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Sikes Pittman bought this piece of land in 1918 and set about building a house like no
other. By the time the grand Tudor was complete four years later, Mrs. Pittman and her
husband, Dr. Raymond L. Pittman, were entertaining friends, family and dignitaries.
Generations of Pittmans continued to live there well into the 21
st
century and
then suddenly, it was anyone's guess who would own it next. With the house up for
auction, a bidding war sprang up between locals and their lawyers, and even a New
York businessman got involved. At the last minute, John and Kirby Tyson, a judge
and a downtown property investor, entered a bid, never expecting to win. Everyone
asked my parents, life-long Fayetteville residents with four grown children, what they
planned to do with such a large house. And at first, they were still figuring that out for
themselves. Now, they are considering three options for Stone Manor: office space, a
city club or maybe even selling it to a new owner. But no matter what happens, my
parents couldn't stand to see the famed house decay.
And the first place to start was the garden.
Or should I say gardens. At first glance, the backyard seemed to be one overgrown
canopy, a gnarled lair of kudzu, vines and overgrown trees and shrubs, an effective
Jason Tyson has worked
as a journalist, editor and trivia
writer in North Carolina and New
York. He spent three years at the
Wilmington Star-News and was
on assignment at Martha Stewart
Living Magazine. He recently
completed a master's at Wake
Forest University in Winston-Salem,
where he worked as a reporter.
He is a Fayetteville native.
About the author
When John and Kirby Tyson became
caretakers of the historic Stone Manor,
more than a house awaited. The Tysons
rediscovered a series of tiered gardens,
once lovely and now brought back into view.
