Robert J. Thomas was the
youngest child of W.C. and Clara Thomas. He was raised in Thomas Cove and
became a prosperous farmer and later resided in Woodville. He secured an
enormous amount of land during his lifetime.
In 1871, he first married Sarah Elizabeth Fletcher. They
lived on the Thomas land and had a family, but many of the children died at
an early age. Robert’s wife, Sarah died in 1900. In 1903, he married the
second wife, Nancy Louisa Allison. They had one daughter Robert Louisa
Thomas. Mr. Thomas died in 1918 and his widow continued living in this house
until her death.
Robert Louisa married A.D. Collins; they remodeled the old
home place and lived there all their married life. They had one daughter,
Nancy Collins Helms. Louisa was a teacher at Woodville School. A.D. Collins
built a gas station on the west side of Highway 35 in 1949.
The original two-story house was a white wood frame and
wooden shingle roof with dormers. The house had a long front porch with
three doors leading into it and there were two chimneys. The kitchen was a
separate building from the main house; it had a chimney and a front porch.
During the remodeling the porch was removed and an
entrance with columns added. Two of the dormers were removed and modern
shingles, windows, and brick were added. Two additions were added on each
end.
