|
For Rent: Patsy’s Place
By: Bridgette Blair The Winchester Star The ultimate Patsy Cline lover now has a chance to live at her Winchester home at 608 S. Kent St. for $625 a month.
Built in 1900, the 1,716-square-foot home has wooden floors, a backyard that borders Town Run, and, obviously, some famous karma attached to it. Kevin D. Adams, president of The Adams Cos., said Friday the home is for rent, basically to cover the cost of purchasing the building. It’s pretty much ready for occupancy, he said. The real idea behind the purchase of the home, though, is to preserve the home of Patsy, according to Adams. The home could eventually be furnished in a manner similar to the way it was when Cline lived there, and tours could be conducted, said C. Douglas Adams, chairman of the board of The Adams Cos. “I think people coming to town to experience the spirit of Patsy Cline would want to at least come by or see this house,” C. Douglas Adams said Friday. The Adams Family Limited Partnership, comprised of Adams family members, bought the South Kent Street property and the later home of Cline’s mother, Hilda Hensley, at 133 E. Monmouth St., for $127,000. The Adams family company bought the properties through a limited liability corporation, Sweet Dreams for Patsy LLC, and the deed was made Jan. 5. They purchased it from Sylvia M. Wilt and Samuel L. Hensley Jr., Hilda Hensley’s children. The 608 S. Kent St. property is assessed at $51,800, and the 133 E. Monmouth St. property is assessed at $71,300, according to the Winchester Assessor’s Office. Patsy Cline lived in the home periodically from the late 1940s until 1957, when she married Charlie Dick, said Mel Dick, general manager of the Always Patsy Cline Fan Club and Charlie Dick’s brother. Mel Dick said he was pleased to see the Adams name attached to the purchase, because it means the home will remain for the future. “They purchased the house for all the right reasons.” Kevin Adams noted that those who wanted to preserve the singer’s memory wouldn’t have to watch someone buy the property and sell it to the highest bidder on eBay, for example. “Everyone that we’ve talked to has been really grateful,” Kevin Adams said. Winchester City Council President Charles T. Gaynor happens to be one of those people. He said he was pleased a local person with an interest in the community bought the property. The purchase is part of a larger picture that’s beginning to come into focus for Patsy Cline recognition in the city, Winchester Mayor Larry T. Omps explained. A Patsy Cline museum, which also has been discussed for a Winchester location, is coming close to fruition, Gaynor said, although he did not specify further. “We’re working desperately on the museum, and I think this could become a part of the (Patsy Cline) tour,” said Omps. The home’s preservation simply is another piece of the puzzle falling into place, said City Councilman Michael E. Noel, a board member of Celebrating Patsy Cline, Inc., a local organization dedicated to finding a museum honoring the singer. Kevin Adams is the past president and board member of Celebrating Patsy Cline. Kevin Adams said the plan also is to rent out Hilda Hensley’s home at 133 E. Monmouth St. The two-bedroom apartment in the building would cost about $525 a month, while the one-bedroom apartment would be $425 a month. That home is located almost directly across the street from 608 S. Kent St. Noel asserted that Cline will be the anchor for all Winchester-area tourism, whether it be Glen Burnie or Belle Grove. “I’m a country music fan, and she deserves this,” he said. |
Originally Published In The Winchester Star On February 3, 2001
WLC © 2005. All Rights Reserved.