Story by Lee Rennick | Photos by Erin Kosko and Lee Rennick
Enter the grand foyer of the year-old, modern colonial, three-story, clapboard home of Bricke and Sara Murfree, and there is an immediate sense of history. The creamy white floor to ceiling Jacobean inspired woodwork sets the stage for the traditionally-styled interior design, as does the massive iron chandelier that came from New Orleans and the beautifully inlaid secretary that once graced the halls of Grantlands. Grantlands was a home built by David Dickson and his wife Fanny Noailles Mufree Dickson, the daughter of Colonel Hardee Murfree for whom Murfreesboro is named. Col. Murfree is Bricke’s great-great-great-great grandfather. This home was designed and built to house many antique pieces inherited down through a family deeply involved in the creation and development of the City of Murfreesboro.
Not only does the home house many pieces of furniture reflecting the history of the area, but its design and construction was a family affair. Fletcher Holland, the couple’s brother-in-law, who is with Bock and Sons, a custom design and build company located in Murfreesboro, was in-charge of the architecture and construction. Sister-in-law Blaire Murfree, of Blaire Designs in Nashville, acted as their interior designer. She is the wife of Bricke’s brother, Paul Davis Murfree.
Planning and Designing the Home
“We put some bullet points together for what we were looking for in the home,” explained Bricke. “We wanted to have the back of the house open, because the yard and lot are why we bought the property. You have river access, it is semi-forested, and the battlefield is across the river from us. Especially in the back of the house we wanted to bring nature in... The house that was here, which we had torn down, the back of the house was kind of closed off. We wanted to do the total opposite, lots of windows, easy to come in and out at different points of entry, ingress and egress into the yard and using the yard and the lot on how to shape the backside of the house, which we consider the more functional living side of the house. And we wanted to have the front of the house be more formal, knowing that we were going to have family antiques and other things like that.”
Blaire created a “statement” formal dining space built to draw the eye to the massive hand-made acanthus buffet, which belonged to Bricke’s grandfather, Paul Davis and was once found in his home on Jackson Boulevard in Nashville, as was the dining table seating ten. The dining table is the smaller of two Davis, a banker, used in his home when entertaining clients and his bank’s board of directors, which he did often. The oriental rug in the room was purchased for the home from Persian Rug Galleries in Brentwood, Tennessee. Woodwork in the dining room is painted a moody green, “Rainwashed” by Sherwin Williams, and the walls of the space serve as a canvas for a wallpaper mural created by Nashville artist Charlotte Terrell.
Terrell was educated as a landscape architect and gained experience as a decorative painter of pastoral scenes, according to her website. Her custom-created wallpaper is produced in collaboration with the client to bring the beauty of nature into their living space. The wallpaper made for the Murfrees is of marshes along a river bank, mimicking those in their backyard along the Stones River. Her brooding art is described as “designed to elicit an experience or emotion rather than depict a real place.” While her creations are steeped in 19th and early 20th-century landscapes, they are more evocative of the Impressionists.
The formal living room, located to the left of the foyer, houses several unique pieces of furniture, like a heavy refectory table, used for dining by monks in a monastery and including a stunning vargueño (also known as a bargueño) desk, probably from the 17th century. This piece comes from the Davis side of the family.
Vargueño are portable wood desks first produced in early Renaissance Spain in the 15th century, according to Wikipedia.com. Used by the aristocracy to transport their important papers, jewelry and money as they moved from home to home as the seasons changed, they contain many small drawers and tend to be plainer on the exterior with metal embellishments and richly decorated inside. The interiors can be ornately painted, carved and often inlaid with semi-precious stones. Opened to use as a desk, when closed up, they become a portable wood box. Continuing to be popular through the 18th century, the popularity of the vargueño dropped off in the 19th century, picking back up in interest in the 20th century. They are still produced today, however the most lavish pieces were the early renditions and are prized antiques.
“William Randolph Hearst collected them, and you can see his collection when you tour Hearst Castle in California,” added Bricke. “[This one] has scalloped shells, which are a symbol of the province in Spain where It was made.” That province is called Camino del Santiago, the site of a famous medieval pilgrimage.
A Bit of Family History
Hanging in the formal living room are portraits of Mathias Brickell Murfree, I – Bricke is Mathias Brickell Murfree, IV -- and his wife, Mary Roberts. Originally from North Carolina, Mathias was one of the sons of Colonel Hardee Murfree. After the American Revolution, Colonel Hardee Murfree received land rights as appreciation for his service to the new country, and he also bought more land in what is now Tennessee, but was then part of North Carolina. He owned 23,000 acres when he died. Upon his death the land was divided up among his children. Part of those holdings were what is now Murfreesboro.
Some of the Murfree land was given to his daughter Lavinia, who was married to Colonel Frank Burton, and they built “Uxor Hill,” which eventually became “Bellwood” after being purchased by Mr. and Mrs. Robert Bell. Oaklands was the home of another of his daughters, Sallie Murfree Maney and her husband Dr. James Maney. Where Toot’s is now located near Grantland Boulevard, is where Grantlands once stood. And then there were some holdings in Franklin, which another brother received.
“My ancestor was his son Mathias,” explained Bricke. “He inherited the south side of Main Street. He built the Murfree-Patterson house… what they think is the first home on Main Street.”
Decorative Items Have a History of Their Own
Sitting on a shelf in the more casual family area, there is a copper pot which Bricke had a hand in producing when studying for a summer in Mexico.
“Where I was staying in Mexico they mined and made copper objects,” said Bricke. “I helped hammer the vase, taking a couple of turns.”
Next to the shelf housing the copper vase is a natural stone hearth with a mantle made from wood saved from Sara’s father, wood her brother-in-law also used to make two side tables currently residing in an upstairs bedroom.
The carved teak table on the back patio came from a trip the couple made to Bali, a few other places in Indonesia and Singapore about 20 years ago. Instead of using an importing service, they decided to ship the item directly home.
“We were the only people in this little art town because it was after a big bombing,” noted Bricke. “It was neat being the only people there, but it was kind of odd because it is usually this huge tourist area. So, we served as our own importer. When the table finally arrived, customs made us come personally and unbox it because they thought we might have smuggled something called “betel nut.” It is apparently some kind of narcotic. We are not going to be our own importers anymore!”
“It was weird,” added Sara.
An interesting oil painting in the home is an abstract by Nashville artist Edie Maney, which hangs over an antique table once owned by Mary Katherine Bell Murfree. Edie is a cousin of Bricke’s. According to Oaklands Facebook page, “Maney began her art education by attending various institutes, classes at Belmont University, Watkins College of Art and Vanderbilt University, as well as studying with renowned artist Anton Weiss for six years. Starting with watercolor and collage, she moved into painting acrylic and finally, [fell] in love with oil painting…Maney labels herself an abstract expressionist…starting each work in a chaotic manner, adding layer after layer of color and strokes, finding a balance between intensity and motion. She has exhibited in several solo and group shows receiving numerous awards. Collectors of her work are both domestic and International.”
“She has a piece hanging in Oaklands Mansion,” noted Sara.
Another piece of their art came from The Peddler. The garden floral scene, located in the family room, was created by Korean artist S. M. Lee. Raised by a single mother after his father was killed in the Korean War, he began his art career when he drew a picture of his grandparents for his mother because they were too poor to get a photograph taken. He was eventually able to study art at Seoul University, coming to the United States in 1989.
Bricke is also a relative of Sam Davis, through the Bell family. Known as ‘the boy hero of the Confederacy,’ Sam Davis’ family home is located in Smyrna, Tennessee. The Murfrees own Sam Davis’ single bed; it was one of two in Bricke’s room as he was growing up. It came out of Bellwood. The other is a replica.
“It’s kind of interesting about Bellwood,” said Bricke, “one side of my family built it and another side restored it.”
Several sources were used to find the perfect lighting. While the home would be considered traditional, the lighting all has a decidedly modern twist.
“The unique light over the kitchen island and two sconces in the family room were commissioned for our home from the Urban Electric Company,” explained Sara.
Backyard is the Focal Point
Much of the year the Murfrees spend in their backyard. Avid outdoors people, they canoe and kayak in the Stones River, launching their craft from home. Bricke, Sara, and their daughter Ellen are able to kayak from their house to downtown Murfreesboro.
The landscaping is a blend of sculptured and rustic. Bricke has been planting native azaleas in the yard, which he has purchased from Grown Wild in Fairview, Tennessee. One species is from the Cumberland plateau. He expects them to be outstanding in a few years.
“Primm’s did the [rest of the] landscaping,” noted Sara. “They are local to Murfreesboro. They did a great job.”
Their custom pool was designed and built by Peek Pools and Spas out of Spring Hill, Tennessee. Owner Kyle Peek is the patriarchal star of the DIY network show, Pool Kings, now in its third season. He has built more than 10,000 pools over his 45-year career, winning several awards and boasting a star-studded clientele.
History Part of Life
Bricke’s love of history goes beyond knowledge of his family’s past. He’s been a history buff from a young age, and he went to Rhodes College where he majored in history before going to law school at Vanderbilt University. Through Rhodes College, he was able to study medieval history abroad for one semester at St. Johns College at Oxford. With that background, it is not surprising that his home is such an interesting blend of antiques with special stories behind them, interesting pieces acquired by the couple during their travels and new items found by their interior designer Blaire. Every piece of furniture, art and lighting works together with the architecture of the home to blend a sense of the past with dashes of today and a look into the future as they continue to add new pieces, especially art, expected in the near future.
“We are not done yet,” added Sara.
“It is a work in progress,” said Bricke.