History of “Polecat Place”
We are proud of our little hideaway on Lake Guntersville. We call it Polecat Place and are happy to share some history with you – as we know it. Polecat Place is a three level structure named after the area. Years ago, a large stream ran off the mountain into the Tennessee River right in front of where the boathouse now stands. The stream was known as Polecat Creek and the area was called Polecat Hollow. In the mid 1930’s, the Guntersville Dam was built on the Tennessee River. This dam was used to flood a lot of farmland, including Polecat Hollow, to “build” the 69,000-acre Guntersville Lake. Polecat Hollow is now known as “Eastlake”.
Each level of Polecat Place is a separately contained living unit. The original cabin is the middle unit and is fully equipped for vacation rental. We call the middle unit the Polecat Palace. The bottom unit is a small apartment, the Polecat Pad, and is also a vacation rental. The top unit is our private vacation home, the Polecat Penthouse. As you can tell, we have had some fun giving the place an identity.
Polecat Palace - The original cabin was built in the 1950’s. Polecat Palace has the only fireplace and is considered the “coziest” of all. It will sleep 6 people with full/queen size beds in each of the 2 private bedrooms and twin beds in the great room. We had fun furnishing it and started offering it as a vacation rental in November 1997. Our main reason for doing this is to provide a place for our close family members to stay while enjoying time with us at the lake. Thank you for helping us keep it nice for them.
Polecat Pad - Some years after the cabin was built, lots of digging went on underneath it and a small apartment resulted. The Polecat Pad has it’s own private deck and front entrance. With one full bed in the private bedroom and a full futon sofa in the living room, it is perfect for 2 to 4 people. It has been a vacation rental since March 2000.
Polecat Penthouse - Several years after the bottom floor was built, a floor was added to the top - onto the flat roof of the cabin. This floor also has a private entrance. As our personal vacation home, the Polecat Penthouse currently is not a vacation rental.
The Boathouse is directly across from the cabin and was built around the same time. Since the original Polecat Creek runs in front of it, the water is deep – great for boating & fishing! (We recommend young children be accompanied by an adult.)
Initially, there was no street below the cabin. Long ago the area was much more remote and city service trucks had difficulty managing the hills and turns of the original road behind the cabins. Driving across the flat portion of private property in front of the cabins was easier and the road evolved from there. Some day we hope this will change back. (In the meantime, children should watch for occasional cars.)
In 1997 we invested considerably in remodeling all units. We still have a little more work to do, especially the parking area, and welcome any suggestions from our Guests. We hope this will be your special place to “get away from it all”. Thank you for helping us take care of it. Enjoy!