Comfort in Clay City: Secluded home offers convenience and country views
The property at 113 Faulkner Branch Road in Clay City paints the perfect picture of country Kentucky living—even though its owners had industry in mind when they made it their home.
The Pettits built their 3,654-square-foot home in 1997—a sprawling ranch on 25 acres accessed by a nearly-mile-long blacktopped driveway lined with beautiful trees.
When they moved to the area from New York, Henry Pettit said the house was the second-most important component; the site was perfect for their sawmill.
“Work brought us to Kentucky. We were in the lumber business, and with (the property) being right off the parkway like that, it was really accessible for (us),” said Sandy Pettit.
They operated the sawmill from 1993 until 2016 when they sold the company, and it still operates at the front of the property on a separate section of land.
It was the first house the couple built in the Bluegrass State, and while one of the main goals was to construct a one-story home just a couple miles from the Mountain Parkway, Sandy said they really did it all for the scenery.
“There are a lot of different views from the house. There are a lot of sliding glass doors,” she said. “I like the green. I like summer. Even the winter is pretty with the fresh fallen snow. There lots of hills and ravines. It’s pretty.”
“And I like the fall with the colors,” Henry said.
The house’s façade is resort-like, from a green metal roof to large doors and windows that all overlook and open to the pool. The couple made some recent upgrades, with the largest renovation project being the kitchen. They replaced the floors and installed granite countertops and a new sink—and it’s one of Sandy’s favorite areas of the house.
“I love to cook. We do a lot of entertaining and big family meals. We’ve done a lot of Christmases and Thanksgivings here,” she said.
They spend lots of their time in the family room, Henry said, which was built with unique wood beams overhead and a stone fireplace.
“It’s a nice, cozy room,” he said.
They also renovated their master bedroom with oak hardwood floors and changed the ceilings from cathedral to tray style, which created a focal point within the light, spacious room. They added new tile and cabinets in their master bathroom, too.
They’ve built in and added many luxuries to make their country lifestyle a convenient one, from an extra-large kitchen pantry and butcher’s block island to a laundry room with a sweater dryer. And their longtime career in lumber is reflected in the woodworking crafted from local wood all throughout the house.
At the edges of the oversized pool deck are a gazebo, a covered patio with tables, and a building that houses a half-bath and changing room as well as the pool’s pump. The inground, 5-foot-deep swimming pool has been quite a draw for their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
“It’s open all summer long, and it’s a very active pool,” Sandy said.
The house has an attached 2-car garage, a large detached garage built about three years ago, and a barn that serves as a storage building. Deer and turkey roam the land, and Sandy said the property would be great for horses. The barn has an adjoining 12-foot building that would work well as a 4-stall horse barn.
Though they ran a successful business from their home, their greatest achievement is who they’ve raised there.
“All of our grandchildren grew up here,” Sandy said. “We just really have loved it up here. It’s secluded, and just couple miles from the parkway. (Clay City is) a small town, and we’ve enjoyed it.”
“If you like privacy, this is the place for you,” Henry added.
This week’s feature home is listed with Melia Hord of Keller Williams Bluegrass Realty. To see more images of the home, visit the Homeseller gallery at Kentucky.com
This story was originally published January 26, 2020 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Comfort in Clay City: Secluded home offers convenience and country views."