Bbndwood was
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distinctive mansion of its doy, ond still is. Greensboro people are campaigning to
restore it. — (Phofa by Fronk C. Sherrill, Jr.)
Unusual Mansion for
an Unusual Governor
Blandwood restoration recalls how
Governor Mo rehead’s friendship with
a famous architect left its mark on
North Carolina.
Governor John Motley Morehead
had been planning to rebuild Bland-
wood, his Greensboro residence; and,
as good fortune would have it, one
of the nation’s foremost architects had
come on State business from New
York to Raleigh, a long and arduous
trip in 1844.
Alexander Jackson Davis was a
member of the New York architec¬
tural firm of Towne and Davis, archi¬
tects who designed many of America’s
notable structures of that day, not the
least of which were the North Carolina
State Capitol and other familiar build¬
ings in this state.
Davis had come south to plan some
work for the University at Chapel Hill
(extension of Old East and Old West).
It was his first trip to North Carolina,
and one of the first Tar Heels he met
here was Governor Morehead. 1'he
two men became fast friends, a rela¬
tionship that was to continue for many
years.
THE STATE, May t, 1963
While he was in Raleigh, Davis
agreed to remodel and enlarge the
Morehead home. Several days later in
Chapel Hill, Governor Morehead
came for Davis in his carriage and
drove to Greensboro, an overnight
trip. They spent three days there while
Davis studied the existing structure
and started his design for remodeling.
The result was an architectural
achievement peculiarly fitting the
famed progressive governor. Just as
Morehead was a man ahead of his
time, the same could be said for the
new Bland wood. Davis’ design was in
the style of a Tuscan villa, one of the
very earliest homes in the Italianate
style which was to become so popular
in America — very modern for that
time.
Blandwood still stands as a monu¬
ment to note in the history of American
architecture, and now is one of the
few' remaining structures of this style
in the United States.
The old mansion's architectural dis¬
tinction plus the historical stature of
John Motley Morehead have given
double incentive to Greensboro peo¬
ple who arc now campaigning to re¬
store Blandwood.
After the years when Morehcad's
family lived there — and entertained
many renowned persons of the day —
Blandwood passed through a succes¬
sion of ownerships by Morehead
descendants until 1896 when it was
leased, and later bought, by the Keeley
Institute. Guilford College purchased
the property in 1965.
The Greensboro Preservation Society-
now proposes to purchase Blandwood
for $200,000 and spend about that
much in restoring the mansion to its
long-ago elegance. Located in a
spacious setting of grass, trees and
shrubs near the heart of Greensboro,
the restoration would become an his¬
toric attraction and civic facility.
Spokesmen for the Greensboro
Preservation Society credit Dr. John V.
Allcott, professor of art at UNC
(Chapel Hill), and Mr. and Mrs.
Henry Zenke, of Greensboro, with
bringing the Davis connection to light,
Dr. Allcott learned the facts from a
publication found in the library of
Mrs. S. R. Prince, of Reidsville. In
the meantime, the Zcnkes, having
come to the same conclusion in their
own research, visited the Metropolitan
Museum in New York and discovered
the original watercolor sketches of
Blandwood in a collection of the
famed architect’s work there.
An etching of Blandwood appeared
in the 1859 publication “A Treatise
on the Theory and Practice of Land¬
scape Gardening” by Andrew Jackson
Downing, a leading authority on land¬
scaping.
Dr. Allcott relates how the friend¬
ship of Morehead and Davis de¬
veloped in both North Carolina and
New York. It was Robert Donaldson,
a North Carolinian become New York
business man, and formerly a school¬
mate of Morehead at the University,
who arranged the first trip of his friend
Davis to North Carolina. His name
also crops up in the exchange of
letters which follows at length between
Morehead and Davis, The letters, by
the way, afford much information
about Blandwood to restoration en¬
thusiasts.
When the Governor, with ladies of
the family, went to New York to pur¬
chase furnishings for the mansion,
( Continued on page 31)
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