State

Роде Eight THE STATE October 5, 1935 Homes of By-Gone Days INTERESTING old Intro iii North Carolina ню «I numerous t hat it io difficult to lin<l n starting point to describe them. They arc scattered over the .State liko dandelion» on a front lnwn. The historic interests of homes in North (’nrolina centers in the families who founded, occupied, and adorned them, and connected them with the -tirriiif' legends and important events in the annals of a country. Here is a bird's-eye view of just a few: Settlement at Quaker Meadows Among the earliest settler# in the valley of the upper Catawba, in the old county of burke, were Joseph Mc¬ Dowell. the elder, a grandson of Ephraim, the founder of the family in Virginia. Kentucky and our own state. He was the first settler at Quaker Mea¬ dows. According to tradition, the Quaker Meadows farm was so called before the McDowells or any other whites established homes in Burke County, and derived the name from the fact thill the Indians. after clearing parts of the broad and fertile bottoms, bad suffered the wild grass to spring up and form a great meadow, near which a Quaker had camped before the French- Indian War and traded for furs. Fort Defiance is the ancestral home of General William Lenoir, who settled there after the Revolutionary War. It is situated in what is called the 'TTap- py Valley.” in Caldwell County. Gen¬ eral Lenoir built his mansion in 1784- 4V It is still standing intact. It is quaint in construction, and the air about it is thick with memories of by¬ gone days. The Fort was built on the east side of table land, on the edge of a precipice. 1 1 was built of logs in the early history "f I he country, when In¬ dians we . . . and troublesome. Women and children were often hur¬ ried into this refuge, while fathers, husbands and sons defended them. Fort Defiance has l«cn the scene of great hospitality and romances. It is surrounded by century-old cedars and spruce pine*. Many of the sweet-old- fashion flowers «till bloom about the place. The old log fort has disappeared entirely. About two mile* north of Bath, in the eastern part of the stale, is the THERE are Mill a number of old homo*» and estate* in North Caro¬ lina which were centers of gay hospitality more than 1 50 years ago. A few of them are described in the accompanying article. If i/ OM> IIIJIKlIVCallAFII old Ormond estate, the house being built in early colonial days. It is rap¬ idly going to ruin, yet the handsome old stairway, running down to a sninll- paned window, with doors on either side, still remains, as does the pic¬ turesque hip roof. The finest tiled man- tle-pieee, a gem in its day. has been destroyed. Some mile» beyond this at Hunter's Bridge was another large plantation, owned originally by one of the Ormond brothers, an obi bachelor, whose wealth excited the cupidity of his slaves. While their master slept they throw nn immense feather lied over him. jumping on it to complete the process of smothering and killing. Tradition snvs the Negroes were ap¬ prehended and three of them were burned at the stake in Bath Town. If this he true it is the only ease of its kind on record in this state. The Or¬ mond* were nn English family of wealth and distinction. In another direction, a few miles from Bath are still to 1ю seen the foun¬ dations of a large brick house, owned by the Rhoulhaes. The me and plan gives token of gay and generous hos¬ pitality. for tradition has kept up the memory in all that countryside of “grand balls in which gay ladies in rich brocades trod the stately minuets with their gallant partners." The Marsh Home Perhaps the quaintest house in ex¬ istence today is the old Marsh House situated on the principal street of Bath Town, and still in good preservation. Tt was built in 1744. by Monsieur Cataueh for Mr. and Mrs. Whitemore. The chimney is of immense 'i/e. being seventeen feet broad and four feet thick, having windows in it which open on closets with stone floors. The brick and tile* of the chimney are of the same pattern as those used in the con¬ struction of St. Thomas Church, and were brought from England. In the rear of the building is a family bury¬ ing ground where is in¬ terred Mrs. Mary Evans, niece of the Whitomore*. The grey stone slab at the head of her grave is very quaint, ns at the top, sur¬ rounded by scroll work, is carved a medallion of the fair lady herself. She has the figure and face of youth and is arrayed in the long-pointed waist and tight sleeves of that era. The beautiful Mary Evans died of a broken heart, caused by the loss of her husband in a wreck at sea. There is a very unique estate in the town of Edenton. It is the Cupola House. It was built by Francis Corbin for his betrothed. Jean limes, the «idow of Col. James Inn os. of the Cape Fear section, the o*ehcater-gen- oral of North Carolina, and the initials “F. C." and the date **I4C\" are still plainly visible upon the gable- post of this old house. In The Happy Valley Country Palmyra, in the “Happy Valley," once the colonial homo of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Logerwood Patterson, and the center of cordial hospitality— and one of the most beautiful locations in that lovely valley, in Caldwell County— upon their death, was bequeathed to the Episcopal mission of Western North Carolina for an industrial school for mountain boy*. The original house was burned some years ago. and a more suitable brick building for the school has been erected on the site. For more than a century tlii« lovely home of the Pattersons was open to all with a generous hospitality. The Patterson School on the premises i- doing a fine work for poor boys. “The Fountain," the fine old colonial home of the late W. D. Jones, in the “Happy Valley.” where the occupant* for quite a hundred years, were all re¬ lated. and where a gracious hospitality was and still is dispensed, is still in n state of good preservation. It was named from the fact that a spring in the hack yard furnished water for the operation of a fountain in the yard. The spring is still running but the fountain has passed out of existence. “The Fountain" home, a* originally constructed, was along the building line# in vogue in 1S07. There was not a passage in the house, which is two stories with a garret. The stairway ran (Continued on page twenty-two )