About Old House Authority

The Old House Authority fosters the preservation of old houses by promoting the traditional building tradesmen who make historically appropriate renovation/restoration possible. Our website provides opportunities for craftsmen, preservationists and homeowners to exchange knowledge, ideas and expertise. Typically, craftsmen work independently, in small shops, without the benefit of marketing or publicity. We believe that by providing them a forum on our website, more homeowners will have access to their skills and services. This can help prevent the mistakes in renovation that diminish the historic and architectural integrity of old houses.

Maurice Duke, Walter Dotts, Dixon Kerr, Jennie Dotts

We recognize-through personal experience in renovation and restoration--the value of preservation over new construction. The environment is best served by reusing and recycling as opposed to demolishing and building new. The economy, also, is best served by preserving the architecture, ambiance and sense of community that attract residents, businesses and tourists to historic places that can never be built new. Our neighborhoods and houses represent a shared heritage. They offer opportunities for us-in an ever- accelerating, global environment- to connect with those who have come before us, discover the values that shaped our world, and determine how best to build for the future.

Old House Authority is produced by the following individuals who have extensive, first-hand experience in preserving houses and history and who hope to show others the way:

• Dixon Kerr, President and Managing Partner, Old House Authority Windows
• Jennie Dotts, Chief Executive Officer
• Walter M. Dotts III, Chairman and CFO
• Maurice Duke, Historian and Photographer

Founding Canine Remembered

A southern gentleman to the bone, Malone kept a discreet eye on things at his Old House Authority office. Photo by Mike Shields

On March 26th Old House Authority said farewell to one of its founding members, Malone, a rescued pit bull. Seven years earlier, Malone came to us from the city pound in skeletal condition with a ravaging case of mange, a daunting eye affliction, and an undeniable zest for life. It took many months for Malone to recover from the neglect that had nearly destroyed him, but oh, when he did, people noticed. He was gorgeous, proud, affable and unforgettable.

Malone blossomed under the care of those who loved him. He went to work everyday providing us with security and fellowship, his brindle form lurching and swaggering through a number of historic Richmond neighborhoods. Malone met every knock at the office door and ring of the bell with an alert tilt of his powerful body. He became a fast friend to parking garage attendants, ad executives, lunch crowds, and property managers. Most important, Malone taught us that first impressions can be wrong. He encouraged us to look beyond the surface. His success was evident when Malone made the front page of the local newspaper as a poster child for an unfairly maligned breed.

Malone represents what we, at Old House Authority, stand for: an understanding that the most challenging opportunities are the most rewarding. We recognized his potential, when few others did. And he rewarded us for having that vision.

When Malone was diagnosed with cancer, doctors gave him only weeks to live. A half year later, one of his physicians saw him and said that if he lived until Christmas it would be a miracle. He finally succumbed-several days after the following Easter.

Like many of the old houses we help to save, Malone was a long shot. His fractured history, skin-of-the-teeth survival, and daring defiance tested us at the same time they reinforced the need to persevere.

Good dog, Malone.