With summer weeks away, the mercury beginning its trek upward and the children still underfoot after two weeks of spring break coupled with six weeks of quarantined home schooling, it is time for many Nashvillians to head to the mountains.

As has been the tradition for generations for many Nashville families, the cooler climes of Monteagle are calling. A large number of those mountain climbers vacation for the entire summer at the compound known as the Assembly, aka the Monteagle Summer School Assembly (MSSA).

Founded in 1882, the Assembly was created as an “educational congress for Sunday school teachers” according to the MSSA website. During summers, Sunday school teachers from the region could attend for an eight-week program and sharpen their skills studying subjects ranging from ancient languages to the arts.

To this day, the Season, as it is known, runs June-August for participants of all ages with cultural, spiritual and social programs featuring prominent guest speakers. There are 162 buildings on the grounds, the anchor structures being Warren Chapel and the dining hall, Harton Hall, both designed by renowned architect Edwin Keeble, who was born in the Assembly in 1905 and died in 1979 in nearby Sewanee, home of the University of the South.

Keeble is an iconic figure in Nashville architecture with buildings all over the city serving as monuments to his talents. His father was the dean of the Vanderbilt University School of Law, and his great-grandfather was a U.S. Senator and Secretary of War in 1841. His maternal grandfather was speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives and mayor of Murfreesboro.

During his most productive period, Keeble designed more than 100 houses per year, some on the National Register of Historic Places. But his most famous works were not buildings in the Assembly or residences in Nashville, rather his churches and the structure known as Nashville’s first landmark.

Keeble designed the Life and Casualty Tower, the highest building in the Southeast at the time. Additionally, he designed Vanderbilt’s Memorial Gymnasium and a number of churches, many featuring tall, slender steeples, a staple of Keeble’s, that came to be known as Keeble’s Steeples. Among his designs are Westminster Presbyterian Church, Woodmont Christian Church, Vine Street Christian Church, First Baptist Church and Immanuel Baptist Church.

His funeral was held in Warren Chapel in the Monteagle Summer School Assembly. And it is to that spot that the Nashvillians will begin their annual migration this week. With the Assembly being less than 200 homes and many, if not most, of those being handed down from generation to generation, there was a scarcity of options for others seeking high altitude, secluded, wooded repose.

With more demand than supply, developers began to open new projects as the University began to develop summer programs and more of its alums began to seek recreational housing near the campus.

One such development was Clifftops, which survived a rocky start on the mountaintop in the 1970s but eventually completed 280 houses spread across 2,000 acres with hiking, tennis, swimming pool, pickle ball courts and a lake.

A large percentage of its homeowners are from the Midstate area, and nearby Myer’s Point in Sewanee has blossomed with its homes of $1 million-plus adorning the bluffs.

Which brings us to our sale of the week.

Sale of the Week

While there are no Keeble Steeples, no Sewanee and no real lake in close proximity, the Harpeth Trace community located on Highway 100 across from Edwin Warner Park offers most of the same amenities and with the same feel. It is conveniently 90 miles closer than Monteagle, and the prices are lower.

512 Harpeth Oaks Court

For example, the home at 512 Harpeth Oaks Court sold last week from $617,500 after John Clay listed the property for $624,900. Worthy of mention is that John Clay owned the house and he gave the house a total facelift, leaving no stone unturned.

He installed quartz countertops in the kitchen and had granite added to the bathrooms with undermounted sinks. With a 2015 water heater, a 2017 HVAC under a 2010 roof, the house should not need an expensive repair for years.

The crawl space is encapsulated, and the property overlooks a private reserve and has Edwin Warner and Percy Warner Parks across the street. Last year, a prominent Nashville family sold a home in Harpeth Trace for more than $900,000, and the listing agent was surprised to learn that family owned the home. He thought they lived in Belle Meade.

The listing agent learned he was correct. The family lived in Belle Meade and used the Harpeth Trace home as their summer getaway.

There is no need to move a mountain when there is one in the backyard.

Richard Courtney is a licensed real estate broker with Fridrich and Clark Realty and can be raced at [email protected].