News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Travel Blogger Shannon McKeon has visited some 36 countries and some 35 states. Of all she has seen, an Upper Cumberland landmark and its owner stands out.
“I’ve met hundreds of interesting and eccentric people in my life through all of my travels all over the world, but he is definitely ranking in the top five,” McKeon said.
He is Horace Burgess, the owner of the 97-foot treehouse built in the 1990s just off Interstate 40 in Crossville. A Chattanooga Real Estate Company put the treehouse and its 139 acres up for sale this week.
“In a way it makes me very sad to hear this, that it’s for sale,” McKeon said. “Most people do not have the noble or pure intentions that Horace did. It’s a fear that this really unique place on the earth would be scooped up by some greedy commercial company.”
McKeon came to know the treehouse and its owner through her travels. She got his phone number while traveling to Tennessee and called Burgess. He invited McKeon and a Russian friend who had heard about the structure and the story behind it, to tour the treehouse.”
“I could tell immediately he was a very open, caring person,” McKeon said. “He stayed with us and told us the whole history of the house and a lot of personal insights for which we were very grateful.”
Burgess turned down all interview requests Tuesday.
McKeon said she toured much the 10-story treehouse, except for areas she deemed unsafe. Vandalism had taken its toll on the structure in the early 2000s.
“The enormity of this house, it’s really incomprehensible,” McKeon said. “The size of it is really just astounding. And the property on which it’s located is quite large.”
One particular area that struck McKeon, what Burgess called the “honeymoon suite,” an area that he had “polished up for his wife.”
McKeon said she left the site amazed with the building, but even more impressed by Burgess.
“His dedication and drive and the reason why he did it is admirable,” McKeon said. “That someone would be so dedicated and focused to a cause that really brought him no financial benefit in return. This was just out of love and goodness.”
The treehouse and the land have been listed for $1.5 million. You can read more of Shannon McKeon’s visit to the Crossville treehouse online.
