The Little Loomhouse is a place on the National Register of Historic Places in the Kenwood Hill neighborhood on the south side of Louisville, Kentucky. It consists of three log cabins from the nineteenth century Victorian Era: Esta Cabin, Tophouse, and Wisteria Cabin. It not only displays weavings, but demonstrates how they are made as well. It is the biggest repository of original and classic textile patterns in the United States.[2]
Among the history of the cabins have been the visits of first ladies, and the creation of the song Happy Birthday to You. However, it is in constant state of defending against deterioration.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Esta_Cabin_2.JPG)
This lower and oldest rustic cabin has served as the symbol for the Little Loomhouse for almost 60 years. It is not only an interesting example of its kind of architecture, but it also has a fascinating history. In the late 1860’s Beoni Figg acquired this tract of land from the Phillips family. B. Figg had a charcoal business and started a limestone quarry on Kenwood Hill. He built the cabin as an office as well as quarters for his caretakers. It originally consisted of just two rooms with vertical split log siding. The outside wooden stairway leading to the second story was built, according to one of Figg’s daughters, to prevent the caretaker from entering the business office.
Because of business reverses, the cabin was sold in 1876 to Charles W. Gheens, the husband of Figg’s daughter, Mary. It was converted to a summer home for his family. Sam Stone Bush, Secretary of the Kenwood Residential Company, acquired the cabin in the 1890’s from the Gheens family and remodeled it again. During one of these remodelings the siding was changed to the board and batten style. Bush also built the other two cabins. All three cabins were used for summer homes.
In 1898, Etta Hest, an artist, purchased the cabin and originated the tradition of it as a center for cultural life in southern Jefferson County. She established an annual Strawberry Festival for artists, writers and teachers. The Hill sisters, noted kindergarten and music teachers who had a summer cabin up Kenwood Hill, wrote the Happy Birthday song which was first sung in Esta.
The next owner, Mary Wulf, a writer and artist, bought the cabin in 1907 and continued using it for community oriented events. An early Sunday school class held in this cabin led to the founding of St. Mark Lutheran Church on Southside Drive. Mrs. Wulff held special gatherings to which she invited Kentucky artists, poets, and writers, as well as neighboring residents who had built summer log cabins on the hillside. She always included children in these parties. Tate said her first acquaintance with the cabin was during such a visit. It was during Mrs. Wulff’s time that the cabin was named Esta, which is said to be an old Norse saying meaning, “May God’s presence be in this dwelling.”
In 1939, Tate’s mother purchased the property from Mary Wulff’s estate as a retirement home and space for Tate’s weaving business. Sadly, her mother died shortly thereafter. Tate inherited the property and lived and worked there for the rest of her life.
The cabin soon became a gathering place for weavers and those interested in learning to weave. Through the years Esta has had many distinguished visitors. In the 1940’s, Eleanor Roosevelt paid a visit. As she entered the cabin her foot went through a loose board. After noticing a number of other boards, which had been initialed, she asked for paint and a brush and added her name. This bit of history has long ago disappeared.
Today Esta Cabin is used to illustrate some of the Little Loomhouse history. The first floor has a historic display featuring the life and career of Lou Tate as well as examples of weaving and spinning artifacts and equipment.
The upstairs area contains Lou Tate’s numbered patterns and weaving information. There are organized files with photos and letters written by Lou Tate, as well as the archives of The Lou Tate Foundation from it’s beginning in 1979. A number of textile samples are being identified and properly preserved under the supervision of Barbara Terranova.
When additional space becomes available, we hope to turn this space into a period room featuring typical furnishing, including one example from our coverlet collection.
(...)The Esta Cabin encapsulates the history of the Loomhouse, and is the cabin where the song "Happy Birthday to You" was first sung. The cabin was first built by a Beoni Figg in 1870 as a business office for his charcoal, lumber, and quarries interests. It has been enlarged since then from a two-room cabin. One of these enhancements replaced the vertical split log siding with board and batten. In 1939 Lou Tate acquired the cabin and based her weaving business there, living on the property until her death in 1979. On a visit in the 1940s while still the First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt crushed a floorboard, which she later signed; it is now lost. While visiting the Loomhouse, Mrs. Roosevelt bought woven mats that would see use in the White House. Displays of weaving decorate the interior.(...)
(...) In his 1948 visit to Louisville, Frank Lloyd Wright praised both the cabins and the setting. In 1940, he described it as "board-and-batten summer houses, set down in the dignity of nature".(...) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Loomhouse)
1860’s (Late) Beoni Figg acquired a tract of land from the Phillips family. R. Figg had a charcoal business and started a limestone quarry on Kenwood Hill. He built a cabin (known today as Esta) as an office, as well as quarters for his caretakers. The cabin originally consisted of just two rooms with vertical split log siding. The outside wooden stairway leading to the second story was built, according to one of Figg’s daughters, to prevent the caretaker from entering the business office.
1876 Due to business reverses, the cabin was sold to Charles W. Gheens, the husband of Figg’s daughter, Mary. It was converted to a summer home for his family.
1890’s (Late) Sam Stone Bush, Secretary of the Kenwood Residential Company, acquired the cabin from the Gheens family and remodeled it again. During one of these remodelings the siding was changed to the board and batten style. Bush also built the other two cabins, Wisteria and Tophouse. All three cabins were used for summer homes. Bush would go on to develop the trolley system that connected Louisville’s South End with the Downtown area.
1898 Etta Hest, an artist, purchased Esta and originated the tradition of it as a center for cultural life in southern Jefferson County. She established an annual Strawberry Festival for artists, writers and teachers. The Hill sisters, noted kindergarten and music teachers who had a summer cabin up Kenwood Hill, wrote the Happy Birthday song which was first sung in Esta.
1907 Mary Wulff, a writer and artist, bought the cabin complex and continued using them for community oriented events. An early Sunday school class held in Esta led to the founding of St. Mark Lutheran Church on Southside Drive. Mrs. Wulff held special gatherings to which she invited Kentucky artists, poets, and writers, as well as neighboring residents who had built summer log cabins on the hillside. She always included children in these parties. Lou Tate once said her first acquaintance with Esta was during such a visit. It was during Mrs. Wulff’s time that the cabin was named Esta, which is said to be an old Norse saying meaning, “May God’s presence be in this dwelling.” The name still is visible on the cabin’s door.
1934 Eleanor Roosevelt commissioned Lou Tate to weave linens for the White House while her husband was in office. On White House letterhead, Eleanor Roosevelt wrote the following, “What would you charge to make a luncheon set consisting of a runner for the middle of the table and twelve mats and twelve napkins, with just a little “R” woven on them in white”.
1935 Eleanor Roosevelt paid Lou Tate $16.75 for one luncheon set in white with an “R” in the center”.
1938 Lou Tate’s mother purchased the cabin complex and property from Mary Wulff’s estate as a retirement home and space for Tate’s weaving business. Sadly, Lou Tate’s mother died shortly thereafter. Tate inherited the property and lived and worked there for the rest of her life. She utilized the cabins as a gathering place for weavers and those interested in learning to weave.
Eleanor Roosevelt paid a visit. As she entered Esta her foot went through a loose board. After noticing a number of other boards, which had been initialed, she asked for paint and a brush and added her name. This bit of history has long ago disappeared.
1939 Lou Tate begins fellowship program to teach weaving to students at the Little Loomhouse. The students were sponsored by Eleanor Roosevelt.
Lou Tate started an experimental weaving group, The Kentucky Weavers Guild, and started publishing the Kentucky Weaver Magazine. She also began collecting contemporary hand-woven textiles in addition to her collection of traditional woven coverlets, which were exhibited both nationally and internationally.
1944 Lou Tate began working with the Eleanor Roosevelt and the American Red Cross to incorporate Lou Tate’s Little Loom as part of a rehabilitation program for hospitalized servicemen and women.
1970’s Spinning was added to the teaching curriculum at the Little Loomhouse. Lou Tate used the cabins for many open houses, as well as formal classes and workshops. She also taught college extension courses in the greater Louisville area and surrounding states and did research on early American coverlets for universities.
Today, Esta Cabin is used to illustrate some of the Little Loomhouse history. The first floor has a historic display featuring the life and career of Lou Tate as well as examples of weaving and spinning artifacts and equipment.
The upstairs area contains Lou Tate’s numbered patterns and weaving information. There are organized files with photos and letters written by Lou Tate, as well as the archives of The Lou Tate Foundation from it’s beginning in 1979.
Wisteria serves as the Foundation Office, with an expanded Gift Shop. The original kitchen has been removed and its space holds extra weaving equipment and supplies. The extensive collection of weaving and related periodicals has found a new home on shelves surrounding the fire place in the office area.
Tophouse remains the studio for most of the weaving activities. Its years of service to the cause of keeping hand-weaving alive are a reason for pride. The Little Loomhouse cabins continue to delight school children, college students, tourists from all over the world, social groups, teachers, researchers and writers.
In 2005, Tom Whitus, Silver Hills Pictures and KDM used the Little Loomhouse as the setting for a full length horror film, The Devoured. The film was shot in 18 days and had a total budget of $300,000. Esta was the primary location for the filming of the movie while the Loomhouse staff conducted business as usual in Tophouse and Wisteria. The film is just the latest addition of artistic flair to the already colorful history of the cabins. (http://www.littleloomhouse.org/history-of-the-little-loomhouse/)
In 1898 artist Etta Hest purchased Esta, a small cabin to use as a summer home, located on Kenwood Hill in Louisville, Kentucky’s South End. She originated the tradition of giving annual art festivals for local artists, writers, educators and others who had summer residences in the area.
The cabin was built in 1870 by Beoni Figg when he acquired the land for his charcoal business and started a limestone quarry on the hillside. It originally consisted of just two rooms with vertical split log siding. Subsequent owners remodeled and enlarged the cabin. During one of the remodeling the siding was changed to the board and batten style.
At the time other large log cabins were also built on the hillside for well to do families who wanted to escape the heat of the city. Among those were sisters Mildred Jane and Patty Smith Hill who were well known kindergarten and music teachers. They believed that songs were an important part of children’s education and composed many songs which they had copyrighted and published.
In 1893 the Hill sisters had written a book called, “Song Stories for the Kindergarten”, which was published by Clayton F. Summy Co. of Chicago. The first song in the book was entitled “Good Morning to All”. During a birthday celebration in Etta’s summer cabin, for her sister Lysette, Patty Hill suggested the words to this song be changed to “Happy Birthday to You”. Although the original song had been copyrighted the new lyrics were not until 1935. Under federal law at the time, the copyright would not expire until 75 years later- the year 2010.
This meant that every time the song was used commercially, such as on stage or in singing telegrams, the royalty was twenty-five dollars for each performance. Patty Hill later moved to New York where she taught at Columbia University Teachers College. During the Hill sister’s lifetime, they had trouble collecting royalties. Casio digital watches can be programmed to play the song every hour on the appropriate day. For this they pay a penny a watch. It is reported that most people who use the song for commercial gain pay the fee once they learn of the copyright.
For many years the copyright was owned by Summy-Dirchard Music, the original publisher and was later bought by John F. Sengstick, a New York accountant who was head of Birchtree LTD. More recently his company was acquired by Warner Communicaions, Inc.
Under a family trust arrangement, the sisters only surviving relative, Archibald A. Hill, a retired professor of Austin, Texas, collected $20,000 of each year’s royalties. It has been estimated that the copyright owners earn over a million dollars a year. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, “Happy Birthday” is one of the most popular songs in the English language.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Loomhouse#Gallery)
Happy Birthday to You
Happy Birthday to You
Happy Birthday Dear (name)
Happy Birthday to You.
From good friends and true,
From old friends and new,
May good luck go with you,
And happiness too.
Alternative ending:
How old are you?
How old are you?
How old, How old
How old are you?
Happy Birthday to You
Happy Birthday to You
Happy Birthday Dear (name)
Happy Birthday to You.
From good friends and true,
From old friends and new,
May good luck go with you,
And happiness too.
Alternative ending:
How old are you?
How old are you?
How old, How old
How old are you?
http://www.littleloomhouse.org/on-site-structures/esta-cabin/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Esta_Cabin_2.JPG
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Loomhouse
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