DUBLIN, Ga. — Folks in Central Georgia, especially Laurens County, may know the name DuBose Porter.
DuBose Porter served fifteen terms in the Georgia House of Representatives; his dad served as mayor of Dublin.
The Porters have called 195 Road home for over sixty years.
"It's like having nature's cathedral right here," Dubose said.
Dubose is talking about the majestic trees that gently drape his property. You can see them from almost every room.
"These oaks were actually brought up from coastal Georgia back in the 1800's," he said.
It's what's left of hundreds of trees planted to eventually build ships.
That plan didn't work out well because this species doesn't grow quickly. The next owner built the home in the Oak Grove you see today.
"It went all over to where the VA is and the Dublin mall. This was all called Brookwood, and when his daughter got married, they picked this spot in the middle of the oak grove to build this house," Dubose said.
"The style of the house is more turn of the century prior to Frank Lloyd Wright where it started having a touch of craftsman in the architecture," Dubose said.
The gentle winds from those branched-out centurions waft into the hallways of this home.
Dubose grew up here and raised his four sons in this space, and through the decades, dating back to the early 1900s, many things have stayed the same.
"Growing up here, we still use the radiators, and there is a big boiler in the basement," he said.
Dubose is to Dublin as a banister is to a staircase.
He served almost 30 years in the Georgia House.
He says a sitting room fits his needs for his love of books and politics.
"I've got a Georgia selection over here," he said with a backdrop of books.
Big barn doors hide most of the space from Bellevue Road, but Dubose loves to entertain and welcomes folks to show off the timbers.
"They can't believe it's as well preserved as it is," he said with a grin.
After six decades, Dubose knows every detail like the back of his hand, but most days, you'll still find him outside on the porch, taking in the beauty and basking in a home full of history.
“I think of the age of this house and how comfortable it is but I've gotten old and comfortable myself so this house and I get along just right,” he said.
HISTORIC HOMES
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