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Published Friday, July 03, 2009 in Local

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Robert Hancock, named the new executor of the Hollis estate, said the historic 32 Nimmons St. home “went up for sale last week,” and a sign has been placed on the property.

Hollis home for sale

By Jeff Bishop

The Times-Herald

The Hollis estate property at 32 Nimmons St. in Newnan went up for sale last week, and it apparently will not be used for a museum, as former owner Edgar B. Hollis stipulated in his will.

Robert Hancock, administrator of the estate, said that the property "went up for sale last week," and a sign has been placed on the property. So far there have been no takers at the $275,000 asking price.

Hancock said the property "won't be used for a museum because it is not zoned for a museum."

Newnan-Coweta Historical Society, Coweta Community Foundation and the city of Newnan are in a legal tug-of-war over the Hollis estate, which was worth an estimated $7 million in 2006.

Mayo Royal Jr., a Newnan certified public accountant and former chairman of the board for First Coweta Bank, resigned as executor of the estate on May 14 after a trustee of the Edgar B. Hollis Testamentary Trust sued to oust him, alleging a number of improper withdrawals.

The Coweta Community Foundation was the recipient of some of Royal's withdrawals, even though it was not specifically named as a beneficiary in the Hollis will, according to the lawsuit in Coweta Superior Court. Royal serves on the board of directors for the foundation.

Hollis -- a Newnan native who spent most of his professional career in Washington, D.C. working for the National Security Agency's Inter-Library Loan Division -- intended for his home to be owned and operated by the city of Newnan as a "high-quality, well-staffed" furnishings museum, according to his will.

The Greek Revival-style home was built in 1850 for the William Storey family at Oaklawn plantation. The plantation was approximately nine miles from Newnan, connecting to the old Grantville road, according to the Newnan-Coweta Historical Society's "History of Coweta County, Ga."

After the outbreak of the Civil War, Storey enlisted in the Confederate Army and was killed in Maryland in 1863. The family moved to Newnan after the war. The widow, Mrs. Mary McBride Storey, had the home dismantled and transported by mule team into town, where it was carefully reconstructed at 32 Nimmons St. in 1866.

Despite the historic nature of the home and the millions left in the Hollis endowment to care for it, the city declined to accept the bequest at an October 2007 council meeting.

According to council, the museum wouldn't fit with the current ordinances and would ultimately be too costly a burden for the city to bear.

"[Converting the house into a museum] doesn't seem to be feasible considering all the issues," said Mayor Keith Brady.

Royal said at the time that the next step would be to look into the possibility of selling the home and donating the proceeds to the Newnan-Coweta Historical Society or to some other charitable organization. Hollis specifically named the historical society in the will, stating that it should receive the proceeds and remaining endowment "should it become necessary to sell or otherwise dispose of the Museum."

The issue was later complicated by the city reversing its earlier decision.

Coweta Superior Court Judge William Lee said in his May court order that part of the mediation over the estate should involve the investigation of "the liability, if any, of former executor Mayo H. Royal to the estate and/or other parties" as a result of "excessive commission and other payments," as well as legal fees resulting from the litigation.

Hancock was named the new executor of the estate, and he is "undertaking the accounting of the estate," Lee said.

"When completed, he will notify the court of his findings."

Michael Sumner, attorney for Royal, said at the time of the court filing that "Mr. Royal miscalculated the fees due him for services he rendered to the estate, and within a matter of weeks after discovering this error he reimbursed the estate with interest the amount due."