Page 102 - South Mississippi Living - January, 2018

HOME with love
Family saves
HISTORIC SEAL AVENUE HOME
story by Kelsey Sunderman-Foster photos by Katherine Sowers
L ike many of the homes on Seal Avenue, the home of Dennis and Nanette Burke is filled with history. Built in 1905, the home was lovingly restored by the Burke family in 2010.
“When we first got the house, it was falling apart. Not only had it weathered Katrina, but it had been neglected for years following the storm,” said Dennis Burke.
Despite the worn exterior, the beautiful and filled with many photos which were thankfully
building’s structure was in pristine condition and much of the original home was able to be saved. The French doors and hardwood floors are original, and the bead board was replaced to look just as it would have when the house was built. In fact, the Burkes received a preservation award from the city of Biloxi and the state of Mississippi for saving the house.
The process took about a year and a half to complete, but their hard work paid off. “It felt like home from the very first day,” Burke said. Today, the home is
family mementos and antique furnishings. From the children’s names scrawled into the concrete driveway to the collections of photos of friends and family along the walls, there’s no denying the love that went into making this house a home.
While the Burkes lost nearly everything in Katrina, they wanted to maintain the style of the house by purchasing older furniture.
As a result, each piece has been painstakingly collected. Along the upper walls of their sitting area, they keep a collection of cherished
saved from the storm by a caring neighbor. When designing the home, the family made sure to create a place that would keep their photos out of harm’s way in the future.
Guests can see a particularly important piece of artwork to the family: a painting of their home by the doctor who delivered the Burkes’ children.
102 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • January 2018
FOR MORE REFLECTIONS OF THE GULF COAST >> www.smliving.net
History lives with the loving restoration of the Burke home that was built in 1905.