The architectural investigations and conservation of the Owens-Thomas House are documented by Preservation Journal, a publication of the Telfair Museum of Art. Our exhibition, which grew out of the pages of Preservation Journal, celebrates the completion of the exterior preservation and the inauguration of the interior phase of the project. Additional inspiration for the exhibit was the 1998 preservation conference of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in Savannah. Thirty years ago the National Trust also met in our city, and Owens-Thomas House Committee Chair Daniel Denny and Curator Agnes "Dolly" Tison opened the Research Room, the first interpretive display about the preservation of the site. Our current exhibit is dedicated to Dan and Dolly. May their examples inspire us as we continue to preserve "The House that Jay Built."

Olivia E. Alison
Curator of Decorative Arts
& the Owens-Thomas House
September 1998