Dating from the 1920s, this trim bungalow exhibits the recent hard work and ingenuity of a couple who are no strangers to old-house living. Melrose, Mrs. Smith’s family home, and Double Oaks, which the couple restored, are a few miles east of Danville in Halifax County.

Since moving to town from Double Oaks earlier this year, Mike and Tracy Smith have brought shine and polish to their College Avenue dwelling whose first known owner/occupant was a pharmacist at West End Drug Store, John B. Fuller, and his family.

Members of the Fuller family continued to live here until after WWII. From 1950 until the l990s, the property was home to the family of Dr. J. Paul Williams, one of the city’s most respected dentists. Following his death in the mid-l970s, his widow resided here until her recent death.

A new chapter in the life of the house began only a few months ago. Since last May, the Smiths have transformed the structure—reorganizing a maze of tiny spaces behind the dining room, for example, into a spacious, functional kitchen. Retaining most of the original features of the house, the couple continues to enhance the rooms with their antique “finds” and interesting collections.