For years, drivers on Lyons View Pike have passed a tall brick wall with no real hint of what sat behind it. This spring, that long-hidden mystery finally comes into view. The Eugenia Williams House, a 1941 Regency Revival mansion perched above the Tennessee River, is slated to open to the public after an extended restoration.
The estate’s broad lawns and river views will be available for scheduled tours, cultural programs, and access to the property’s walking routes. Organizers say a formal grand-opening date is still to come, but visitors can expect limited tours and free grounds access on select days once the site opens.
Restoration and the team
Aslan Foundation purchased the property in 2020 and has led an extensive rehabilitation aimed at preserving original interiors while getting the house ready for public use. Sanders Pace Architecture served as lead designer for stabilization and restoration, working with Harboe Architects and Reed Hilderbrand on preservation and landscape planning, as detailed on the foundation’s architecture page.
Brandon Pace described the work as piecing together a fragmented narrative of the estate, saying the team had to reconstruct its story from scattered clues and that “some of it we were able to kind of connect some dots,” as reported by Knoxville News Sentinel.
Gardens, trails and partners
The estate spans roughly 24 acres of lawn, ravine, and riverfront landscape, and public access will center on restored walking routes, according to the project site EugeniaWilliamsHouse.org. The site also lists a slate of local cultural partners, including the Knoxville Museum of Art, the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, and the Big Ears Festival, all set to bring talks, performances, and small exhibitions to the property.
The foundation says its programming model is designed to balance regular access to the grounds with more limited, scheduled entry to the house itself, so the place does not get loved to death.
Why this matters
Designed by Knoxville native John Fanz Staub and completed in 1941, the house is a rare local example of his Regency Revival work and has long been the subject of neighborhood curiosity, Visit Knoxville notes. Preservation advocates say opening the grounds and house offers the public uncommon access to a major Knoxville work of architecture while still protecting the fragile landscape and historic materials for the long haul.
Opening, access and tickets
As reported by Knoxville News Sentinel, the property has earned accredited arboretum status, now boasting more than 50 species of trees and over a mile of restored walking routes. A small parking lot with roughly 48 spaces is planned for visitors.
According to the Aslan Foundation, grounds access will be free on several days each week, while house tours and special programs will require advance registration handled by partner organizations. A spring grand-opening is on the calendar, but the exact date and ticketing details will be announced later by the foundation and its programming partners.
