" I knew that if I walked into this one , I would make an offer — and well , that ' s pretty much what happened ," she said . " We had just finished looking at a house on Clements , and Mike Hines , the realtor , said ' Why don ' t we look at that one on Main Street ?' As soon as I walked into this house , I knew it was the one for me and my kids . It felt like home , you could feel the love in it .
" It was also in the city , had a small yard that I could maintain myself , and a great vibe ," she continued . "... The other thing that this house had going for it was that it was zoned for both as a commercial & residential property . I thought this would be helpful should I ever decide to start a design company as I could put a sign out front . If you build it , they will come ."
After letting her kids take a look and getting their stamp of approval , Burkett knew this was her new home here in the states . She certainly wasn ' t the first to call it home , however . Based on the documentation Burkett has found , the 2,500-square-foot house dates back to 1901 , and appears as an early American Foursquare design , lacking the taller ceilings typical of Victorian homes and ornate features . It holds three bedrooms , two-and-a-half baths , three living rooms , an office / sunroom , dining room and kitchen .
" Someone once told me it was a Sears and Roebuck house , but I have never been able to confirm this ," said Burkett , referring to the prefabricated mail-order houses available through the once-ubiquitous catalogue business . "... I believe the house has been added onto over the years . Obviously bathrooms were added , and I believe two of the bedrooms upstairs ,
parts of the kitchen , and possibly the sunroom were added on ."
Burkett made her own changes as well upon moving in — the first of them being the placement of a white picket fence on the hill in front of the house , an addition that was as practical as it was symbolic .
" To me , this has always been part of the American Dream ... Owning my own home with a picket fence and an American Flag flying proudly from the front porch was something I had always dreamed of ," she said . " I loved the inside of the house — it had so much personality — ( and ) more than enough space for the three of us to grow into ... but I didn ' t think it had much curb appeal . I was hoping that by defining the outside space with a fence and eventually planting a flower garden would add to the curb appeal that I felt
165 Hwy 2227 • Somerset , KY 42503
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8 • SEKY - Southeast Kentucky Life March 2025