It is more than common to walk around historic sites and monuments and marvel at their importance and impact. What is less common is driving through small-town Alabama and recognizing the history to be found at home. But history and home are two things that Lucy and Susan of the Locker family know best. It was a calm and quiet morning when their voices rang out, vibrant and joyful, on the other end of the line. What began as a piece on a home renovation in St. Florian suddenly became so much more. Theirs was a story waiting to be told.

Here is that story.

“I came with my family from Wisconsin. We had about a thousand dollars in money, and came without anything except supplies. At Paducah I bought enough flour, lard, salt and meat to last through one season, and they were shipped by river. My first purchase was the land, and then I get a yoke of oxen. For four years these were the only animal help I had. They cultivated my crops, hauled my hauling and took me buggy riding. Whenever anything was wanted we usually grew, raised or made it.”

 -Mr. John Locker for the Atlanta Constitution, February 1894

For the Lockers, St. Florian is more than just the place they live, it’s a living legacy—one that began centuries ago. According to the Atlanta Constitution article A Pen Picture of St. Florian, the then-German settlement began in 1872. Originally, thirty families settled in the area coming primarily from the Northwest followed by another dozen families from Pennsylvania. It was at this time that John Locker was interviewed, quoted, and cited as one of the community’s first and best farmers in the 1894 interview above.

Upon his arrival in St. Florian, Atlanta Constitution Special Correspondent H.S. Bunting, found the community to be nothing short of remarkable, “Smaller fields under perfect cultivation alternate with good pasture spots, vineyards with orchards, and here and there among all, is cozy white-painted cottage with trim-looking stables, granaries and stock yards. It is a picture of intensive farming.”

At this time, John Locker (originally spelled Locher) and his wife Barbara had created a life for themselves in St. Florian that was built on family values, and their love was one for the storybooks. They married after a time of courtship during which John wrote many love letters to Barbara and was said to have worn blisters on his feet from walking to see her.

One such poem from a love letter dated November 21, 1858, reads:

Always happy, always without sorrow, may you go through life.

I will always keep you in my heart.  Unforgotten you will be.

May every hour of your life be filled with happiness.

May no sadness or sorrow ever be in your life.

May all your hopes be fulfilled.

May the future be bright and sunny.

Take this wreath which has been entwined with roses and forget-me-nots of my love.

May these flowers never wilt, but bloom forever.

How dear you are to me!

Even when I am in the grave, think of me and how much I loved you.

Think of me. Think of me.

-John B. Locher

With four children and a farm of their own, the Locker legacy was destined for St. Florian. The Locker property has remained in the family for generations, and fourth-generation Lockers, Lucy and Susan, currently live on the farm.

Today, it is a time capsule. Hand-hewn logs, beams, and brick supports can be found on the property. The screened porch encloses the cistern from the original home and the old kitchen still remains. A hay barn, likely constructed in the early 1890s, features stunning original 100-foot-long continuous poplar beams. The pre-Civil War granary, still standing today, is believed to be the farm’s most historic structure.

The sisters’ home, built more than 70 years ago, was the focus of a recent renovation. Local interior designer Misty Watson was tasked with renovating the historic home. Her primary goal was to maintain the comfortable lived-in feel of the home while respecting the history of the property.

“My process started with figuring out how the end result needed to be. It’s more about the feel of the home and bringing the aesthetics of the outside in. It’s about the history and knowing the story,” she explained. “You want to come in and it be your home and live in it and feel it. It’s not just a picture for a magazine. You want to go there and sit in that space and feel all of that history and home.”

The sisters shared insights into the process and giggled to themselves while recounting the more eventful aspects of the renovation—sledgehammers used to remove original tile from concrete walls, the fun five-man job that was removing the original 600-pound cast iron tub, among many more anecdotes. They reminisced on the scavenger hunt of leading someone under the house for the renovation and finding an earthen basement full of old crocks and other items original to the property.

The trio agreed that keeping the cedar from the original closets was a must, and they repurposed it for a pass-through featuring art from Susan’s travels. When the renovation brought about a new blank space to decorate, they decided to “go shopping in all of the old barns” where everything now filling the space was found. Home-grown aspects like a table made from walnut harvested on the farm strengthen their connection to the newly renovated space.

The sisters could not withhold their excitement over the livability of the home and the practicality with which Misty approached the renovation, “We live in every inch of this house. There is no part of the house we are never in.” Their depth of gratitude to Misty was truly palpable, and they went so far as to share, “We inherited Misty when she did this project. She’s always welcome here.” For Misty, the sentiment was more than mutual, and she considered the opportunity to work on the restoration an honor. “Every time I get to stop by and visit, I walk in and they say how much they love their home. When you’ve worked on it and given it everything you had—that means everything—that’s art.”

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The Locker family received recognition from The Progressive Farmer and the Alabama Farm Bureau as a Master Farm Family in 1953. The farm was designated as a Century Farm in 1978.

The Locker Farm recently celebrated 150 years of North Alabama farm life with family and friends.