G. G. GALLOWAY HOUSE

 

This report was written on July 5, 1985

1. Name and location of the property: The property known as the G. G. Galloway House is located at 602 East Morehead Street, Charlotte, North Carolina.

2. Name, address and telephone number of the present owner of the property:

Mr. Nelson M. Casstevens, Jr.
Box 34607
Charlotte, NC 28234

Telephone: 704/372-2140

Representative photographs of the property: This report contains representative photographs of the property.

4. A map depicting the location of the property: This report contains a map which depicts the location of the property.

 

 

 

5. Current Deed Book Reference to the property: The most recent deed to this property is recorded in Deed Book 4425, Page 399. The Tax Parcel Number of the property is 123-023-l0.

6. A brief historical sketch of the property: This report contains a brief historical sketch of the property prepared by Dr. William H. Huffman, Ph.D.

7. A brief architectural description of the property: This report contains a brief architectural description of the property prepared by Mr. Joseph Schuchman, edited and revised by Dr. Dan L. Morrill.

8. Documentation of why and in what ways the property meets the criteria set forth in N.C.G.S. 160A-399.4:

 

a. Special significance in terms of its history, architecture, and/or cultural importance: The Commission judges that the property known as the G. G. Galloway House does possess special significance in terms of Charlotte-Mecklenburg. The Commission bases its judgment on the following considerations: 1) the G. G. Galloway House, erected in 1914-15 for Gaston Gilbert Galloway (1880-1974) and his wife, Carrie Marshall Brown Galloway (1885-1972), is the only surviving structure in what was once an imposing residential district on the south side of the western end of E. Morehead St. in Dilworth, Charlotte’s first streetcar suburb; 2) the G. G. Galloway House was designed by William H. Peeps (1868-1950) an architect of regional significance in the first half of the twentieth century in Charlotte and its environs; 3) the G. G. Galloway House is a significant local example of the Bungalow style with English Tudor motifs also employed; and 4) the original owners, Mr. and Mrs. G. G. Galloway, were important figures in the local civic and business community of Charlotte.

b. Integrity of design, setting, workmanship, materials, feeling, and/or association: The Commission contends that the attached architectural description by Mr. Joseph Schuchman, edited and revised by Dr. Dan L. Morrill, demonstrates that the property known as the G. G. Galloway House meets this criterion.

9. Ad Valorem Tax Appraisal: The Commission is aware that designation would allow the owner to apply for an automatic deferral of 50% of the Ad Valorem taxes on all or any portion of the property which becomes “historic property.” It should be noted that the current appraised value of the property is: Improvement – $166,280. Land (.480 acres) – $79,500. Total – $245,780. The property is zoned B1.

Date of Preparation of this Report: July 5, 1985

Prepared by: Dr. Dan L. Morrill
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Properties Commission
1225 S. Caldwell St.
Charlotte, NC, 28203

Telephone: 704/376-9115

 

 

Historical Overview

Dr. William H. Huffman
December, 1983

As the receptionist of the law firm of Casstevens and Hanner said from behind her desk in the cozy entry hall of the former Gallaway house, which has a clear view of the elegantly furnished adjoining room, “everyone says this is just like working in a home rather than an office.” Indeed, in spite of the expected compliment of desks, files, typewriters, telephones and word processors of a modern office, the decoration and restoration efforts of Barbara Casstevens for her husband’s law firm has resulted in an extensively refurbished grand house sensitively adapted for office use.

The ten-room house was built in 1914-15 by Gaston Gilbert Galloway (1880-1974) and Carrie Marshall Brown Galloway (1885-1972) as their first, and only, home following their marriage in 1913 or 1914.¹ G. G. Galloway, a lifelong real estate man, hailed from Mount Airy when he became vice-president of the Charlotte-based Trader’s Land Co. in 1911.² The president and founder of the real estate firm was Peter Marshall Brown (1859-1913), one of Charlotte’s leading citizens and Galloway’s future father-in-law. P. M. Brown was a Charlotte native who inherited considerable business and real estate holdings in the city from his father, John L. Brown (d. 1893). In 1901 and 1903, he was elected mayor of Charlotte, and had been the chairman of the county commissioners from 1898 to 1900. In addition to being a director of the Commercial National Bank, Brown was the president of the Highland Park Manufacturing Co. (textile mills), Southern Real Estate and Loan Co., and Southern Loan and Savings Bank. With his first wife, the former Jennie Beecher Bass (d. 1898), he had four children, Carrie Brown, Mrs. Dolph M. Young, John Bass Brown and William J. Brown. There were no children from the second marriage to the former Daisy Bell Pharr in 1905.³

When G. G. Galloway assumed the vice-presidency of the Trader’s Land Co. in 1911, P. M. Brown had already built his own home in the new streetcar suburb of Dilworth on East Boulevard. ⁴ In 1913, Galloway was shown as a first vice-president of the company, but it was a year of even greater change: P. M. Brown died suddenly.⁵ Shortly thereafter, G. G. Galloway became president of Trader’s Land Company, and about the same time married Carrie Marshall Brown. ⁶ At first the newly wed couple lived in the Brown family home on East Boulevard, but soon made plans to build a place of their own. ⁷Along with two other family members (Mr. and Mrs. Dolph M. Young and William J. Brown), the Galloways purchased a lot from the Charlotte Consolidated Construction Company (commonly called the 4 C’s) on East Morehead Street between Caldwell and Euclid in April, 1914.⁸

The 4C’s had been established in 1890 by Edward Dilworth Latta to develop Charlotte’s first streetcar suburb, which was made possible by the building of an electric trolley system from the city center to the heart of the new residential area, Latta Park. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the beautifully landscaped park surrounding a lake saw many sporting events and traveling shows in its pavilion, and was an outdoor social center and amusement park. Then, as now, the suburb contained a wide range of houses. The wealthy tended to build their great houses along the main boulevards (East and South Boulevards, and Morehead Street), but many of the side streets, there are quite modest homes, and on the south side was a mill village which belonged to the Atherton Cotton Mill (built by New South industrialist D. A. Tompkins). Latta built his own mansion on East Boulevard where the Greek Orthodox Church now stands. ⁹

When three of P. M. Brown’s children chose to build their own homes near the summit of Morehead Street, they had excellent sites with a commanding view of the city. All three also engaged the same architect, William H. Peeps (1868-1950), to design the new houses. Peeps was a native of London, England, and came to Charlotte in 1905 from Grand Rapids, Michigan. During his nearly forty-five years as a practicing architect here, he left a significant legacy of commercial and residential designs throughout the city. Among his best known works are the Latta Arcade (for E. D. Latta, 1914), the Court Arcade (1927-8), Ivey’s Department Store (1924), Ratcliffe Flowers (1929), and many fine residences, including that of the fourth of P. M. Brown’s children, John Bass Brown, as well as those of F. D. Lethco, J. B. Ivey, John M. Scott and a number of others. ¹¹

When W. J. Hyndman, the builder, took out a building permit for the Galloway house on July 28, 1914, it was estimated to cost $12,000.00. ¹²(Deed restrictions required a house of not less than $6000 to be built on the lot, which cost $5000). ¹³ It was probably well into 1915 before the ten-room house was completed. Peeps’ design contained some interesting features, including an unusually large front porch, the use of exterior stone, an angled front stairway, and a den with rounded arch windows which reminds one of a second-floor office in a turn-of-the-century building. By any standard it was a large, well appointed house.

It was in this grand house that the Galloways, who did not have children, lived nearly sixty years. A niece, Carrie Marshall Gilchrist, recalls many happy hours and social occasions at the house. Mr. Galloway remained a real estate broker and developer his entire professional life, and handled many uptown transactions. (The story is told about the measure of his success that he sold the Duke mansion in Myers Park no less than three times.) ¹⁴

After Mr. Galloway passed away in 1974, the house went through a series of owners, and was for a time the Stonehenge Restaurant. Since its purchase in 1981 by Nelson Casstevens, Jr. for his law firm offices, the Galloway house has been extensively restored in a way that effectively brings back much of the quality of the original.¹⁵

 

---

NOTES

¹ Charlotte Observer, Nov. 9, 1972, p. 10C; Ibid., July 2, 1974, p. 9B.

² Charlotte City Directory, 1911, p. 201.

³ Charlotte Observer, Nov. 13, 1932, p. 1B.

⁴ Charlotte City Directory, 1911, p. 137.

⁵ Ibid,, 1913, p. 185; see note 3.

⁶ Charlotte City Directory, 1914, p. 231.

⁷ Ibid.

⁸ Deed Book 325, p. 58, 18 April 1914.

⁹ ” The New South Neighborhoods: Dilworth,” Charlotte Mecklenburg Historic Properties Commission, 1981.

¹⁰ Papers of William Peeps, Special Collections, Atkins Library, University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

¹¹ Charlotte Observer, Sept. 11, 1950, p. 1B; George W. Hamilton, ed., William H. Peeps AIA (Charlotte: News Publishing House, 1928).

¹² Building Permit No. 1349, 28 July 1914.

¹³ See note 8.

¹⁴ Interview with Carrie Marshall Gilchrist, Charlotte, NC 19 Dec. 1983.

¹⁵ Deed Book 4425, p. 399, 24 Aril 1981; interview with Nelson and Barbara Casstevens, Charlotte, NC 16 Dec. 1983.

 

 

Architectural Description

Joseph Schuchman

In planning the suburb of Dilworth, the Charlotte Consolidated Construction Company or Four Cs envisioned a grid plan, tree-lined neighborhood delineated by three grand thoroughfares, East Boulevard, South Boulevard, and Morehead Street. The G. G. Galloway House is a fruition of this effort and is one of the finest of the remaining residences on East Morehead Street.

Gaston Gilbert Galloway (1880-1974) and his wife, Carrie Marshall Brown Galloway (1885-1972) purchased this lot from the Four Cs on April 18, 1914, for $5,000. The land was identified as Lot Number 10 in Square 31 at Dilworth. The deed specified a 50-foot setback from the street and a building cost of at least $6,000. Construction began within a few months after the purchase of the land.

Although the Bungalow style dominates the exterior appearance, subtle and handsome traces of the English Tudor Revival style are evident in the G. G. Galloway House. The well-preserved residence is recessed from the street and occupies a landscaped lot. The G. G. Galloway House is located near the entrance of Dilworth, as one travels from uptown Charlotte along Morehead Street. Today, the house owes its appearance not only to the designs of the British born and trained architect William H. Peeps but also to the careful restoration and rehabilitation effort supervised by Barbara Casstevens, wife of Nelson Casstevens, the current owner. The G. G. Galloway House now serves as the office for the law firm of Casstevens, Hanner, & Gunter, of which Mr. Casstevens is the senior partner.

The exterior of the G. G. Galloway House is asymmetrically arranged. Rectangular cut wood shingles are the primary sheathing material. Projecting side bays and oriels are covered in stuccoed pebble dash set within rectangular wood frames. A jerkinhead-on-gable roof covers the triple pile main block. Ornamental gable end brackets and exposed rafters are typical of the Bungalow style. Exterior openings are placed within plain surrounds with a crown molded lintel. Windows have a molded sill. Although 1/1 sash are the primary glazing light, the house incorporates a wide variety of window sizes and shapes. Tripartite segmental arched windows ornament the east and rear elevations. A series of casement windows, each with geometric lights, are centrally placed in the end gables of the sides and rear. The foundation is of brick, arranged in common bond. Asphalt shingle is the primary roofing material.

A hip roof porch dominates the front elevation, wraps around the east side to a projecting ell and terminates in a port-cochere on the west. The present owner has landscaped the area under the porte-cochere and created a new driveway a few yards to the west. The porch’s foundation and massive square piers are of field-stone construction. Rectangular grate openings are placed in the foundation of the porch, and the underside of the porch roof is sheathed in tongue-and-groove ceiling. Oversize brackets support the entrance overhang, and the off-center main entrance is framed by fluted piers which rest on a rectangular base and rise to a molded capital. The six-panel entrance door was installed by the present owner; a stationary beveled transom is located above the door, and a weatherboard bond runs across the elevation and serves as a belt course between the first and second stories.

On the second story, a tripartite arrangement of casement windows is flanked by Tudor style 6/1 window sash. Louvered shutters ornament the double sash. A hip-roofed dormer, with casement windows and exposed rafters, is centrally placed and projects from the attic.

On the side and rear elevations, continuous bands of weatherboard serve as a belt course between the first and second story and the second story and the attic. On each side is a straight run fieldstone chimney, which cuts through and rises sharply above the roofline. On the east side, a shallow two-story ell projects from the center bay. Diamond paned casements, a typical English Tudor Style feature, light the first story. A series of geometrical shapes, covered in stucco, encircles the base of the second story. A series of ells and oriels highlights the west elevation, and brackets support the underside of a stair hall and second story projection. Diamond pane transoms highlight the front bay window grouping.

Two ells run across the first story of the rear elevation. A formerly open porch, which formed a major portion of the larger ell, was enclosed by 1981 and is sheathed in rectangular cut wood shingles similar to those which cover the remainder of the house. The raised concrete walkway and handicapped entrance were added by Mr. Nelson Casstevens. The remainder of the elevation is flush with the exterior wall.

The interior has been handsomely restored and rehabilitated for office use. Rooms are simply appointed, typical of early twentieth century design, but the woodwork is elegantly detailed. Openings are framed by molded surrounds.

The main entrance leads into a reception hall from which first story rooms radiate. A molded baseboard and chair rail encircle the room. An entablature, composed of a molded architrave and cornice and a plain frieze, frames the vertical ceiling beams. Identical roofline cornices are found in the living and dining rooms.

Paneled double doors, approximately eight feet high, lead to the former living room, which now serves as a conference room. Similarly executed doors also connect the living and dining rooms. A cast iron mantle, typical of English Tudor motifs, is centrally placed between the fenestration on the east wall. The Tudor arch frames the rectangular opening and a marble surround. Spandrels are ornamented with floral details. The entablature, consisting of a denticulated architrave, plain frieze, and molded cornice and shelf, is set between the ornamented end piers. The beamed ceiling, like that in the reception hall, is indicative of the English Tudor influence. A baseboard, chair rail, and roofline entablature encircle the room.

Remaining first story rooms open off an irregularly shaped center hall, which runs from the reception hall to tile rear of the house. The dining room, perhaps the house’s most elaborate interior space, contains fine woodwork. Vertical piers, set between rectangular plastered panels, form a wainscot between the molded baseboard and a bracketed chair rail. A built-in buffet is set beneath the diamond pane casements. This recessed space is set between piers which rest on the baseboard and rise to molded capitals. The brick fireplace is faced in vertical and horizontal soldier courses. Brackets support a simple mantle shelf. Ceiling beams are geometrically arranged, and the diamond shaped beams, at the room’s center, reflect the shape of the casement window panes.

The main stairs to the second story are set at a 45 degree angle in the reception hall, diagonally across from the front entrance. The open string stairs rise five steps to a landing. Plain banisters and tapering newel posts rise to a plain handrail. Newel posts rise to a geometrically ornamented top, the simplicity of which recalls the Prairie School designs of Frank Lloyd Wright. A tripartite grouping of 1/1 sash light the stair landing. An enclosed stair-well (possibly for servants’ use) runs off the center hall and joins the main stair at this landing. The staircase turns east and rises enclosed. Plain banisters rest on bracket-like supports. Second story newel posts are similar to those found on the first level.

The former den is located at the rear of the house. A tripartite segmental arch window, with stationary transoms, is located on the east and rear walls. The fieldstone mantle displays a segmental arch opening and a rectangular wood shelf. A molded baseboard and cornice encircle the room.

The floor plan of the (now enclosed) rear porch, kitchen and pantry has been altered to serve the office needs of the present owner. The renovations are sympathetic to the building. The kitchen mantle had previously been removed by a former owner.

Second story rooms radiate off the center hall. Rooms have a molded base-board and cornice, and openings are set in molded surrounds. Second floor mantles were removed by a former owner.

The present owner has added a front bedroom mantle. Yellow tile flanks the rectangular opening, which is framed by an egg and dart border. The plain frieze has clipped ends with an egg-shaped inset. The molded shelf rises to an egg and dart molded cornice.

The largest of the bedrooms (likely the former master bedroom) has been divided to form two offices. The remainder of the original floor plan remains largely intact. An enclosed stair rises to the unfinished attic.

Funderburk-Plaxco Survey & Research Report

The Funderburk Brothers Buildings

This report was written on May 29, 1991

1. Name and location of the property: The Funderburk Brothers Buildings are located on North Trade Street, Matthews, in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.

2. Name, address and telephone number of the present owner of the property: The owner of the property is:
Mr. Nick J. Miller
1816 Reverdy Lane
Matthews, North Carolina 28105

Telephone: (704) 844-4480

Tax Parcel Numbers: 192-262-06

3. Representative photographs of the property: This report contains representative photographs of the property.

4. A map depicting the location of the property: This report contains maps which depict the location of the property.

 

 

Click on the map to browse

5. Current Deed Book Reference to the property: The most recent deed to Tax Parcel Number 192-62-06 is listed in Mecklenburg County Deed Book 5824 at page 921.

6. A brief historical sketch of the property: This report contains a brief historical sketch of the property prepared by Dr. Dan L. Morrill.

7. A brief architectural description of the property: This report contains a brief architectural description of the property prepared by Ms. Ruth Little-Stokes and Ms. Nora M. Black.

8. Documentation of why and in what ways the property meets criteria for designation set forth In N.C.G.S. 160A-400.5:

 

a. Special significance in terms of its history, architecture, and for cultural importance: The Commission judges that the property known as the Funderburk Brothers Buildings does possess special significance in terms of Matthews and Mecklenburg County. The Commission bases its judgment on the following considerations:
1) the surviving elements of the Funderburk Brothers Buildings are an essential component of the historic streetscape of North Trade Street;
2) the surviving elements of the Funderburk Brothers Buildings are the only physical remnants of the contribution made by the Funderburk family to the commercial development of Matthews, North Carolina;
3) the building at 159 North Trade Street is the original ca. 1878-1898 building erected by Ellison James Funderburk;
4) the building at 157 North Trade Street is the first addition constructed ca. 1901 by Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk as a dry goods store; and
5) the surviving elements of the Funderburk Brothers Buildings bear testimony to the type of commercial vernacular architecture that was predominant in the small towns of Mecklenburg County in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

b. Integrity of design, setting, workmanship, materials, feeling, and/or association: The Commission contends that the architectural description by Ms. Ruth Little-Stokes and Ms. Nora M. Black included in this report demonstrates that the surviving elements of the Funderburk Brothers Buildings meet this criterion.

9. Ad Valorem Tax Appraisal: The Commission is aware that designation would allow the owner to apply for an automatic deferral of 50% of the ad Valorem taxes on all or any portion of the property which becomes a designated “historic landmark.” The following values cover the entire Tax Parcel and all improvements; tax deferral for the historic portion of the property will be determined later by the Mecklenburg County Tax Office. The current appraised value of the improvements is $329,060. The current appraised value of Tax Parcel 192-262-06 is $315,000. The total appraised value of the property is $644,060. The property is zoned UBD.

Date of Preparation of this Report: 29 May 1991

Prepared by: Dr. Dan L. Morrill
in conjunction with Ms. Nora M. Black
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission
1225 South Caldwell Street, Box D
Charlotte, North Carolina 28203

Telephone 704/376-9115

 

 

Historical Overview

 

Originally Prepared on 22 February 1978
Dr. Dan L. Morrill

A revolutionary event in the economic and social life of the farm families of eastern Mecklenburg, County occurred in 1874. The Central Carolina Railroad Company erected a depot near the stagecoach stop and post office operated by Mr. John M. Fullwood. Situated approximately midway between Monroe and Charlotte, the facility was named “Matthews” in honor of Mr. Watson Matthews, a member of the Board of Directors of the Central Carolina Railroad. ¹

The Matthews Depot quickly became the focal point of economic activity in eastern Mecklenburg County. The farmers of the surrounding countryside would travel there to obtain supplies and merchandise, both for their own use and for purposes of stocking small general stores which they operated for the benefit of the hired hands on their own and nearby farms. The most intensive phase of business activity happened each fall, when cotton. the principal cash crop of the region, was sold and prepared for shipment to distant markets. Illustrative of the economic importance of the depot is the fact that it served five passenger trains and eight freight trains daily. ²

By the late 1870’s the merchants and other businessmen who had established enterprises in the immediate vicinity of the Matthews Depot constituted a settlement which contained approximately two hundred people. In 1879 they secured a charter of incorporation from the legislature of North Carolina, creating the Town of Matthews and empowering the citizens thereof to exercise their authority as residents of an incorporated municipality. ³

Among the prominent farmers of the Morning Star section of Mecklenburg County was Ellison James Funderburk. Born on July 1, 1836, Mr. Funderburk was reared near the Lynches River in Chesterfield County, South Carolina. He had migrated to Mecklenburg County soon after the end of the Civil War, a conflict in which he had served as a soldier for the Confederate States of America. He remained a resourceful and enterprising entrepreneur until his death on March 14, 1916. Mr. Funderburk and his wife. Selia Anne Williams Funderburk (1838-1427. had eleven children (five boys and six girls). In 1878 Mr. Funderburk acquired the first parcel of land which he was to own in the Town of Matthews. ⁴ The Charlotte Observer of March 15, 1916, reported that he moved to Matthews “during its early days” and that he prospered there.

The reputation that E. J. Funderburk had established in Matthews was carried on by three of his sons, Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk, Thomas Lee Funderburk, and Ellison Albertus Morgan Funderburk. Of the three, B. D. Funderburk was to become the most prominent. Born in Chesterfield County, South Carolina on May 12, 1868, B. D. Funderburk came to Mecklenburg County with his family soon thereafter. ⁶ He married Sallie Faulkner Funderburk on July 11, 1895. ⁷ His wife, also a native of South Carolina, had been reared near Matthews by her aunt, Jane K. Reid, wife of Amzi G. Reid ⁸

On November 22, 1898, B. D. Funderburk acquired the building which presently houses the antique shop on North Trade Street in Matthews, North Carolina. ⁹ It had been erected by his father sometime between 1878 and 1898, most probably in the latter part of that period. ¹⁰ It is reasonable to assume that Mr. Funderburk had used the building as a general merchandise store and that his son continued that practice. On May 13, 1901, B. D. Funderburk purchased the lot adjacent to the original store building, on which he constructed the more elaborate building which served as dry goods store for many years and which currently houses the Matthews Emporium. ¹¹

The next expansion of Mr. Funderburk’s facilities occurred in 1909, when a two-story brick structure was erected. This edifice contained the newly-established Bank of Matthews, a general merchandise store, and apartments on the second floor. ¹² Soon thereafter the original general store was converted into a barber shop. ¹³ The complex of buildings also contained a livery stable which was probably erected sometime after 1901. Two brick structures, also most likely constructed in the early years of the twentieth century, occupied the rear of the property. The older of the two served as a blacksmith shop, while the other was used for a variety of purposes including a grist mill and a woodworking shop. The Funderburk Cotton Gin, which stood on the north side of the railroad, is no longer extant. ¹⁴

Thomas Lee Funderburk was closely associated with his brother in launching this aggregate of business enterprises in Matthews, North Carolina. He met a tragic death on December 12, 1940, when he succumbed to injuries which resulted from “being run over” by his own wagon earlier in the day. ¹⁵ The third brother, Ellison Albertus Morgan Funderburk, was a cashier for the Bank of Matthews until his death on May 31, 1937. ¹⁶ But, as stated above, Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk was the most prominent of the three. The Charlotte Observer of October 6, 1954, reported that Mr. Funderburk had been a member of the Board of Directors of the Bank of Matthews from 1909 until his death the previous day. He was even more widely known for his many years of service on the Mecklenburg County Board of Education, having served three terms, 1909- 1913, 1915 -1927 and 1935-1949. ¹⁷

B. D. Funderburk and Sallie Faulkner Funderburk, the latter surviving until March 14, 1963, had three children who attained adulthood. All were to become intimately involved in the operation of the Funderburk enterprises in Matthews. Louie Lummis Funderburk, born September 5, 1901, operated the general merchandise and dry goods store until his death on January 15, 1945. ¹⁸ Janie Louise Funderburk, wife of Boyce S. Plaxco, returned to Matthews soon thereafter from Glen Alpine, North Carolina. She and her husband assumed the responsibility which had been performed by her deceased brother. Mr. Plaxco, son of Robert N. and Sara Couser Plaxco of York County, South Carolina, died on January 11, 1973. ¹⁹ Mrs. Plaxco expired soon thereafter, on May 27, 1973. ²⁰ Their untimely deaths led to the closing of the general merchandise store and the dry goods store.

Lee Edward Funderburk, born January 10, 1899, continued to serve as President of the Bank of Matthews, a position he had assumed in 1926. His wife, Betty Morrah Funderburk of Troy, South Carolina, was a devoted teacher in the public schools of Mecklenburg County for over thirty years. Mr. and Mrs. Funderburk occupy positions of great affection and regard among the citizens of Matthews. They continue to reside in the Funderburk home on West Charles Street, Mr. Funderburk recently having retired and having sold the bank to the Branch Banking and Trust Company of Wilson. ²¹

The Funderburk Brothers Buildings have experienced considerable change in the twentieth century. Two major fires have occurred on the property, one in 1913 and another in 1958. The first destroyed all but portion of the livery stable and a two-story frame house which occupied the vacant lot which is now situated between the livery stable and the bank. ²² On the afternoon of May 11, 1958, a fire destroyed the second floor of the building which housed the bank and general merchandise store. ²³ Moreover, a new front was placed on the livery stable sometime before 1950. The rooms at the front of the stable have been used for a variety of purposes over the years. In the early 1970’s the grist mill and the blacksmith shop were converted for a brief time into a gift shop. They are presently used for storage, as is the livery stable. ²⁴

Addendum to Historical Sketch: Funderburk Brothers Building

Prepared on 29 May 1991
by Dr. Dan L. Merrill

In 1978, major portions of the Funderburk complex were destroyed to make way for a new building and parking lot constructed by Branch Banking and Trust Company. Specifically, the livery stable and the building erected in 1909, containing the Bank of Matthews and later Branch Banking and Trust Company, the general merchandise store, and apartments, were sacrificed. The only portions of the Funderburk complex which remain are the original store building erected by E. J. Funderburk, the building constructed by B D. Funderburk in 1901, and the two brick structures (the blacksmith shop and the grist mill) at the rear of the property.

The tenants of the various buildings have changed since 1973, and Mr. L. E. Funderburk has died. His widow, Betty Morrah Funderburk continues to reside in the Funderburk home on West Charles Street in Mathews.

 

 

---

Notes

¹ The Southeast News (November 10,1975), pp. 1-24.

² Ibid.

³ Ibid.

⁴ Guy B. Funderburk, Funderburk History And Heritage (Salem, WV, Pageland, SC: 1967, pp. 329-331. Mecklenburg County Deed Book 59, Page 357.

⁵ Charlotte Observer (March 15, 1916) p. 2.

⁶ Charlotte Observer (October 6, 1954) p. 1B.

⁷ Interview with Mr. and Mrs. L. E. Funderburk.

⁸ Mecklenburg County Will Book L, Page 57.

⁹ Mecklenburg County Deed Book 144, Page 10.

¹⁰ Mecklenburg County Deed Book 9, Page 357. Mecklenburg County Deed Book 144, Page 40.

¹¹ Mecklenburg County Deed Book 15G, Page 545.

¹² Mecklenburg County Deed Book 756, Page 51.

¹³ Interview with Mr. and Mrs. L. E. Funderburk.

¹⁴ Interview with Miss Mary Louise Phillips. Interview with Mr. and Mrs. L. E. Funderburk.

¹⁵ Charlotte News (December 13, 1940),p. 17.

¹⁶ Charlotte Observer (June 1, 1937), Sec. 1, p. 8.

¹⁷ Charlotte Observer (October 6, 1954), p. 1 B.

¹⁸ Charlotte Observer (January 29, 1945), Sec. B, p. 1.

¹⁹ Charlotte News (January 12, 1973) p. 8A.

²⁰ Charlotte News (May 28, 1973), p. 8A.

²¹ Interview with Mr. and Mrs. L. E. Funderburk.

²² Ibid.

²³ Charlotte Observer (May 12, 1958), p. 1.

²⁴ Interview with Mr. and Mrs. L. E. Funderburk.

 

 

Architectural Sketch

 

Originally Prepared on 22 February 1978
by Ms. Ruth Little-Stokes

The Funderburk Brothers Mercantile Complex, built between ca. 1898 and 1910, occupies most of one block of the two-block business district on Trade Street in Matthews, a late nineteenth century railroad town in southeastern Mecklenburg County. The complex consists of the original store built ca. 1898, a dry goods store, a general store and bank, livery stable, blacksmith shop and grist mill, built before ca. 1910. This commercial district represents the most significant survival of a self-sufficient Victorian mercantile operation in Mecklenburg County. It is highlighted on the exterior by the fascinating construction of the blacksmith shop and grist mill, and on the interior by the remarkably well-preserved early twentieth century banking room. The buildings have been occupied by variety of commercial functions in recent years, but have suffered little alteration. The major changes are the removal of the second story of the general store and bank building as the result of a 1958 fire, and the remodeling of the livery stable facade ca. 1940 and the rebuilding of the stable in 1918.

The original Funderburk Store is the smallest structure in the complex and has the most modest design. The one-story rectangular brick structure has a three-bay wide street front containing a center double door with a transom and flanking sash windows. The brick facade is laid in one-to-five bond, the openings have flat brick arches, and the sash are early wooden replacements. The storefront is devoid of ornament, and architectural interest resides in the contrast with the slightly newer storefronts of the remainder of the complex, which are traditional Victorian commercial storefronts with recessed doors and display windows, forerunners of modern plate glass storefronts. The small windows and flush entrance of the ca. 1898 store represent a transitional stage between domestic and commercial design. The flat roof is concealed by the brick parapet, which has a brick corbel cornice apparently added when the adjacent dry goods store was built, for the cornice extends across both buildings. The rear elevation has a center door and flanking windows, but the diagonal batten door and two-over-two sash windows have molded surrounds and segmental-arched heads. The interior has an ornate pressed tin ceiling of coffered design and plaster walls. In the early twentieth century it served as a barber shop and showers are still in place in the rear.

The dry goods store, a one-story rectangular brick building which abuts the original store to the north, has a typical turn-of-the-century storefront, with a recessed double glazed and paneled door with a transom, flanking wooden display windows, and a wooden bracketed cornice. The main facade has bondless brick veneer, with a paneled frieze bearing the painted sign “Funderburk Brothers” and a brick corbel cornice. The only changes are the alteration of the window dados and the recent louvered metal transom. The interior, with a wooden floor, narrow beaded board ceiling sheathing, and side walls lined with built-in displays shelves with molded cornices, which are probably original, is remarkably unaltered.

The general store and bank, housed in the one story, rectangular brick building adjacent to the dry goods store, has two identical storefronts which are quite similar to that of the dry goods store. The same changes have occurred to these storefronts. In addition, the brick parapet wall above the storefronts is a replacement necessitated by the 1958 fire, which destroyed the original second story of the building. In the center bay of the bondless brick veneer facade is the entrance to the former upper floor, a replacement door with the original segmental-arched brick surround with keystone. The exposed side (south) wall of the building has short windows with arched brick surrounds identical to the second story entrance. The rear elevation has two double doors with alternating two-over-two sash windows. The large open interior space has a concrete floor and is supported by two rows of heavy chamfered wooden posts. Metal tie rods with crude six-point star heads are visible in the rear walls of this building and the dry goods store, and may have been made in the Funderburk Blacksmith Shop. In the rear (northwest) corner, on a wooden platform, is an office, separated from the display area by a wooden and iron railing. The early twentieth century office furniture is still in place, as is a section of the display shelves, similar to those in the dry goods store.

The banking room, a small room partitioned off in the front (southeast) corner, is the most significant interior space in the Funderburk Complex, for it retains elaborate early twentieth century banking appointments. The tellers’ cage, which extends along the north wall and across the rear of the room as an office partition, is of walnut, with paneled dado and window area with fluted pilasters and ornate wrought-iron grillwork. The vault, located in the rear behind the tellers’ cage, has a classical door of heavy cast iron, with fluted Corinthian pilasters and a broken pediment which enframes a lion’s head bracket and fluted urn. The pressed tin ceiling, consisting of coffers and cove cornice with acanthus corner blocks, is imprinted with a rich variety of classical motifs.

The livery stable, separated from the bank and general store building by a vacant lot, is a rectangular one-story brick building five bays wide and six bays deep set gable-end to the street. The brick is laid in one-to-five bond, the windows have wooden sash, metal grills, and segmental arches, and the low gable roof is covered with seamed tin. In the center of the front and rear gable ends is wide segmental-arched door with wooden gate. The street front, remodeled ca. 1940, is covered with dark red brick veneer and has a stepped parapet which conceals the roof. Centered over the stable entrance is a casement window, and on each side of the entrance is door and window with small glass panes. The gable end of the rear elevation is covered with lapped siding, and a small wooden shed addition covers the northwest corner. In each front corner is a small partitioned office. One of these housed the public library in the 1940’s. The remainder of the interior has been converted to warehouse, and has a dirt floor and heavy circular-sawn timber framework with an open truss roof. Metal tie rods serve as partial support for the triangular trusses. The side walls are lined with wooden platforms.

The fifth building in the complex abuts the narrow alley which parallels Trade Street to the west. This one and one-half story brick building, apparently constructed in several stages, is the most architecturally interesting structure in the group. The apparently oldest stage is a rectangular two-bay wide, four-bay deep structure laid in one-to-five bond. Brick pilasters flank each opening, a peculiar feature because they terminate just above the top of each door and window. The six-over-six sash windows have molded surrounds identical to those of the oldest store, and segmental-arched brick labels. The south wall of this section has identical sash windows, indicating that the south section of the building which conceals this wall is an addition. This section is of nearly identical construction and must have been added few years later. It has a wide double batten door in the east gable end a latticework brick ventilator above the door, six-over-six wooden sash, the same brick pilaster treatment and a parallel gable roof. These south sections of the building are said to have been built as a grist mill. A north wing, set about ten feet from the south section, is linked by a gable roof, which forms a covered passageway between the two sections. This rectangular structure, one bay wide and two bays long, extends lengthwise along the alley. Its construction is nearly identical to the south addition, and it may have been built simultaneously. This north wing is said to have functioned a blacksmith shop. Along the east flank of the wing is a wooden shed addition.

 

Addendum to Architectural Sketch: Funderburk Brothers Building

Prepared on 29 May 1991
by Ms. Nora M. Black

The four surviving elements of the Funderburk Brothers Mercantile complex, built between ca. 1898 and 1910 are on the northwest side of North Trade Street in Matthews. The property is approximately two-hundred feet west of the intersection of North Trade Street with the Seaboard Airline Railroad tracks.

The original Funderburk Store, built by Ellison James Funderburk between 1878 and 1898, is one of the surviving elements. The building, located at 159 North Trade Street, is occupied by “A Basket Instead.” The brick facade has changed little since the turn of the century. As mentioned by Little-Stokes, a brick corbel cornice unites the facade with that of the neighboring 1901 dry goods store facade. The windows and doorway are protected by a striped canvas awning. The double door, painted blue with white trim has a stone threshold. The interior has retained its ornate pressed tin ceiling through various tenants.

The second surviving element is the dry goods store built in 1901 by Benjamin Dewitt Funderburk. It is located at 157 North Trade Street, adjacent to the original store. The current occupant has covered the “Funderburk Bros.” sign (mentioned by Little-Stokes) with a blue panel bearing the name “Gardner’s Cottage” and a decorative emblem. The recessed entry with its double doors, sports a small decorative picket fence. The louvered metal transom has been covered (or replaced) with a piece of plywood painted white. Hinges for the screen doors common to this type of entry remain. The wooden floors, narrow beaded ceiling sheathing, and built-in display shelves remain intact. Even the low wooden stools, perched on iron pedestals, seem to await the arrival of ladies eager to thumb through pattern books and finger soft fabrics as in days past.

The 1901 dry goods store received a south wall of new brick in 1978. The wall covers the side of the building that was connected to the bank, general merchandise store, and apartments which were demolished. The unpainted brick wall has a parapet that steps down from the height of the street facade toward the rear of the building. The flat wall is broken near the rear of the building by a window with an arched head. The window, surrounded by corbel brinks contains two rectangular double-hung 8/8 sash. The half-oval head is infilled with vertical white siding. The bottom half of the window currently contains air conditioning units.

The rear elevations of both buildings remain much as described by Little-Stokes. A shed canopy protects the rear door of the original Funderburk building. The rear elevation of the 1901 dry goods store has a shed canopy that extends the width of the building. The painted words “Dry Goods Clothing and Gro,” though much faded, are still visible just above that canopy.

Both the grist mill and the blacksmith shop remain as described by Little-Stokes. The buildings have been unused for some time as evidenced by the disrepair of the roof.

The route of Highway 51 through the center of Matthews altered the streetscape of that small town; however, the completion of the bypass will remove much of the noise and congestion that make it difficult and unpleasant for pedestrians to move between the various stores on North Trade Street. Unlike enclosed malls, the future North Trade Street could allow shoppers to enjoy sunshine and fresh air with ample parking at the front door of stores. The Town of Matthews is challenged now with protecting the role of its commercial district in the changing retail climate.

Survey and Research Report

On The

The Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk House

1. Name and location of the property: The property known as the Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk House  is located at 201 West Charles Street, Matthews, N.C.
2. Name, address, and telephone number of the current owner of the property:

Janet and James Johnson

201 W. Charles Street, Matthews, N.C.

P.O. Box 3318

Matthews, N.C. 28106

3. Representative photographs of the property:  This report contains representative photographs of the property.
4. A map depicting the location of the property: UTM coordinates 17 506711.4E  3914941.0N
5. Current Tax Parcel Reference and Deed to the property:  The tax parcel number of the property is 19326104.  The most recent deed to this property is recorded in Mecklenburg County Deed Book
6. A brief historical sketch of the property:  This report contains a brief historical sketch of the property prepared by Frances Alexander.
7. A brief architectural description of the property:  This report contains a brief architectural description prepared by Dr. Richard L. Mattson.
8. Documentation of why and in what ways the property meets the criteria for designation set forth in N.C.G.S 160A-400.5. 
9. Special significance in terms of its history, architecture and/or cultural importance: The Commission judges that the property known as the Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk House possesses special significance in terms of Charlotte-Mecklenburg.  The Commission bases its judgment on the following considerations:

1.Constructed in 1904, the imposing Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk House is a remarkably well-preserved example of the transitional Queen Anne-Colonial Revival style in Matthews.

2. The Funderburk House is important, in terms of Matthews, as one the best examples of late 19th century architecture.
3. In its grand scale and fashionable style, this house clearly asserted Funderburk’s rank among the leading citizens of Matthews.
4. The Funderburk House represent the prosperity and development of Matthew at the end of the 19th century.
5. Integrity of design, setting, workmanship, materials, feeling and/or association: The Commission contends that the architectural description prepared by Dr. Richard L. Mattson demonstrates that the property known as the Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk House meets this criterion.
6. Ad Valorem Tax Appraisal:  The Commission is aware that designation would allow the owner to apply for an automatic deferral of 50% of the Ad Valorem taxes on all or any portion of the property which becomes a “historic landmark.”  The current appraised value of the house and  land is $724,300.
7. Portion of the Property Recommended for Designation.  The exterior of the house  and the land associated with tax parcel number 19326104.

Statement of Significance

Constructed in 1904, the imposing Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk House is a remarkably well-preserved example of the transitional Queen Anne-Colonial Revival style in Matthews.  The house combines the boxy massing and bold classical detailing of the Colonial revival with such Queen Anne features as a curvilinear porch, bracketed cutaway bays, and a high hip roof covered in decorative slate shingles.  Matthews developed a small, agricultural service center and shipping point along the Carolina Central Railroad which, at its completion in 1872, connected Wilmington at the North Carolina coast with the inland rail center of Charlotte.  The railroad brought commercial prosperity to Matthews, and Benjamin DeWitt (B.D.) Funderburk rose to local prominence as a dry goods merchant and banker.  In its grand scale and fashionable style, this house clearly asserted Funderburk’s rank among the leading citizens of Matthews.  With much of the town now swallowed by new suburban development, the Funderburk House survives as one of the few dwellings to predate the late twentieth century construction boom.  Matthews contains only one other example of the Queen Anne style and no other examples of the Colonial Revival.  The 1890 Edward Solomon Reid House on West John Street is a well-preserved and full expression of the Queen Anne cottage, boasting a corner tower and a profusion of decorative sawn work.  By contrast, the later Funderburk House blends picturesque and classical traits, reflecting the rise of transitional Queen Anne-Colonial Revival dwellings in the county’s bustling railroad towns after 1900.

By the turn of the twentieth century, domestic designs in Mecklenburg County’s small, rail-related towns began to reflect the newfound wealth associated with the booming textile industry and a rural prosperity based on commercial cotton cultivation.  Small town merchants and professionals began to favor up-to-date house designs popularized in widely circulating architectural publications and builders’ guides.  Often mirroring city dwellings in their sophistication, these houses introduced urbanity to the small towns and countryside.  By the turn of the twentieth century, many builders were combining Queen Anne and Colonial Revival features as classicism, in its various forms, began to regain popularity over the exuberant picturesque styles of the late nineteenth century.  For example, the complex roof silhouettes, jutting bays, and deep, wraparound porches were mixed with classical porch posts, pedimented gables, Palladian windows, and columned mantelpieces.  Built in 1904, the Funderburk House marks this transition in architectural trends.

Historical Background

Benjamin DeWitt (B.D.) Funderburk (1868 -1954) was born in Chesterfield County, South Carolina, to Ellison James (e>J.) and Selia Anne Funderburk, but shortly after his birth, the family which included ten children, moved to Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.  A farmer and entrepreneur, E.J. Funderburk became a large landowner in eastern Mecklenburg County.  In 1878, he began acquiring parcels in the small railroad settlement of Matthews, and in the ensuing decades, E.J. Funderburk and sons B.D., Thomas, and Ellison became civic leaders and prominent businessman (southeast News 10 November 1975; Funderburk 1967: 329-331; Mecklenburg County Deed Book 59: 357).

The town of Matthews took shape after the Civil War as a farming community and marshalling point for agricultural products along the Carolina Central Railroad.  In 1872, this East-West railway was completed between Charlotte and Wilmington, North Carolina, and two years later a depot was established at Matthews, southeast of Charlotte.  Named in honor of Watson Matthews, a member of the Board of Directors of the Carolina Central Railroad, the town was incorporated in 1879.  By the turn of the twentieth century, Matthews was a thriving agricultural service ce3nter.  With over 200 residents, Matthews included a bank, several livery stables, a post office, drugstore, hotel, dry goods stores, and adjacent blocks of houses.  Grist mills, blacksmith shops, and cotton gins were sited near the railroad tracks at the north end of town.  In 1907, a public supported high school for white students arose at the south end.  The main commercial street was North Trade Street, which runs perpendicular to the railroad (Southeast News 10 November 1975; Morrill and Little-Stokes 1978: 4; Mattson 1991: 4-5, 15).

As Matthews grew, the Funderburks prospered.  B.D. Funderburk, the most prominent of the siblings, expanded his father’s dry goods store on North Trade Street and in 1909 constructed another building for the Bank of Matthews, of which he was president.  Civic minded, he also served on the Mecklenburg County Board of Education for over thirty years.  His brothers Thomas and Ellison owned general merchandise stores, a blacksmith shop, and grist mill (Morrill and Little-Stokes 1978: 5-6; Southeast News 19 December 1979).

B.D. Funderburk married Sallie Faulkner on July 11, 1895, and raised three children into adulthood, each of whom was actively involved in the family’s business enterprises.  According to family history, shortly after his marriage in 1895, Funderburk acquired a one-story dwelling on the present lot from his father.  In 1904, Funderburk constructed the existing two-story, Queen Anne-Colonial Revival residence on the site, incorporating elements of the original house.  In 1926, the house was acquired by son, Lee Edward Funderburk (1899-1979), who married Mildred Elizabeth (Betty) Morrah in that year.  Lee Edward Funderburk graduated from Erskine College in Due West, South Carolina, and served as the president of the Bank of Matthews for fifty-six years.  His wife, Betty, taught in the public schools.  They had no children, but boarded school teachers in their spacious house.  Betty Funderburk resided in the house until 1991 when she moved to a local retirement community – Plantation Estates where she died in 2001.  Her niece Nancy and husband David Stafford purchased it from her in 1991 and did not do any renovations.  The B.D. Funderburk House is currently owned by Jimaana Properties, LLC of Matthews who completely renovated the residence in 2009.  (Southeast News 10 November 1975; 19 December 1979).

Architectural Description

The Benjamin DeWitt Funderburk House is a transitional Queen Anne-Colonial Revival dwelling that occupies a roughly one-acre site on West Charles Street in the small town of Matthews.  Matthews is located roughly fifteen miles southeast of downtown Charlotte in Mecklenburg County.  Situated near the center of town, the house faces north on a corner lot with a wooded railroad right-of-way across Charles Street from the house.  On nearby tree lined streets are a mix of houses, churches, and commercial buildings dating from the late nineteenth to late twentieth centuries.

The Funderburk property is notable for its evocative setting.  The spacious lot encompasses mature landscaping, much of which appears to date to the early twentieth century.  A small front lawn is bisected by a concrete walkway with mature magnolias framing the house.  The large side and rear yards West and North of the house are shaded by tall hardwood trees that are interspersed with beds of mature camellias, azaleas, nandinas, and boxwoods.  Along North Fremont Street, which forms the Eastern border of the property, is a large, mature tulip magnolia which matches one planted at the same time across Fremont on the Phillips’ property.  The site also includes several outbuildings.  In the side (west) yard is a brick, hip roofed pump house (ca. 1904) that originally has a windmill to provide power to the pump.  The original pump inside the building is extant.  Along North Freemont Street is a brick, hip roofed garage which appears to have been a ca. 1904 carriage house with two bays that was remodeled ca. 1920 with the addition of two bays and a brick veneer.  Just north of the garage is a hip roofed, German sided meat house (ca. 1904) with a decorative Eastlake door.  The meat house, carriage house, garage, and pump house are all contributing recourses.

To simplify the physical narrative, directions will be described by their closes cardinal point.  For example, the house, which actually faces 20 degrees (i.e., Northeast), will be described as facing North.

 

Funderburk House: Exterior

 

      Side View, Facing West                                                               Side View, Facing East

Constructed in 1904 around a late nineteenth century dwelling, the Funderburk House blends Queen Anne and Colonial Revival elements with selected picturesque features of the earlier house.  This imposing, tow and on-half story, frame, dwelling with a symmetrical, three bay, double pile massing and a high hip roof has flared eaves and hip roofed dormers.  A classical balustrade straddles the ridgeline of the roof.  The rear ell has its own articulated, hip roofed, double pile massing that mimics the boxy proportions of the main block.  The hip roof of the rear ell is also punctuated by hip roofed dormers.

One of the key elements of the house is the curvilinear, wraparound porch that almost fully encircles the 1^st floor of the house.  The open porch is interrupted by a small sunroom and bathroom bay.  This area was converted to a master closet and bath in the 2009 renovation and projects from the east side.  On the west side elevation, the porch terminated in an enclosed room and small bathroom bay which were mid-twentieth century additions, both of which were removed during the 2009 renovation allowing the porch to terminate in its original location at the rear ell.

Rear of House

Along the principal elevations, the porch is supported by Tuscan columns that sit on brick pedestals.  The porch has a projecting entrance bay with a flat roof that caps a tall, vernacular entablature consisting of recessed panels framed by rows of dentil molding.  A classical balustrade sits atop the flat roof.  The house has an Ecostar slate style shingle roof embellished with scalloped shingles that form a broad, decorative band within the otherwise uniform field of rectangular shingles.  The original 1904 slate roof had to be replaced during the renovation due to excessive leaking and non-existent flashing.  The box cornice has a simple, denticulated frieze that is repeated along the porch.  Metal cresting is found along the ridge of the hip roof.  The original porch roof used soldered tin which has been covered by rubber.  The rubber roofing was removed and a metal roof was installed during the 2009 renovation.  The house originally had three interior, brick chimneys with corbelled caps.  While weatherboards cover most of the exterior, German siding is found on the first story under the shelter of the porch.  The house originally had one-over-one light, double hung, wooden sash windows, with at least one two-over-two window appearing to have been reused from the earlier house.  The single pane windows were in bad shape and were replaced with new wood insulated windows during the 2009 renovation.  The house has a brick foundation.

In addition to the porch, the symmetrical façade is enlivened by cutaway corners, with scrolled brackets at the cornice line, large, Queen Anne style windows flanking the entrance, and a semi-circular opening in the center bay of the second story.  The opening originally led to a slightly recessed doorway to the second floor but was filled in with weatherboard at some point in time.  The molding that framed the opening is still intact as are the original wood and glass door.  The weatherboard was removed and the original design of this opening was restored during the 2009 renovation.  The main entrance to the house consists of a multiple light door framed by fluted pilasters rising from moillioned bas blocks and capped by a transom and classical cornice.  The leaded glass transom over the door and the flanking Queen Anne windows are embellished with matching geometric and floral motives that are original to the home.

The porche originally continued around the rear elevation and utilized Tuscan columns for support along the rear elevation of the main block.  This section was enclosed to allow for the expansion of the master bathroom and the addition of a powder room.  Along the rear, the columns are spanned by a turned post balustrade and at one time there appeared to be framing for the screening.  The rear ell porch has an L-plan configuration and incorporated elements of the original house including chamfered box piers and an inset, fluted staircase balustrade inspired by the Chinese Chippendale style.  This staircase was removed, the porch was enclosed with glass walls and a French door which opened into the main block from the back porch was replaced with a double French door in 2009.   Above the box piers is a frieze comprised of recessed, beaded board panels capped by dentil molding.  Along the rear (south) elevation, the porch exterminated at an end bay that was converted to a bathroom in the mid-twentieth century.  This section was reclaimed into the main block and converted to a small powder room and laundry room during 2009 renovations.  The porch roof continued beyond the end bay to shelter a secondary entrance to the kitchen.  The door was reached by a short, interior staircase that was supported by a single, Tuscan column at the corner.  Also along the rear elevation was a simple, metal, shed roof that projected from the rear porch to cover the entrance to a cellar which is said to be associated with the earlier house on the sit.  During the 2009 renovation, the metal shed roof was removed and the cellar opening was covered with storm cellar doors.  Also, the rear kitchen entry was relocated and the old entry space was reclaimed as a pantry.  The new brick stairway under the rear porte chochere which was also added to the rear ell during the 2009 renovation works leads to the new mudroom, laundry, and kitchen.

Funderburk House: Interior

The Funderburk House has a well-preserved interior composed primarily of stylish Queen Anne and Colonial Revival elements.  Some features appear reused from the earlier dwelling including some late nineteenth century, five-panel doors and simple, picturesque mantels in several bedrooms and the dining room.  Classically inspired door and window surrounds consisting of tall plinths and wide, simply molded jambs capped by flat friezes and molded cornices are present throughout the interior.  12 foot ceilings throughout the first floor enhance the spacious feeling of the home. These ceilings were covered with drop ceiling tiles prior to the 2009 renovation.  The front of the house is divided into two parlors of unequal size.  The entrance opens directly into the larger of these two formal rooms with French doors into the smaller parlor and pocket French doors at the entrance to the rear hall.  The larger room has a deep cornice molding and a classically-inspired, mirrored overmantle, Ionic columns and entablature, and a bracketed mantle.  The decorative metal firebox cover is also intact and the fireplace has been restored and now has gas burning coal baskets.  The smaller parlor repeats the formality of the living room with a similar, highly embellished, mirrored overmantel with classical stylistic elements and molded cornice.  The baseboards found in the two parlors repeat the tall plinth and molded cornice design of the surrounds found through the horse.  The smaller parlor was embellished with built-in bookcases during the 2009 renovation.

Behind the two front rooms is  a short stair hall.  The hall has both vertically and diagonally laid, beaded board wainscoting capped by molded chair rails and a broken, closed- string staircase with a classical box pier newel and turned post balustrade.  Candlestick light fixtures from the 1930’s on the newels and the bottom of the stairs and on the landing were replaced with single turned spheres and a French door at the rear of the hall leading on to the rear porch was converted into the entry for a small powder room.

A five panel door, apparently reused from the earlier dwelling on the site, opens off the stair hall into a bedroom located behind the smaller parlor.  This room had a mirrored overmantel, curvilinear mantel supports, and short, Tuscan columns supporting the entablature.  The mantel was replaced with anew curvilinear mantel with longer Tuscan columns which matched the other added custom cabinetry where the two closets had been located.  A French door led into the bathroom area off this bedroom a sunroom in the mid-twentieth century.  During the 2009 renovation, this bathroom was expanded to encompass the area of the curvilinear porch adjacent to the bedroom and a double French door was added for entry in the expanded bathroom.

Behind the larger parlor is the dining room which has a simple, picturesque mantel that also may have been a part of the earlier dwelling.  A French door leading to the enclosed porch area was replaced with a double French door when the porch was re-opened and allowed to extend back to its original location at the rear ell.  A double width opening connects the dining room with the interior of the rear ell.  The ell was divided unevenly between a large family room and a smaller kitchen that stretched across the rear of the ell.  The kitchen at the rear of the house had laminate counters, a washer and dryer and simple, built-in cabinets that reflected its mid-twentieth century remodeling.  These two rooms were combined and the rear chimney was removed during the 2009 renovation..  The bricks from the chimney were used to build the new fireplace hearth.  This one room is now a large kitchen and keeping room.  In addition, a French door leading into the glass enclosed sunroom was expanded to a double French door.  The simple molded door and window surrounds, and the tall baseboards found in the formal front rooms of the house are repeated through the rear ell.

During the 2009 renovation, it was discovered that the home had extensive termite damage throughout the first level and much of the floors and wall material had to be replaced.  There was also evidence of a fire in the east first floor bathroom where the master bathroom is now located.  The replacement hardwood for the first floor was obtained by custom milling heart pine timbers into flooring during the renovation work.  The timers were salvaged ceiling timbers obtained during the demolition of an old mill on the west side of Charlotte.

The upstairs has a broad center hall off which opens four bedrooms.  Three remained intact, but the fourth, at the southwest corner, was partitioned in the mid-twentieth century to create a bathroom.  All hardwood floors on the 2^nd floor are original.  The 2009 renovation of the 2^nd floor removed the mid-twentieth century bathroom and created two small “jack and jill” bathrooms between the bedrooms on each side.  To gain space for bathrooms it was necessary to close the fireplaces in the rear bedrooms.  The upstairs hall is lighted by a window on the stair landing at the rear and by the multiple light and wood paneled door that opens onto the front balcony.

The attic stair and enclosure configuration which appeared to be an original feature of the house partially obscured the rear window.  This was opened up to the 2^nd floor hallway and the rear dormer was expanded to allow the stairway to be fully functional up to the third floor.  The plaster walls have been removed in the upstairs, but the beaded board wainscoting, the molded chair rails, the fireplace mantels, the wooden trim work, and the horizontal paneled doors are all original.  The bedroom mantels are simpler versions of the classically-inspired, mirrored overmantels found on the first floor.

The third floor has a large, central room off of which two rooms open on either side.  Each side room has two five panel doors with original box locks.  The attic retains its horizontal beaded board walls and ceiling and hardwood floors.  In the ceiling of the attic is an opening which provides access to the “widow’s walk” on the roof of the house.

Meat House {Contributing Resource}

Sited along Freemont Street, the frame meat house appears to date with the construction of the house in 1904.  This outbuilding has a hip roof and German siding.  The meat house had two Eastlake doors with picturesque lower panels and single light upper panels that may have been reused from the original house on this property.  The Eastlake door on the east side of the shed (facing Freemont St) was removed and re-used as an entrance to the old carriage house.

Pump House {Contributing Resource}

The hip roofed pump house sits in the large side yard on the west side of the house.  The pump house has battered, timber frame walls with brick infill.  There is an entrance on the south elevation, and each of the other elevations is punctuated by a single light window.  Although the windmill that originally provided power is no longer extant, the water pump is intact.  During the 2009 renovation the original tilt-down windows were restored.

Carriage House/Garage {Contributing Resource}

Located at the southeast corner of the property is a brick carriage house/garage.  The carriage house/garage has a broad hip roof exposed rafters, and four bays with double leave, wooden doors.  The doors have recessed lower panels above which are unevenly divided, multiple lights.  The side and rear elevations are punctuated by four-over-four, double hung, wooden sash windows.  The carriage house/garage reflects its ca. 1920 remodeling, but the arrangement of the rafters indicates that the southern half of the building predates the 1920s and may have been built as a carriage house in 1904.   In addition, the doors in the two sections are slightly different from each other.  The doors in the original carriage house have two lower panels while the two doors in the ca. 1920 addition each have single panels.  The wire-cut brick veneer may also have been added at the time of the remodeling.  During the 2009 renovation all of the original doors and windows were restored and an opening was added between the two garages where a window was once located.  Also, a small bathroom was added at the rear of the building.

___________________________________________________________

 

Major Bibliographic References (Footnotes):

Funderburk, Guy B. Funderburk History and Heritage.  Salem Press: Pageland, South Carolina.  1967

Gatza, Mary Beth.  Architectural Inventory of Rural Mecklenburg County.  Survey files available at the North Carolina Division of Archives and History, Raleigh, 1987.

Mattson, Richard L.  “Historic Landscapes of Mecklenburg County:  Small Towns.”  Typewritten manuscript on file at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission, Charlotte, 1991.

Mattson, Richard L. and William H. Huggman.  Historic and Architectural Resources of Rural Mecklenburg Countuy, North Carolina.  National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form.  On File at the North Carolina division of Archives and History, Raleigh, 1990.

Mecklenburg County.  Mecklenburg County Courthouse, Register of Dees.  Funderburk Brothers Buildings.”  On file at the Charlotte-Mecklenbug Historic Landmarks Commission, Charlotte 1978.

Morrill, Dan. L. and Ruth Little-Stokes.  “Survey and Research Report for the Funderburk Brothers Store.”  On file at the Charlotte Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission, Charlotte, 1978.

The Southeast News (Mecklenburg County, N.C.).  10 November 1975; 12 December 1979; 31 July 1990.

 

National Register Nomination 2009.

 

THE FREDERICK APARTMENTS

 

 

 

1. Name and location of the property: The property known as the Frederick Apartments is located at 515 N. Church Street in Charlotte, North Carolina.

 

2. Name, address and telephone number of the present owner of the property: The present owners of the property are:

Frederick Place, LLC
137 Brevard Court
Charlotte, NC 28202

3. Representative photographs of the property: This report contains representative black and white photographs of the property. Color slides are available at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission office.

4. Maps depicting the location of the property: This report contains a map depicting the location of the property.

5. Current deed book reference to the property: The most recent deed to this property is recorded in Mecklenburg County Deed Book 9981 on page 850. The tax parcel number of the property is #078-035-14.

6. A brief historical sketch of the property: This report contains a brief historical sketch of the property.

7. A brief architectural description of the property: This report contains a brief architectural description of the property.

8. Documentation of why and in what ways the property meets criteria for designation set forth in N. C. G. S. 160A-400.5:

 

a. Special significance in terms of its history, architecture, and/or cultural importance: The Commission judges that the property known as the Frederick Apartments does possess special significance in terms of Charlotte-Mecklenburg. The Commission bases its judgment on the following considerations:
1) The Frederick Apartments, built in 1927, was erected during a significant local building boom. Newspaper articles written during the period of construction boast that “the greatest volume of construction operations ever carried on in this country during a single month was established in August,” and that “building operations in the Queen City surpassed those in all other Carolina cities during August.”
2) W. Fred Casey’s decision to erect an apartment building was a direct response to a changing demographic and the resultant need to house large numbers of new residents. The Frederick is representative of a wave of medium-sized apartment houses that were built in the late 1920s, when apartment construction in Charlotte was at a record high level.
3) The building reflects the spatial organization and social concept of apartment life in the 1920s. It was designed to include two categories of apartments– bachelor apartments and housekeeping units–to appeal to two distinct types of renters. “Bachelor apartments,” with one or two rooms, were designed to house young men who, it was presumed, would not cook or entertain. “Housekeeping units” were larger, with full kitchens and living rooms, and were marketed primarily to females and couples.
4) Architecturally, the Frederick is a fine example of a medium-sized apartment house from the 1920s. Though it was apparently created without the benefit of an architect’s services, the design reflects a good degree of sophistication. Further, the use of colored, molded clay elements on the facade is unmatched in the local architecture of the era.
5) The Frederick Apartments was home to W. J. Cash, a newspaperman who was best known for his seminal volume, The Mind of the South. He lived in the building while he was writing what has been called a “masterpiece,” and which, sixty years later, is still considered to be an important social history.
b. Integrity of design, setting, workmanship, materials, feeling and/or association: The Commission contends that the physical and architectural description which is included in this report demonstrates that the Frederick Apartments meets this criteria.

9. Ad Valorem tax appraisal: The Commission is aware that designation would allow the owner to apply for an automatic deferral of 50% of the Ad Valorem taxes on all or any portion of the property which becomes a designated “historic landmark.” The current total appraised value of the improvements is $ 18,540. The current total appraised value of the lot is $ 493,080. The current total value is $ 511,620. The property is zoned UMUD.

Date of preparation of this report: July 20, 2000

Prepared by: Mary Beth Gatza
428 N. Laurel Avenue, #7
Charlotte, NC 28204

(704) 331 9660

 

 

Historical Overview

 

Statement of Significance

The history of the 1927 Frederick Apartments reveals that it is an important product of the times and conditions in which it was built. W. Fred Casey’s decision to build an apartment house was a direct response to the decade’s rapid population increase and the resultant need to house large numbers of new residents. It was built during a peak year for multi-family dwelling construction in the midst of the particularly active 1920s building boom. Architecturally, it is a fine example of a medium-sized apartment house whose design reflects a good degree of sophistication, and whose configuration reflects the social concepts of apartment living of the time. Its use of polychrome terra cotta design elements is unmatched 1920s-era architecture in Charlotte. Additionally, it was the home of acclaimed author, W. J. Cash, during the time he wrote his masterpiece social history, The Mind of the South.

 

Background and Context

The 1920s were boom years in Charlotte, and the combination of prosperous economic times and a burgeoning population resulted in a notably high levels of building activity. Prior to 1928, the city boundaries encompassed only an area that reached from North Charlotte to Elizabeth to Dilworth to Biddleville. The United States Census counted 46,388 people living in Charlotte at the beginning of the decade, and 82,675 people in 1930–a total increase of seventy-eight percent, or 36,287 people. A Charlotte News article from April 1927 exposed data collected by Miller Press (publishers of the annual city directory) that showed a population growth spike from 76,000 in 1926 to 82,000 in 1927, or 6,000 new residents. By 1930, Charlotte had become the largest city in the two Carolinas.

The increase in population necessitated an increase in housing, and the construction industry responded. Although there were inevitably some minor downswings, the overall trend was toward record levels of new construction. Articles from The Charlotte News, written in 1927, substantiate the local building boom. In August, the paper reported on a slump but noted that “Charlotte was the only city in the state whose total building permits showed a substantial increase in July over those issued in June.” The dip was short-lived, however, as less than two months later the same newspaper analyzed national data and exclaimed that “the greatest volume of construction operations ever carried on in this country during a single month was established in August.” The article further stated that “building activities in August reached a total well above the previous record, set in July, 1926.” There is no doubt that this trend reached Charlotte. On October 2, The Charlotte News boasted that “building operations in the Queen City surpassed those in all other Carolina cities during August.” In 1927, the total value of building permits issued in Charlotte was $5,499,364. While these figures encompass building activity of all types, a significant portion was residential. A report from the F. W. Dodge Corporation, as reported in The Charlotte News, breaks down statewide figures for August 1927. They calculated that thirty-eight percent (38%) of all construction was for residential buildings.

By the 1920s, the term “residential buildings” did not refer only to single-family dwellings. Beginning in the 1870s, Americans began to embrace apartment living in large, densely-populated cities, such as New York, Boston and Chicago. It is generally accepted that the building type matured in New York during the late-nineteenth century. In places where land was not quite as scarce or expensive, however, apartments were slower to gain acceptance. In Charlotte, for instance, the first apartment houses appeared just after the turn of the twentieth century. It would be another twenty-five years, however, before the form would explode in popularity here. In the early years of the twentieth century, a distinction was made between a “bachelor apartment” and a “housekeeping unit.” A bachelor apartment was generally smaller, perhaps just one room and bath, with very small or no kitchen facilities or public rooms (the presumption was that a single man would not cook or entertain). A housekeeping unit, on the other hand, had a full kitchen, living and dining rooms, and was better suited to family life. The Frederick Apartments was designed with both types of units. The number of multi-family residences in Charlotte increased significantly during the 1920s. A 1927 newspaper article explains: “conspicuously interesting as a mile post in Charlotte’s steady march toward a greater city is the noticeable tendency to construct apartment houses modeled after the fashion of those in metropolitan cities.” Analysis of the “Apartment Houses” section of the city directories is revealing. It shows that there were thirty-five named apartment buildings listed in 1920, and fifty-nine were mentioned in 1925. In 1927, there were eighty-seven entries under the heading. That figure rose to 102 the next year, and jumped again to 122 in 1929. This shows a that the number of apartment buildings almost quadrupled during the decade. Thirty five of the new buildings (forty percent of the total) were erected between 1927 and 1929, the peak years for apartment construction during the period. About half of the total number of apartment buildings were located in the core downtown area, although they were found in all sectors, including Dilworth, Elizabeth and Myers Park.

In Charlotte, virtually all apartment buildings of the period stand two or more stories tall. The “quadriplex” form was popular–it contained four units (generally four rooms apiece) arranged on two floors, sharing a common entry. Larger buildings, though, were gaining hold on the market. The largest extant apartment building from the period is the Addison Apartments at 831 E. Morehead St. (it is both listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmark). At nine stories high, the Addison was originally constructed with 64 apartments. At three stories and thirty-six units, the Frederick Apartments could be described as a medium-sized building. Other nearby apartment buildings of this size include the thirty-nine unit Poplar Apartments at 301 W. 10th St. (a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmark), and the Jefferson at 409 N. Church St. with thirty-six units.

 

Frederick Apartments

William Frederick Casey (1874-1957) commissioned the construction of the Frederick Apartments in 1927. Casey, who was originally from Tennessee, moved to Charlotte in 1914, the same year he married Mae E. Cook (1884-1950). He ran a business and was a member of several organizations, including the Masons, the United Commercial Travelers, and the Brotherhood of Railroad Conductors. He was a charter member of the First Methodist Church. He also bought and sold real estate.

By trade, Casey was a manufacturer’s agent of building materials and contractor’s equipment. An advertisement in a trade publication describes his company as “distributors and representatives” of a variety of items, including ornamental bronze and iron, elevator enclosures, dumb waiters, and incinerators. He also handled ornamental terra cotta roofing tile and clay products–both of which are used on the facade of the Frederick Apartments.

W. Fred Casey and Company provided materials for a variety of construction projects around the region. In Winston-Salem, his iron products were found in the North Carolina Baptist Hospital, Bowman-Grey School of Medicine (Wake Forest College), and in several buildings at the Winston-Salem Teacher’s College. Incinerators he sold were installed in buildings in Durham and Greensboro, and at Fort Bragg. Glazed tile he brokered was used in the American Tobacco Building in Durham. In Charlotte, the General Dyestuff Building on Wilkinson Boulevard utilized terra cotta he procured, and Presbyterian Hospital’s laundry chutes were provided by Casey’s company. Considering his profession, Casey was undoubtedly aware of market conditions and opportunities in the construction field. He probably looked at the trend toward apartment housing and saw the potential for profit. He was personally familiar with apartment living, as he had lived in the Churchill Apartments on N. Church St., where his wife served as building manager in 1918. In 1926, he purchased a lot at 515 N. Church St., and contracted with J. A. Jones Construction Company to build the Frederick Apartments.

The J. A. Jones Construction Company, which has since grown into a large conglomerate, was founded in 1894 by James Addison Jones (1869-1950). The company reached prominence in 1909 when they constructed North Carolina’s first steel-frame skyscraper, the Independence Building in Charlotte (demolished in 1981). They built many significant buildings locally, including Ivey’s Department Store (1914), the Masonic Temple (1914, now demolished), the Hotel Charlotte (1924, now demolished), City Hall (1925), the Addison Apartments (1926), and Nebel Mill (1928). During the 1930s, the company expanded its region and its vision. They were awarded various contracts by the Public Works Administration (PWA). They built an air base in the Panama Canal Zone, and were later awarded other military construction contracts. During World War II, the company built a large steam power plant in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. They were subsequently contracted to build two “super-secret” uranium plants, which were instrumental in producing materials for the atomic bombs that were used by the United States during the war.

The J. A. Jones Construction Company applied for a building permit on April 18, 1927, two weeks after the project was announced in the local paper. A brief article that appeared on April 2 boasted that the Frederick Apartments would have “all the modern conveniences that can be put into an apartment house.” It specifically mentioned “an electrical dish washer, electric cooling and ventilation system, refrigerator and many other devices.” The building permit estimates the total cost at $125,000, but does not list the name of an architect. Instead, the word “owner” was written in and then crossed out–suggesting that Casey may have furnished the plans himself.

It took the J. A. Jones Company about five months to complete the Frederick Apartments. The first advertisements for rental units appeared on September 18, 1927. It may be that the entire building wasn’t quite ready for occupancy yet, as only the larger units were mentioned. They were described as “four-room family housekeeping apartments,” with “all modern conveniences.” Two weeks later, another ad touted “exclusive modern apartments, fireproof, consisting of: Bachelor apartments, single rooms and baths, double rooms and one bath, also housekeeping apartments.” The city directory for 1928, the first year the Frederick was listed, showed that thirty out of the thirty-six units were already rented.

The owners themselves were among the original occupants of the Frederick Apartments. W. Fred and Mae Casey lived in unit #101 during the time they owned the building, from 1927 through 1929. Other original tenants held jobs in a variety of professional occupations. There were two dentists and one physician, several salesmen, and two insurance agents. Perhaps the most intriguing position was that of T. H. Tracy, who was an agent in charge for the United States Department of Justice, Bureau of Investigations. Almost all of the original tenants were employed within walking distance of the building . One-third of the residents worked in one of Charlotte’s new skyscrapers–five people worked in the nearby Professional Building (Tryon and 7th Sts., now demolished), and seven commuted the seven blocks to the Johnston Building (212 S. Tryon St.).

There were several long-term residents over the years. Allen W. Sutton was a sales manager at Pyramid Chevrolet Company while he lived in the building from 1928 through the mid 1940s. David H. Yarbrough was employed by the Pure Oil Company during the 1940s, working his way up from marketer, to clerk, to department manager, and finally reaching the status of special representative in 1950. Hyman Usilowitz, who lived in the building from 1945 through early 1960s, was an assistant manager for the Reliable Loan Company. Unit #106 was rented by a photographer, L. Davis Phillips, and his wife, from 1930 through 1938. Another married couple was Appleton F. and Addie C. Bolles, who lived in the building from 1938 through the early 1950s. Appleton worked for the Southerland-Helms Company (a local optician), being at various times a stock clerk, stock manager and salesman. After his death, Addie remained in the building and took a job as a magazine agent for Periodical Publishers. Another working widow at the Frederick Apartments was Mace H. Kister–she was an office secretary for various firms during the 1940s.

Several long-term residents were employed in the retail sector during the 1940s and 1950s. Samuel Pittle was a salesman at the National Hat Shop. Mrs. Olive F. Dowling was a saleswoman at Montaldo’s, a purveyor of better woman’s clothing. Mrs. Nannie Marie Wallace worked at a local department store, Ivey’s. Ivey’s also employed other residents of the Frederick Apartments–both J. Elmer Jordan and Allen S. Plexico worked there, both serving as buyer and department manager at various times. During the late 1930s, the Frederick Apartments was home to the acclaimed author, Wilbur J. Cash (1900-1941), who is best known for his seminal social history The Mind of the South. Cash was born Joseph Wilbur Cash in Gaffney, South Carolina (he later changed his name to Wilbur Joseph Cash), and moved across the state line to Boiling Springs, North Carolina at the age of twelve. He developed an interest in journalism while a student at Wake Forest College in the early 1920s. After graduating in 1922, Cash held a variety of teaching posts and writing jobs. He was influenced by the writer H. L. Mencken, and contributed articles to Mencken’s magazine, American Mercury. Cash worked at both of Charlotte’s rival newspapers–The Charlotte Observer in the summer of 1923, and The Charlotte News in 1926, and again after 1935. In 1937, he was lured back to town by The Charlotte News, where he accepted the position of associate editor. He lived for a short time at the Selwyn Hotel (no longer standing), before moving to the Frederick Apartments in 1938. Cash occupied apartment 210a in 1939 and apartment 308 in 1940, and it was at the Frederick where he completed his manuscript in July 1940. He also courted and married his wife while he lived there. Cash wed Mrs. Mary Ross Northrup on Christmas day, 1940, and they began their married life in his apartment at the Frederick, which they found too small for two people. In early 1941, Mary’s mother took a job in Chapel Hill, and the newlyweds moved into her unit at the Blandwood Apartments on S. Tryon St. The apartment at the Blandwood was larger, and Mary delighted in housekeeping there.

The Mind of the South was published in February 1941. Virtually all of the reviews were positive, and it was immediately recognized as being an important work. Glowing accounts appeared in newspapers and magazines around the state and region. The national press even reviewed the book–Time magazine, The New York Times Book Review, and The New Republic all had good things to say about Cash’s volume. Later evaluations would view the book with a wider perspective. In 1979, it was described as “the product of exhaustive reading, perceptive observation, and creative insight,” and as “a brilliant masterpiece that transcended the limitations of his own and the historian’s craft.” In 1970 it was called “perhaps the most intellectually influential book ever to come from North Carolina.”

The publication of the book, and its good reviews, gave Cash a certain degree of prominence. It led to a Guggenheim fellowship, which he eagerly accepted. He and Mary traveled to Mexico City, where he was to spend the next year writing a novel. Cash had difficulty adjusting to Mexico City, and suffered a variety of mental and physical ills. He apparently committed suicide on July 1, 1941, in the midst of a nervous breakdown. Regrettably, he never lived to witness the impact his work was to have on future generations of scholars.

Many of these working professionals stayed in residence through changes in the legal ownership of the building. Fred Casey had taken out two separate deeds of trust on the property during the construction period in 1927. Casey entered into a third deed of trust in November of that year with the J. A. Jones Construction Company and Edwin L. Jones (son of company founder J. A. Jones). A deed of trust is a document which accompanies a loan and guarantees transfer of ownership of the collateral property in the event of default. Casey was apparently unable to repay the loans, which totaled $130,000. Jones Construction Company foreclosed and took title to the property in September 1929. It was quickly transferred to Edwin L. and Annabel L. Jones, who retained ownership until 1972. At that time, it was conveyed to their daughter’s company, Jones-Brown Realty, who held the title until 1979. Thus, the Frederick Apartments was owned by family members of the original contractor for fifty years. It is currently being renovated and converted to condominiums.

 

Architectural Description

 

The Frederick Apartments, is a three-story, thirty-six unit brick apartment house built in 1927. At 515 N. Church St., it is located in the downtown area of Charlotte, five blocks north and one block west of the square. The streets in this section are laid out in a regular grid pattern and the lots are long, narrow, and rectangular. The Frederick Apartment building, and its companion paved parking lot, together have 108 feet of street frontage. The building is set close to the sidewalk, separated only by a set of concrete steps leading up to a wide platform. The spaces on either side of the steps are landscaped with small plantings, and an old magnolia tree at the front left (south) corner of the building stands as tall as the structure itself. The streetscape is urban in nature and contains buildings in a mixture of types, styles and vintages. Its immediate neighbors are the c. 1890 Liddell-McNinch House (a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmark) on the south, and its paved parking lot on the north. A modern brick fire station stands across the parking lot. A new, large multi-family dwelling is located immediately across N. Church St. from the Frederick Apartments.

The Frederick is a solid masonry structure. The body of the building is constructed of red brick, laid up in common bond. The facade, however, is fancier and sports buff colored brick set in stretcher bond with decorative patterning in places. The facade is symmetrical, and features a center entry and a slightly projecting center bay. A set of concrete steps trimmed in brick lead up to a flat tiled platform which spans the front of the building, in lieu of a porch. The building’s roof is flat and not visible from the street, however, a narrow, false hipped roof is applied to the facade, which is supported by paired, decorative brackets, and covered with flat green tiles. Together with the arched center entry, the tiled roof hints at an Italian Renaissance Revival design influence.

The green tiles on the roof coordinate with the polychrome facade detail. Colored terra cotta pieces comprise key design elements that are found around the door and windows, on decorative panels, and on the building’s nameplate. The nameplate is centered above the front door and is made of beige tiles with raised green letters spelling out “FREDERICK.” The entry has double French doors and is topped by a half-round fanlight and a high-relief scroll keystone. The entire entry is ringed with terra cotta tiles in green with raised edging and circular designs in beige with dark red dots in the center of each circle.

Similar tile trim, though without the red dots, surrounds the windows. The trim springs from narrow cast stone sills, and is joined at the top corners by tiles with a raised floral design that consists of sculptured green leaves and dark red accents. The design on the corner pieces is three-dimensional and finely-detailed. Windows on the second and third stories (which correspond with the building’s interior hallway) are paired, multi-light casements. The second floor window has a simple, wrought-iron balconet. A decorative panel between the second and third stories is comprised of a single floral tile on a light beige background that is surrounded by a soldier course of bricks, mitered at the corners, and a narrow beige edging. In the side bays, the narrow, multi-light casement windows are set in groups of ten–five taller windows side-by-side topped with five half-sized windows. Each window grouping is surrounded by the same decorative trim as the center-bay windows. Above the window groupings, between the different stories, are panels marked by chevron-pattern brick work punctuated by a single flower tile set on the diagonal).

The buff-colored brick used on the facade wraps around the corners and extends back one bay on each side elevation. The rest of the building is red brick laid up in six-course common bond. The expansive side elevations are pierced by paired, one-over-one windows at regular intervals. There is a secondary entrance on the north facade, approximately halfway back. The rear facade is five bays wide with single glazed doors in the center bay of each story that open onto a wrought-iron fire escape. There is a full basement.

On the interior, the building has a center hallway running the full length of the building, which is finished with crown molding and a chair rail. About halfway back, it opens into a stair hall on the right (north). Apartments consist of three basic floor plans. The smallest, the “bachelor” plan, has a single room with a dressing closet, bathroom and kitchenette opening off of one side. The largest, the “housekeeping” unit, has four rooms, plus bath and entry hall. Its floorplan is arranged so that one enters into a narrow hallway which leads toward the back of the apartment on one side, or into the living room on the other side. The living room is in the front of the apartment, and the front units have benefit of the expansive, multi-paned casement windows on the facade. Behind that is the dining room and kitchen. The kitchen opens onto the hallway, which leads to the bedroom and bathroom in the back. Hardwood floors and original bathroom tile and fixtures are found throughout the building.

The Frederick Apartments is a fine building with a well-executed design. The polychrome facade with its three-dimensional clay tile detailing is unmatched in 1920s-era architecture in Charlotte. The form and layout of the building reflect the spatial organization typical to the building type, which exploded onto the Charlotte marketplace during the late 1920s. The integrity of the exterior and of the public spaces is excellent. The interior of the apartments are currently undergoing renovation.