A country lane off state Route 76 in northern Adair County hides a literary gem. Meander a few yards down Spout Springs Road to discover the log cabin of authors Janice Holt Giles and Henry Giles. The cabin and surrounding countryside are reflected in a lily pad-dotted pond beside the home. In their book, A Little Better than Plumb: The Biography of a House, Janice concluded, “We mean to leave it as an epitaph.” The cabin and land on which it sits continue to tell their story.
Janice and Henry’s Home
Janice envisioned the cabin, and Henry built it in 1958 with the help of his cousin, Edgar Giles, and their neighbor, Joe Spires. They traipsed the countryside to find old logs. Four cabins, all built between 1800 and 1850 and purchased for $25-$100 each, became their one. The logs for the living room were sourced from an African-American church in Taylor County’s Hibernia community.
Joe, now 98, lives in nearby Columbia, but he grew up on Spout Springs Road when it was “just an old dirt road.” He and Henry, who lived on nearby Caldwell Ridge as a child, went to school together. Joe said he is the last of the students who attended the school still living. After Janice and Henry married and moved to Spout Springs, Joe visited often.
“I’ve eaten a lot of Janice’s cooking,” Joe said. “I built that deck out over the water for Henry.” Joe also roofed the Gileses’ cabin twice and gave Janice the title for A Little Better than Plumb. In the book, Henry wrote:
Joe does fine carpentry work and a lot of it. He and his helper were putting up some studding once which had to be exactly plumb. He told his helper so. While the helper held the spirit level to the stud Joe nailed it securely in place. Finished, he asked, “Are you sure it was plumb, Ab?” “Sure was,” Ab rejoined cheerfully. “Fact is, Joe, hit was jist a little bit better’n plumb ’ccordin’ to the level.” Joe checked for himself and sure enough it was—a little better than plumb.
After that, Henry discovered many of the cabin walls also were “a bit better than plumb.” Some corners were “something more than square” and floors “better than level, too.” However, the cabin, with all its quirks, became their home and entertainment center for family, friends and fans who found their way there. It also became Janice and Henry’s haven and the site of their literary work during most of their 34 years together. Janice died in 1979, Henry in 1986.
Many of Janice’s 18 fiction and three nonfiction books reflect her adopted home along Kentucky’s Green River. Henry, a journalist, wrote one novel. He also co-wrote three nonfiction books with Janice, including A Little Better than Plumb. A marker at the entrance to Spout Springs Road informs visitors that Janice’s historical novels sold more than 3 million copies.
The Giles Foundation
Several of the Gileses’ friends, including Spires, maintain the Giles epitaph. The Janice Holt Giles and Henry Giles Foundation, formed in 1996 to preserve the couple’s literary and architectural legacy, now owns the home, which has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Donations make up the bulk of its funding. The foundation hosts a fund and membership drive in March, in honor of Janice’s March 28 birthday. A tax-deductible donation of $30 includes a one-year membership.
The cabin is open to the public on Saturday and Sunday, from 1-4 p.m. CT from the first weekend in June through the first weekend in October. Visitors can explore the Giles home as well as the 10 acres surrounding it. A docent—either a board member or a volunteer—is usually available on site.
Many visitors find themselves drawn to pictures of the cabin’s move when the United States Army Corps of Engineers built a flood control dam on the upper Green River. The Corps purchased part of the Giles property for easement. Rather than abandon their dream home or tear it down to rebuild, the couple hired a truck to help them roll the cabin on logs to another part of their property 1,200 feet away.
Special Events
During special events, Joe roams around the cabin and grounds or sets up shop in a chair beneath an old maple tree, willing to answer questions from anyone who happens by. Foundation president and cabin caretaker Keysha Tucker lives next door to the cabin. She organizes and oversees all events related to the property. Other neighbors and relatives mingle with visitors, delighted to share their connections to and memories of the cabin and its longtime occupants.
Past events have included pottery workshops, traditional music programs, plant swaps and Kentuckians Reading Kentuckians, which promoted Kentucky authors and writers.
The annual Arts and Crafts Festival falls on the first Saturday in October. In addition to admiring and purchasing arts and crafts, visitors can enjoy rib-eye sandwiches and burgers fresh from the grill; homemade soups, chili, pies and cookies; fresh fruit; and other goodies. Live music spills from the front porch or from under a tree. Information tables hold old newspaper and magazine clippings, pictures, books (some for sale) and other memorabilia. Kentucky authors such as Lynwood Montell may be on hand to sign a book or tell a tale. The cabin door remains open for new authors, artists and browsers to explore.
What better way to spend a crisp, cool October Saturday? Come mingle and connect with world-famous authors in the home that birthed most of their books.
For foundation information, donations or membership, contact:
Janice Holt and Henry Giles Foundation
Keysha Tucker, President
380 Spout Springs Road
Knifley, KY 42753
270.789.1713
If You Go:
Janice Holt Giles and Henry Giles
Foundation Arts and Crafts Festival
302 Spout Springs Road, Columbia
Oct. 5, 9A.M.–4 p.m. CT