The Gignilliat-Griffin-Gilbert House, c. 1840
243 Kennesaw Avenue

 

This house was built by N.P. Gignilliat. After he passed away, his wife Charlotte Trezevant Gignilliat sold the house to Thomas Cheek in 1876. At that time, the property consisted of 5 acres and sold for $500. Mr. Cheek was from Nashville, Tennessee and his family owned and operated The Maxwell House, home of Maxwell House coffee. Mr. Cheek remodeled the house in the late 1870s and changed the appearance to a “cross-bar” style house. He sold the house in the 1880s and it passed through several owners.

Helen Griffin, the first woman in Cobb County elected to public office (as Tax Receiver), purchased the house in 1948 and lived there with her brother George until her death in 1976. George Griffin and his wife Helen continued to live here until his death, when she sold the property. The current owners, Melissa & Parker Gilbert, acquired the property in 1998. They made the first major alteration to the floor plan in 120 years when they renovated and added a garage in 2005.