Slaydens open cabin to holiday tour
Stockings are hung on a mantle lined with candles and distinct floral arrangements at the home of Ronnie and Sharon Slayden. The table is set for a special holiday meal and family ornaments adorn a Christmas tree in the front window, ready to welcome participants of Sunday’s third annual Christmas Home Tour coordinated by the Salem Garden Club.
Antique heirlooms meet modern conveniences inside the maple and oak walls of the Slayden's comfortable 1930’s cabin near Lola.
Situated on land near Turkey Creek and Wallace Springs, history of the original farm dates back to a log cabin in 1807, including 600 acres owned by James Jameson. On the property were servant quarters, a smoke house, barns and a corn crib.
According to a story published in the Livingston Ledger in 1978, the Jameson property was a well-established plantation in 1844. The property passed into the hands of Tom Wallace then to W.C. "Cap" Bohn, owner of the Fairview Mines, then to Bob Frazer of Marion. It was rental property occupied by W.C. Kitchens from the 1960s until 1984 when the Slaydens purchased it.
Sometime in the 1950s and 1960s, the property housed a worm farm run by Mrs. Lake Farley and Carol McNatt. They raised Kentucky Whipper Worms and sold them to bait shops around the lakes. Ronnie Slayden remembers as a child seeing hundreds of worms on the ground near the creek at the back of the property.
When the Slaydens took ownership, the home's exterior was lapsided and covered with white, lead-based paint. A screened front porch and glassed in back porch – both of which spanned the width of the home – were in poor condition. The interior walls were covered with paneling, and the home was in need of some TLC.
Every room of the couple's two-story log home has been renovated, but with very careful attention to detail in order to preserve its 1937 appeal, including exposed log walls.
The home was constructed by Mr. and Mrs. William Bohn, who used the Lola residence as their summer retreat. It took nine years to complete. Constructed out of oak logs from the farm, the house was built near a popular picnic area featuring an artesian spring inside a rock structure. The home's basement was dug by mules and pond scoops but with no shortcuts. The basement ceiling is at about eight feet high. Bohn was a man ahead of his time, as the Slaydens say the 3,800-square-foot home was wired and had its own power generation system well before electricity was available in the Lola area. A coal chute once dumped the home's fuel source directly into the floor of the basement next to the furnace and the old hand pump on the back porch once drew water from a cistern.
Ronnie, an employee of the Crittenden-Livingston Water District, and Sharon, an employee of Crittenden Hospital, immediately went to work on the outside, hiring the late Mike Watson to sandblast the exterior.
"There was sand in here knee deep," Sharon recalls, sitting in the cozy living room – a stark contrast to the way they found it in 1985.
The couple made a few improvements initially, but in 2006 embarked on a major renovation project that included new wood floors throughout the downstairs, a new master bathroom, Amish-crafted kitchen cabinets, granite countertops and new windows among other details.
Sharon's brother-in-law, Dale Guess, helped expose the original interior walls, and Ronnie did the majority of the plumbing, wiring and trim. Using a tiny paintbrush, Sharon painted the mortar inch by inch, giving the inside of the log walls a nice grey striped effect.
Not a sheet of drywall is found inside the home, but instead the new master bathroom and other interior walls are white cedar.
The second story contains two bedrooms seasonally decorated with family heirlooms including Sharon's 32-year-old wedding dress, her daughter Natalie's childhood toys, Ronnie's functional electric train, a Gunsmoke lunch box, Mickey Mouse guitar and a fishing lure collection used by Ronnie and his grandfather, Mark Conyer. Despite renovations and what could be perceived as a need to modernize, the couple kept a rare foot bath in the home's second floor half bath.
"Ronnie and I love antiques and began collecting them when we purchased this house," Sharon said. "We went to sales and auctions everywhere to furnish our house with the exception of our living room, which we wanted for comfort.
"We thoroughly enjoy our newly remodeled log house. We went through many trials and tribulations to get here, but the end results are spectacular," Sharon said.

The Slaydens (pictured above in their dining room) will be among the hosts for Sunday’s Christmas Tour of Homes sponsored by the Salem Garden Club. Other homes on the tour are those of J.O. and Sue Harmon Jennings, Wesley and Marcie Shuecraft, Brent and Jennifer Ferrell, and David and Connie James. The Lola Community Center will also be on the tour. A pair of tickets are $15 in advance, or $10 each day of the tour. Call 988-2145 or 988-3835 for more information.

Many children still in need for Christmas
Organizers say that with just three weeks left before Christmas and two weeks until gift distribution day, Community Christmas is struggling to meet demands.
Sponsors are needed for the Community Christmas Angel Trees. The trees have names and information regarding children in need of charitable assistance this holiday season.
As of Monday there were 75 children still needing sponsors.
The greatest need is for the children who have two or more siblings.
Nancy Hunt at the county Extension office reported there are 46 tags representing 16 households still on their tree which consists of children from homes with three or more children.
Those interesting in helping provide Christmas gifts to less-fortunate children this season should go by the Extension office, Pamida or Marion City Hall to visit the Angel Tree and pick out a child or children to sponsor.
Mona Manley is overseeing the tags at city hall and Pamida. She said there are eight children’s tags at city hall and 25 at Pamida.
“There are 147 children who have already been sponsored which is great but more are needed,” Hunt said.
Sponsors agree to spend between $25 to $100 per child. A wish list from the parent is included on the Angel Tree tag along with where and when to return the gifts.
Individuals or groups wishing to sponsor should visit one of the Angel Trees and make their selection.
For anyone who would prefer to make cash donations, drop off your contribution at The Peoples Bank and let a teller know it is for the Community Christmas account.

WMJL finds Magic in Parade sponsorship
Next weekend’s Marion Christmas Parade has a corporate sponsor and a theme that will help launch the local radio station’s new format.
Joe and Barbara Myers, owners of WMJL Radio, hope to get a blast of enthusiasm for their new music from the holiday parade, scheduled for 2 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 12.
The annual parade will feature a theme, “The Magic of Christmas.” The radio station has been in the process of changing its format for a few weeks and the new sound will be unveiled after the holidays. The station owners had already decided to volunteer their time to coordinate the parade when they figured it would be nice to incorporate the station’s new mantra, Magic 102.7, into the theme.
“That’s just how it worked out. We would have done the parade whether we were changing formats or not. What it did was give us an easy choice for a theme,” said Joe Myers.
Until Christmas, the station is playing round-the-clock holiday music. Starting Dec. 26, the first stage of its rebranding of WMJL will begin with a new sub-genre of classical favorites. The songs will largely be greatest hits from the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s. There will still be some 1960s music tossed into the mix; however, the current playlist that includes 1950’s era, Buddy Holley-type oldies will be gone as a more contemporary group of classics are ushered onto the airwaves.
Additionally, the station will start live Web streaming much of its programming. That new facet will be launched by spring, Myers said.
The plan is to target a whole new group of listeners – those in a middle age demographic.
“We elected not to change the call letters, but short of that it’s going to be a total rebranding of the station from new software to new music,” Myers added.
Music will also play a major role in the parade. Three high school bands will be among the featured performers. Bands from Crittenden, Livingston and Hardin County, Ill., will participate.
Applications and parade guidelines are available at the Marion Welcome Center at 213 S. Main Street or on line at www.MarionKentucky.us. Deadline to enter the parade is 4 p.m., on Dec. 7. Applications should be taken to the Marion Tourism and Welcome Center or WMJL’s office at 251 Club Dr., near the fairgrounds.
Entries will be judged with cash prizes going to first, second and third place.
For more information on the parade, call WMJL at 965-2271 or the Marion Welcome Center at 965-5015.