Bye has spent 30 years taking care of New Albany’s mansion

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Joellen Bye has been the site manager for the Culbertson Mansion since 1995. The mansion will open for tours beginning April 1. Staff photo by Kevin McGloshen

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March 26, 2010

By CHRIS MORRIS Chris.Morris@newsandtribune.com The News and Tribune Fri Mar 26, 2010, 10:06 PM EDT

NEW ALBANY — Joellen Bye admits she was not the best student growing up. But, after accepting a job at the Culbertson Mansion in 1977, she read everything she could get her hands on about New Albany’s most famous landmark and those who occupied it.

“It sparked my interest,” she said of spending her days in the mansion. “It turned on my switch. I’ve learned more here than I could ever learn in school.”

The history lessons can be found on every floor of the Culbertson Mansion, which was built in 1867 by William S. Culbertson for $120,000.

The house has seen many owners and changes since Culbertson and his family roamed the hallways. The house sold at auction in 1899 for $7,100. During the course of the past century, it belonged to the American Legion, was almost torn down in favor of a gas station and eventually became a state historic site in 1976.

Bye has been working at the mansion for 33 years and knows it as if it was one of her children. She became site manager of the facility in 1995.

The house will open April 1 for public tours. Recently Bye spoke about the mansion, its history and the ongoing restoration.

QUESTION: What do you love about the Culbertson Mansion?

JOELLEN BYE: It’s hard to explain. I’ve seen it change over the years and have been part of that. Before the restoration, everything was really plain. There is something about this place. It has its own personality. It’s more than a house. It gets to you.

Q: Do people take this place for granted?

BYE: I hear it from people who visit the house. I would say 90 percent of them say they have lived here all of their life and this is the first time they have toured the home. They don’t think about it.

Q: What do you love about your job?

BYE: There is so much ... but I would say the ongoing restoration project. Some things we kind of stumbled into. We had no idea the painted design was under all of that wallpaper. Just to be part of it and see it happen, that’s been exciting.

Q: What frustrates you about the job?

BYE: I guess lack of funds. If it wasn’t for the friends’ group, none of the interior restoration would be done. All the money they raise with the haunted house and other projects goes right back into the house. The friends’ group is so important.

Q: What is left to renovate in the mansion?

BYE: The first floor is completely finished. We are currently on the second floor and it is partially complete. We haven’t started the third floor yet. I think the worst part is behind us. The state recently paid for a new copper roof, repainted the exterior and put in new walkways. In 2000, they put in a new climate control system.

Q: What is it that people might not know about the mansion?

BYE: If they came as third-graders, the ceiling was painted white, and the restoration project had not got going. The house has changed through the years.

Q: OK, is the house haunted?

BYE: That has always been a hot topic. I have seen and heard things that I cannot explain. We are not ghost hunters or ghost crazy people. We have ghost hunters who approach us about setting up cameras at night and doing their thing, but we always have to tell them no for insurance and liability reasons.

Q: So, you have seen things you can’t explain?

BYE: Yes. There are the typical things ... maybe you hear a door shut or it may sound like someone is walking upstairs when there is no one up there. My office is in the basement and at night, if I am here alone, I can hear things. We know something is here, but we have never confirmed it.

Q: What about the future of the home?

BYE: I hope we can start being open year-round. Last year we were scheduled to, but had funding cut at the last minute. We hope all third-graders continue to come to tour the mansion [as part of studying Indiana history]. And we will continue to focus on the ongoing restoration.

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Bye has spent 30 years taking care of New Albany’s mansion

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