The home owned by Richard and Rebecca Abrams on Piedmont Avenue is one of the several stops for those who participated in the 2023 Rockmart Tour of Homes for the holidays. Here’s the full history they provided for this year’s tour:
The Buell Stark Home dates back to circa March 17, 1904.
Buell Stark was a State Senator for Whitfield County from 1931-32, and State Representative from 1925-26. He also served as President of the Bank of Dalton, an attorney, teacher, banker and farmer. He was a graduate of the University of Georgia.
He may have come to Rockmart for business/investment purposes. One indication of this is that he left his wife and children back home in Dalton. He was here form the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s. In 1889, Buell was pictured with the prominent businessmen of Rockmart on the Board of Trade.
The main reason for his move to Rockmart was most likely his partnership that established the Rockmart Bank. He also served as a principal on the Rockmart Land Development Company.
His wife passed away in 1906 and he remarried in 1907 to Frances York. Mrs. York was a local. The couple moved back to Dalton where they remained. Buell rented out our home for several years until finally selling to Matt Cochran in 1926. Matt Cochran was a successful cotton trader. His sale barn still stands in downtown Rockmart, north of the Methodist Church.
The home has a solid (three-layers thick) construction and has the original Rockmart Slate Roof. Inside, the home has 12-foot ceilings throughout, plaster walls, six fireplaces, hardwood floors, louvered French doors and beautiful wainscoting. The Abrams purchased the home and have undertaken restoration efforts since 2019.
This year’s Rockmart Tour of Homes organized by the Rotary Club of Polk County raised money for the Murphy-Harpst Children’s Center in Polk County.
