Oldest home in Lexington? What to know about the Rankin House, on the market for $599K

Aaron Mudd

One of Lexington’s oldest homes — built in 1784, just two years after the city was officially chartered — is up for sale for almost $600,000.

As detailed on Zillow, the 1,696-square-foot Adam Rankin House is described as having an inviting entry foyer, a large living room, an adjoining dining room and kitchen, three bedrooms, one full bathroom and a “keeping room.” It also has modern amenities such as central heating and air conditioning, and sits on a large 7,527-square-foot lot.

The home is listed at an asking price of $599,000.

The historical marker that stands outside the Rankin House at 317 South Mill St. in Lexington. The home has been put up for sale as of November, with an asking price of $599,000.
The historical marker that stands outside the Rankin House at 317 South Mill St. in Lexington. The home has been put up for sale as of November, with an asking price of $599,000.

While the Rankin House is often referred to as “Lexington’s oldest home,” this does warrant some clarification. The Robert Patterson Cabin on Transylvania University’s campus actually predates it by several years.

According to a 2022 publication of the Lexington History Museum, the Patterson Cabin was built circa 1780. That structure has been moved several times over the years, including to Ohio, where it stood in a public park in Dayton after a grandson of Patterson moved there in 1902. The Patterson Cabin was returned to Lexington in 1939.

The view of the front door and entryway into the Rankin House, a historic home now up for sale in Lexington located at 317 South Mill St. Photos shared with permission from the seller.
The view of the front door and entryway into the Rankin House, a historic home now up for sale in Lexington located at 317 South Mill St. Photos shared with permission from the seller.
The living room of the Rankin House, a historic home now up for sale in Lexington located at 317 South Mill St. Photos shared with permission from the seller.
The living room of the Rankin House, a historic home now up for sale in Lexington located at 317 South Mill St. Photos shared with permission from the seller.

Up until 1971, the Rankin House was the oldest building in Lexington to stand on its original site, according to the Lexington History Museum, citing the architectural historian Clay Lancaster. It originally stood at 215 West High St.

At that time, a flurry of local urban renewal projects threatened the Rankin House’s future and it faced demolition. It was the Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation and local businessman and philanthropist Alex Campbell Jr. who worked to move the house around the corner to its current location at 317 South Mill St.

The move was quite the spectacle June 28, 1971, when residents went into the street to watch the house be hoisted onto a massive truck bed and carted away.

The adjoining kitchen and dining room in the Rankin House, a historic home now up for sale in Lexington located at 317 South Mill St. Photos shared with permission from the seller.
The adjoining kitchen and dining room in the Rankin House, a historic home now up for sale in Lexington located at 317 South Mill St. Photos shared with permission from the seller.

Originally, the house was a more humble log cabin built for Adam Rankin, the minister of Lexington’s pioneer Presbyterian Church, according to the home’s historical marker.

The house has had some storied occupants over the years, including Nathan Burrowes, who created a popular mustard brand of the same name. In the early 19th century, when water was often impure and contained diseases such as cholera, the mustard was marketed as a condiment and a medicinal product, given mustard has natural anti-microbial properties.

The Rankin House is also the birthplace of Samuel McCollough, a local astronomer who continued production of Burrowes’ mustard.

The full bathroom at the Rankin House, a historic home now up for sale in Lexington located at 317 South Mill St. Photos shared with permission from the seller.
The full bathroom at the Rankin House, a historic home now up for sale in Lexington located at 317 South Mill St. Photos shared with permission from the seller.

In more modern times, the Rankin House briefly hosted the Lexington History Museum, when in 2020, it moved into the home hoping to operate it as a house museum.

Since that time, however, the museum has moved into the Thomas Hunt Morgan Home on North Broadway.

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