The village of Podhradí is situated below the Světlov castle. The first written report comes from 1563 and the village itself may not be much older. The village is situated in a quite narrow brook valley. On the right bank, the first ten quarter-section fields were surveyed, one of them was the No. 12. The area of the local homesteads is smaller than it used to be. Therefore, the most of local farms were not divided and the territory was extended on the left bank. At the end of the 16th century, there lived 1 half-section owner, 23 quarter-section owners and 4 cottagers in the village.
The first report about the homestead appeared in the land and duties register in 1598; Milan Michlatků was the then owner of the quarter-section. Since the 18th century, we have known the uninterrupted line of the homestead owners. It began with Martin and Filip Gajdoš. Then came František Mikulášek (in the indication sketch from 1828) and – since 1841 – František and Anna Mezírek with their daughter Anna. In 1874, Antonín Mlčák, husband of Anna Mezírková, married into the family. Until 1893, they waited for the possibility to overtake the farm. During that time, they delivered six babies: Františka, František, Alois, Marie, Petr and Antonín. At one moment, four adults, one young girl and three or four children lived in this household. The old building was constructed of timber and it might have fi nished its life along with the Mezírkas.
The house reconstruction must have almost begun, as documented by the loan of 800 guldens at the savings bank in Uherský Brod in 1892. It was, however, postponed by the disease and the death of Anna Mezírková. The money could cover some old debts, which were revived after the farmer’s daughter with her husband had inherited the homestead. The Jewish trader Šimon Strauss, the permanent creditor of the family, provided a new loan of 189 guldens to the family. His claims were not reduced during the time – just on the contrary - they increased. The loans covered the heir’s shares of several sons and daughters. The reconstruction of the house, however, helped improve the opportunities for cattle breeding. In 1900, there were stabled some draught oxen, one fattening bullock and four heifers at the homestead. Furthermore, here were also two pigs and ten hens. There are no bees more at the homestead because beekeeper František Mezírka died. In 1905, František Mlčák gets married. His wife Marie comes from the village of Řetěchov and brings the dowry and the money to the farm. We do not know if she brought the money in cash or in the form of an heir’s share. Anyway, all the savings bank’s and Straus’s debts were settled in 1907. Probably for that reason, the homestead was passed over immediately after the wedding in 1905. The married couple lived alone at the homestead, only with the retired farmer Antonín Mlčák. In 1900, no one of the brothers or sisters had a permanent residence at the homestead. We do not know their fates exactly – some left for service, some must have got married as documented by the settled heir’s shares and a reduced number of cows and oxen. Four children were born in the family, František, Emilie, Emila and Marie. In 1921, even a domestic servant – Anastázie Vaculková - for “housework and fi eld” worked at the homestead. Her presence probably related to the powerlessness of the housewife, who died in the autumn. Her son František becomes the heir of her half at the homestead, for which he had to pay 4.000,00 CZK to his brothers and sisters. A family with children could not be without a housewife for a longer time, so widower František got married in the same year.
