![]() The belongings will be auctioned this spring, said Bob Royster, production director for the public television center. The walls were mostly bare except for a few ordinary electric wall clocks.Īnd while Aunt Bee was known around the fictitious Mayberry, N.C., courthouse for her tasty box lunches, there was only one cookbook in Miss Bavier’s yellow and green 1950s kitchen. But what she made with the material was not evident in the house, which had no curtains at the windows. Just as the neat, matronly Aunt Bee would have done, Miss Bavier saved sewing fabric in labeled boxes in a bedroom closet. There also was a blue satin gown she may have worn when she won her Emmy Award, said Hatch. The few mementos of the actress’ television days were the dress and hats she wore in the show and a few publicity pictures. Miss Bavier’s few costly possessions consisted primarily of some rare leather-bound books, a lace collection and a considerable quantity of table linens, said Hatch. View photos of 503 West Elk Street in Siler City, N.C. Two trunks held her fan mail, letters in one and studio portraits of her “to be signed” in another. could have had non-stop fans if she had opened her doors,” said Hatch. Nail is in the process of turning the home into a. “I think she was a person who obviously valued her privacy. An outside look of the property formerly known as Aunt Bee’s house, which is currently under rennovation by new owner Kathy Nail in Siler City. Her cats apparently used a basement room and a shower stall as a litter box.Įvidently, the reclusive actress spent most of her time in a large back room plainly furnished with a bed, a desk, a television and an end table, where she kept her reading and opera glasses, black licorice and a bell. So, Aunt Bee died and her house stank like cats gone wild and everyone referred to her as “the crazy old cat lady.The stench from the actress’ 14 cats coupled with peeling plaster, frayed carpets and worn upholstery indicate Miss Bavier either was unable or unwilling to spend much time keeping up the home. She is so cute and she is absolutely fearless! Sam Dog loves her and I hope he doesn’t eat her! The other cats aren’t real sure what they think, yet. So I thought of Aunt Bee and her 15 cats today because we brought Charlie into the house. You see, we are now a four cat family (unless someone steps forward to take the newest addition, Charlie). ![]() It is the 15 cats that made me think of her. Well, when she died in 1989, she left her estate to numerous local charities. It was also discovered that she left behind 15 cats. I read that Ron Howard came to visit once and she wouldn’t let him into her house. Perhaps the most famous home in Siler City the one previously owned by Frances Bavier, who played Aunt Bee on The Andy Griffith Show has a new owner, and fans of the classic show. Chatham County tax records show that Kathryn Nail now. (Griffith said later that about 4 months before she died, she called him to apologize.) The story also said that when Bavier moved to North Carolina, she became quite a recluse. in the Chatham County town of Siler City, was up for sale last year, The News & Observer reported. The article stated that she had a reputation for being a difficult actress and apparently even had a few run-ins with Andy Griffith on the set. I tell you this because Brian and I lived in North Carolina at the time of her death and our local paper had a pretty huge write-up about her. She rarely left the house, town residents say. Today, I was thinking about Aunt Bee, Frances Bavier, from “The Andy Griffith Show.”Īfter that show and a few other acting gigs, Bavier retired from show business in 1972 and moved to the picturesque little town of Siler City, North Carolina. 6 in the spacious two-story Siler City home to which she retired in 1972.
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