Coopers homeowner working to preserve legacy of artist Sara Finney

Sara Finney, a self-taught woodcarver, left her mark in Milledgeville with her linoleum knife and wooden apples. Her family's house still remains in the Coopers community with the help of Diane Belle, who continues to care for the Hard Twist Ranch.

Sara Elizabeth Finney passed away nearly a decade ago, but her legacy lives on with her wooden apples and other realistic carvings. Her apples have been known to get put in lunch boxes because of their innate details.

Finney was a native of Lake County, Florida, before her family moved back to the Coopers community near Milledgeville in 1952 to take care of her father's mother. Her father and mother, Charles and Mattie Brewer Finney, had son William Ashley ("Tut") and two daughters, Sara and Martha Lou. The family would reside in the Benford Home Place, later named Hard Twist Ranch, after the death of their granny.

The Hard Twist Ranch became a source of inspiration for Sara Finney as the property still contains beautiful wildlife and vegetation to this day. In Finney's day, she was locally known for selling her life-like fruit carvings across the United States and abroad.

Finney, a self-taught wood carver, began carving wooden costume jewelry that became a huge hit at local markets. Her beads and bracelets would later turn into fruits, vegetables, fish and birds. She was most famous, though, for her iconic wooden apples.

Finney got her start with a linoleum knife in addition to using a rasp, sandpaper and other unorthodox tools to add extra special effects. The backyard of the Hard Twist Ranch encompasses the workshops and storage areas where Finney — with the help of her brother Tut — would create the intricate wood carvings.

Tut Finney would find pieces of wood on their property and make the base for any fruit or vegetable Finney wanted. Finney then cut the shape out before carving, sanding and painting the final product. To make the apples even more realistic, Finney dipped them in a glossy overcoat, which adds the shiny undertone to the work.

Tut Finney was also an artist in his own right as a photographer. Sara Finney once displayed her wooden sculpture along with Tut's photography in an exhibit called "All in the Family" at the John Marlor Arts Center. Tut, inspired by nature, would take his camera everywhere with him and photograph the natural beauty surrounding him.

Unfinished work still sits in a lonely shed behind the Hard Twist Ranch waiting to be completed. Diane Belle, current owner of the property, sometimes finds the time to paint and gloss the mystery fruit and vegetables left behind by the artist to honor her legacy.

Belle met Sara Finney and her family at the young age of 21 after marrying her husband and moving into a house down the road. From there, Belle became close friends with the Finney family and even became a caretaker to the three siblings in their later years. Belle recalls a memory of having breakfast at the Hard Twist Ranch with her son.

"She just was a true artist," said Belle, referring to Sara Finney.

Besides old craft supplies and decorations, an old map stays hung up on the wall of the old guest house, showing the pinpoints of the many places and countries where Finney's work was sent, ranging from the California West Coast to China. Her work was once shipped to the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution in Washington, D.C. to be placed in the Georgia Room of the Museum. Not only that, Finney submitted her wood carvings to the Smithsonian's Institute of Arts and Industry Museum also in Washington, D.C.

Her samples of birds, fruits and vegetables were immediately put to sale in the museum's shop. According to a past article, the director and staff at the time were confident that her works would sell in the matter of time. Finney was reportedly proud of this fact but was even more satisfied to serve her local community with her artwork.

In 2017, Belle inherited the house after the passing of Tut Finney. The three siblings sat down with Belle to tell her that they would leave Hard Twist Ranch in their wills as none of the them had children and considered her family.

"As they got older, they relied more and more on me, and I was willing to give freely, and, you know, my children were always welcome here," said Belle.

Belle, with the help of her husband and other community members, continues on caretaking for the Finney family even after their passings by restoring and caring for the ranch. In her restorations, she discovered a whole building swallowed by overgrown plants and an entry walkway covered up by years of dust and dirt.

The inside of the house holds a variety of items collected by the Finney family over the years, including one of three wooden lettuce carvings by Sara Finney, a rare antique organ and Vietnam knick knacks from Tut's service in the military. Belle struggles to throw any of the items away as many of the items in the household are quite unique.

Belle's dream is to turn the Hard Twist Ranch into a learning center for local kids or a bed and breakfast for anyone who wants to see how people lived in a different time. In her efforts to restore the property, she had a pavilion constructed on the property where hopefully future school kids or event attendees can enjoy the wondrous views of the farm.

"Have like a bed and breakfast for couples, you know, like a couple that would want to sit on a porch in the country and look out on the road and be able to walk and see the animals," said Belle. "Stuff that the lake doesn't have to offer."

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