On the morning of Wednesday 23 March 2005, the home reportedly was struck by  lightning and burned. The rural community has no fire marshal to conduct a thorough investigation, so the exact cause of the blaze was not determined. There were no witnesses to the fire's start.

No matter what the cause, this once grand home has now been destroyed.   For many years it stood vacant, and according to some locals, was a magnet for the curious in the 1970-80s. Though it was privately owned, many folks just wandered in, and took their own personal tours. Of course, vandalism occurred, as does with most unprotected buildings.  However, it stood the test of time, and avoided total ruin until 2005.

The home was located in Waynesville, and at the time of its construction, Wayne County. The home site is on Mumford Road in Brantley County, just off Hwy. 82 West. Throughout the ages, the home maintained all of its majestic beauty, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places around 1982.

About 100 feet south of the home stands the small family burial plot.  Directly across the road is the Hazlehurst Family cemetery, where once was located an Episcopal Church. Not only was the neighborhood host to the Mumfords and the Hazlehursts, but some of the St. Simons Island elite owned property nearby as well.

Sylvester Mumford was in the mercantile trade here in Waynesville, which is now part of Brantley County.  As the crow flies, it was about 10-15 miles from the Mumford home to Bethel, the home of Job Tison in Glynn County.  Together, Mumford and Tison ran their businesses, and in 1841, Sylvester married one of Job's daughters, Theresa E. Tison.

By 1850, two children were born to this union, Oceanna around 1842, and Goertner around 1847.  The slave schedule for 1850, Wayne County, shows that Sylvester owned only 5 slaves, most likely they were just a status symbol, house servants and nothing more.  He does not show up on the 1860 slave schedules, which tells us that maybe this house was not a working plantation.  More likely, the Mumford's mainly lived off profits from the mercantile trade.

Because of its longevity, the home became inextricably linked to the community as a whole and the fertile source of fascinating stories passed from generation to generation. Its loss is deeply felt.