirs the Hills and McDonnells. Many of the outbuildings and much of the landscaping remain.

• The Columns © 1860 - Owned and operated by the private Bolivar Historical and Community Foundation, The Columns is beautifully restored to the time of the Ingram family (1909 – 1995s). It has charming restored formal grounds. Downstairs are two parlors (one a sitting room, one a music room) with gracious Victorian furniture. The dining room and breakfast room feature family silver. The home and grounds are frequent wedding and photo sites.

• The Pillars © 1828 - The first brick home in Bolivar, it began as a modest Federal Style home. In 1838 Major John Houston Bills purchased it, enlarged it to the present size and he and his descendents lived there until the death of his granddaughter Clara Bills in 1967. The house is resplendent with family furniture, paintings, nick-nacs, books, clothing and true stories from the diaries JH Bills kept from 1843 until his death in 1871. The property contains the old 2-story kitchen and a gothic cottage with a Civil War origin.

• St. James Episcopal Church © 1870 - Built in 1870 around the small 1840 wooden church, St. James was designed and built by Willis and Sloan in the Gothic design. It is majestic and has beautiful stained glass windows and interiors. Ingram Hall was built from reclaimed materials from the 1840 church.

• Polk Cemetery 1845 – National Historic Register #4C-27 - The land was acquired by James K. Polk, Jr., and others on October 23, 1845 as a family cemetery for the descendents of Ezekiel Polk. Colonel Polk, the patriarch of the Polk family in Tennessee, was the grandfather of President James Knox Polk. The elder Polk was instrumental in framing the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence and served in the Revolutionary War. He lived in Maury County before settling in Hardeman County. "Old E.P." wrote his own quite unique rhyming epitaph. During his grandson’s bid for president of the United States, the derogatory religious references were removed. Later they were restored.

Several family slaves are buried in a corner of the cemetery and their stories are listed in the cemetery records.

• Maxwell & Bertin House and Garden.

• Maxwell & Bertin House and Garden: - Built in 1956 and is one of the newer historic homes in Bills-McNeal Historic District.  It is furnished in the traditional manner with Chippendale, Hepplewhite and Sheraton antiques and reproductions.  Interior designs are made by James Stevens of Barrett & Stevens in Bolivar.   The beautiful gardens were designed by Steven Killebrew, ASLA.

Please contact us if you see any errors on this site. 

Errors or changes should be addressed to the Webmaster,  Barbara Chambers. 

Last Updated

04/24/2008