Rowan Oak, Home of William Faulkner

Home to William Faulkner and his family for over 40 years, Rowan Oak was originally built in 1844, and occupies over 29 acres of land just south of the Square in Oxford, MS.  The clapboard house had no electricity, plumbing or even sound construction when Faulkner bought it in 1930. The writer did much of the renovation himself, even designing the study where today visitors can still see the grease pencil outline for A Fable scrawled on the walls. Details like that—and like Faulkner’s riding boots standing guard near a bedroom chair—yield both a stillness and a presence that makes this National Literary Landmark a personal milestone for the visitors who make the pilgrimage each year.