Gus Macey House, Versailles, Woodford County, Kentucky

There is just something about a tower. Or even a turret. Though I remain enamored of the plain solidity of my 1901 farmhouse, with its Prairie like overtures, I am not immune to the lure of an effusive Queen Anne style house, especially one that combines a shingled turret, bay windows, a small balcony, and a lovely porch! It’s not a shrinking violet of a house, and as I’ve passed by it several times in the last week, I’ve enjoyed the medley of features on the 2.5 story frame dwelling. I doubt its owner, horseman Gus L. Macey, counted timidity among his virtues either.

The late 19th century house may have been built when Macey married Lena H. Portwood in 1883 – a nice wedding present perhaps! The Macey House is located on Rose Hill Avenue, a thoroughfare with many large and significant historic homes. The Rose Hill Historic District was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

In 1900, he lived here with his wife Lena, daughter Louise (15) and son Ramey (10). The scale of the house and the intricacy of the facade was fitting given the status of the Macey family in Versailles – they were in the horse industry, one of the Commonwealth’s claims to fame.

Macey’s father first established a horse training stable in Versailles following the Civil War. In 1890, the training and livery stables, then operated by Gus and his brother Robert,  burned to the ground with 45 horses inside. Historical accounts state that the stable cost $9,000 to build, was insured for $5,000, and the total loss was estimated at $165,000.

Macey was perhaps one of the best trainers and drivers of his time. And by time, I mean the late 19th and early 20th century, when harness racing reigned supreme. Although Kentucky and Woodford County might be better known for thoroughbreds now, Macey trained and drove trotters and pacers. Harness racing was a big money maker, and Macey won the 1894 Futurity Race in Lexington – a $30,000 stakes race – a record that still stood in 1946.

That race was run at the Red Mile Racetrack, the second oldest harness racing track in the country.

What I didn’t realize during my trips past this house last week was the connection with another house I’ve written about – the President Patterson House in Lexington, Kentucky. Macey lived in this equally flamboyant piece of architecture from around 1906 to 1935.

Macey died in 1935, and while these two houses survive him, I admit to quite some curiosity about his horses and horse training legacy. I wonder if any trotters today trace their pedigrees to one of Macey’s horses? As fascinating a rabbit hole as that might be, that’s a story for another day.