William Henry Patterson came to Darien after the Civil War and purchased the land on which he built this house from the Blount family. The neighborhood on the Old Shell Road (Georgia Highway 99), known as The Ridge, was an exclusive retreat for river pilots and timber brokers who worked in Darien, three miles to the south. Captain Patterson was a successful bar pilot who guided timber in and out of Darien.
The house was originally a Georgian cottage with a central hallway, two rooms deep, and featured a detached kitchen and shed veranda porch. Captain Patterson lived here for just two years before building a more formal house across the street.
The Redding family later owned the home and “modernized” it in 1938, adding the bay windows, an attached kitchen, front and rear foyers within the central hallway, and hardwood flooring over the heart pine. Hannah deSoto Brown and Andy Tostensen purchased it in 1973 and restored many of the original features, including the hallway, high ceilings, and rough plaster walls. It’s a very welcoming space and I’m grateful to Hannah for sharing the history.
The Ridge Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
