This report was written on 28 August 1990

1. Name and location of the property: The property known as the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church and Cemetery is located at 7407 Steele Creek Road in Charlotte, North Carolina.

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

Steele Creek Presbyterian Church
RFD 2, Box 350, 7407 Steele Creek Road
Charlotte, North Carolina 28210

Telephone: (704)588-1290

Tax Parcel Number: 141-041-09

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.

5. Current Deed Book Reference to the property: The most recent deed to this property is listed in Mecklenburg County Deed Book 0003 at page 869. The Tax Parcel Number of the property is 141-041-09.

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

7. A brief architectural description of the property: This report contains a brief architectural description of the property prepared by Dr. Richard Mattson.

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 cultural importance: The Commission judges that the property known as the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church and Cemetery does possess special significance in terms of Charlotte-Mecklenburg. The Commission bases its judgment on the following considerations: 1) the boundaries of Steele Creek Presbyterian Church were organized by the Presbyterian Synod of New York and Philadelphia in 1764, 2) Steele Creek Presbyterian Church was one of the first seven churches established in Mecklenburg County by Scotch-Irish settlers, 3) the boundaries of the present cemetery encompass the sites of the first three meeting houses dating from the middle to late 18th century; 4) the ca. 1889 sanctuary is architecturally significant as a fine example of the Gothic Revival style; 5) the Steele Creek Presbyterian Cemetery contains basically intact headstones dating from 1763 to the present; 6) the headstones demonstrate the excellence and variety of designs carved locally in the Bigham workshop, and 7) Steele Creek Presbyterian Church is an excellent example of the role of the church in early Scotch-Irish communities.

b. Integrity of design, setting, workmanship, materials, feeling, and/or association: The Commission contends that the architectural description by Dr. Richard Mattson which is included in this report demonstrates that the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church and Cemetery 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 a designated “historic landmark.” The current appraised value of the improvements is $1,337,530. The current appraised value of the 37.575 acres is $131,500. The total appraised value of the property is $1,469,030. The property is zoned R-15.

Date of Preparation of this Report: 28 August 1990

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

Telephone: 704/376-9115

Located on a spacious, approximately 40-acre, tract southwest of Charlotte, NC , Steele Creek Presbyterian Church and Cemetery represent outstanding historical, artistic, and architectural symbols of the profound Scotch-Irish influence in Mecklenburg County . The setting reflects the area’s historically rural ambience, though residential and commercial development to the south and east is graphic evidence of the county’s recent growth and of the fragility of the rural character that still remains in this section of Mecklenburg County . To the north of the church grounds is Steele Creek Nursery, and to the west stand small, early 20th-century houses scattered on large lots. These properties help to reinforce the feeling of openness that the church grounds provide.

The Steele Creek Presbyterian Church property is visually dominated by the distinguished 1889 Gothic Revival style sanctuary. Facing west, this building commands a rise of land shaded by mature oak trees overlooking Steele Creek Road (NC Hwy. 160). The winding Steele Creek Road is a historical stage route linking Salisbury, NC with Camden, SC. To the east of the sanctuary (and attached 1923 educational wing) stands a complex of three brick-veneered, two-story buildings erected between the 1950s and 1989 for classrooms, offices, a chapel, and gymnasium. Although now attached to each other, these three buildings, erected separately, are counted in this nomination as three Noncontributing structures. This complex is connected to the sanctuary by a covered walkway. A paved parking lot is located to the east of the complex of buildings and south of the sanctuary. Parking space is also located to the north and east of the church buildings, and farther east, shaded by trees, is a small playground. Neither the parking lots nor the playground interferes with the architectural integrity of the sanctuary or the artistic integrity of the cemetery, and, therefore, are not classified in this nomination as Noncontributing. Bounded by a dry-laid flagstone wall measuring about four feet high and one foot thick, the Steele Creek Presbyterian Cemetery stands northwest of the church buildings. A Contributing site in this nomination, the cemetery comprises approximately three acres and includes headstones from 1763 to the present.

Sanctuary

The handsome Gothic Revival sanctuary represents the sixth house of worship built by the Scotch-Irish congregation at Steele Creek. In 1888, the congregation’s 1858 sanctuary burned to the ground, and the following year the present one was completed on the site. The bricks were made by members of the congregation from a generous supply of clay on the grounds. The building contractor was H. J. Norris, a member of the congregation. The sanctuary’s brick walls, laid in a common bond, measured 80 feet long (six bays) and 52 feet wide (three bays). Today, the exterior of this well-executed sanctuary survives largely intact. Its Gothic Revival Style is evident in the pointed arched sash windows with textured glass in the over-lights, the pointed arched entries, and steeply pitched roof parapet. Shallow buttresses define the five bays of the main facade, as well as the six bays comprising the side elevations. Flanking the front facade, and originally signifying the sanctuary’s two main doorways, are a pair of crenelated entry towers with small copper caps and finials. A course of corbeled brick dentils accents the steeply pitched center gable, which features a circular vent surrounded by raised brick. Set directly below this vent, and above the present main entrance, are a pair of pointed-arched vented windows framed within a segmental arched brick corbeling. The major alteration to the exterior was the replacement, in 1968, of the principal pointed arched windows located between the two corner entries by a main central entrance way. At this time new paneled doors and matching paneled surrounds were added to the side entrances, and pointed arched metal roofs and fascia installed.

Attached to the east end of the sanctuary is a two-story educational wing that was completed in 1923. Four bays deep (approximately 40 feet), this addition has common-bond brick walls and granite window sills and lintels. Slate shingles cover the hip roof. The original sashes have been replaced, and the interior was modernized and partly integrated into the interior of the sanctuary in 1951.

Noncontributing Buildings

The Noncontributing resources consist of three brick-veneered buildings joined together by later infill construction. They are arranged in a row facing west, several yards to the east and south of the Contributing 1889 sanctuary and rear 1923 educational wing. Each is in good repair and serves its original function. At the north end of this complex is a Sunday School building completed in 1954. Joined to the 1923 educational wing by an arcade, it has a slate pent roof and stone-faced entrance. To the south is the church office building, representing the 1968 renovation and expansion of a community house (1926). This building, too, has a slate pent roof and is decorated with simple Gothic-inspired window and doorway treatment on the main facade. Directly to the south is the church’s new chapel and gymnasium, dedicated in 1989. The gable-front chapel is treated with restrained Post-Modern elements alluding to the Gothic.

Steele Creek Presbyterian Cemetery

Steele Creek Cemetery comprises a remarkable collection of basically intact (though sometimes moss-covered) headstones, dating from 1763 to the present. There are approximately 1,700 headstones in the cemetery to date; and about 200 date between 1763 and ca. 1820. These earliest markers were crafted by local artisans, and notably by members of the Bigham family of headstone carvers. The Bighams, who lived nearby and donated land to the church, operated their workshop in this vicinity between about 1765 and 1820 (Gatza 1988; Little-Stokes 1982; Clark 1989). While generations of Bighams cut gravestones in the vicinity of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania as well as in the Carolina Piedmont, “the best and most varied collection of their works can be found in the cemetery next to the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church. . .” (Clark 1989, 37). Among the variety of traditional designs executed by the Bighams and evident in the Steele Creek cemetery are the Scottish Thistle, the Tree of life, the Dove of Promise, rear-face decoration (11 examples identified), and family coats of arms (34 examples).

All of the gravestones in the cemetery are arranged in parallel rows running north-south, and they face east. The early stone markers are located primarily in the south half of the burial ground (south of the site of the first four churches) and were made from soapstone, granite, and marble. Those markers that post-date the work of the Bighams, and erected between the 1830s and turn of the century, often have traditionally restrained designs, with simple descriptions and flat, curvilinear, or occasionally pedimented tops. A number of them are marked with names of local and regional headstone manufacturers.

According to church tradition, the stone wall that surrounds the cemetery was constructed with slave labor during the antebellum period (Grier 1941). The wrought iron gates on the south and east entrances appear to be original, though the wall, in places, has been reconstructed and reinforced with cement mortar. In 1912, for example, stonemason Plato Price rebuilt part of the wall and may have been responsible for reconstructing the wall’s north side (Grier 1941).

The Steele Creek Presbyterian Church and Cemetery are outstanding historical, architectural and artistic symbols of the Scotch-Irish influence in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. Situated on a tree-shaded rise of land overlooking Steele Creek Road, the 1889 Gothic sanctuary is architecturally significant under Criterion C for its handsome expression of this style. When erected at the end of the 1880s, it was the finest, most pretentious expression of church architecture in rural Mecklenburg. (See Associated Property Type 4 – Churches and Cemeteries.) The cemetery associated with the church contains the county’s finest collection of headstones dating from late 18th and early 19th centuries, as well as a handsome, representative array of stones from the second half of the 19th century and early decades of the 20th. Bounded by a solidly built dry-laid stone wall with iron gates, this cemetery includes both traditional and popular gravestone designs reflecting the work of important local artisans – notably the Bigham family – and, subsequently, the products of larger manufacturers based not only in Charlotte, but in such cities as Columbia and Chester, South Carolina. The cemetery is therefore eligible under Criterion C. The church and cemetery are also eligible under Criterion A, because of their role in the early settlement history of the county (See Content Statement – Early Settlement). It was one of the first seven churches established in the county by the early Scotch-lrish settlers.

In 1764, a commission appointed by the Presbyterian Synod of New York and Philadelphia reorganized and adjusted the boundaries of the churches in North Carolina, and calls were sent out for pastors for Steele Creek, Providence, Hopewell, Centre (now in Iredell County), Rocky River, and Poplar Tent. Sugar Creek, to the northeast of Charlotte, already had a pastor. These were the first seven churches established in the county by the early Scotch-Irish settlers, and were sometimes known as the pre-Revolutionary “Pleiades”, or “Seven Sisters.” ¹

In the first history of the church written by Rev. John Douglas (served 1866- 1879), it was thought that a church was first established in the Steele Creek area as early as 1760, but later research suggests that a church was active there as early as 1745. ² Another former pastor, J. W. Orr (served 1912 – 1920), who wrote a historical sketch in 1915, also suggests that there was preaching at the site twenty years before the church was officially organized in 1760. ³

The early Scotch-lrish members of the congregation were farmers, whom Orr typified as “industrious, thrifty and upright…and…splendid citizens. ⁴ (See Early Settlement and Agriculture contexts.) Before the church was formally organized, these farmers were served by travailing preachers. Among these early “circuit riders” were Rev. Hugh McAden, Rev. Elihu Spencer, and Rev. Robert McMordie. ⁵ The first “settled pastor” was Rev. Robert Henry, who served both Steele Creek and Providence Churches from 1766 to 1767. In the latter year he died, and from that time until 1778, the church had neither a “settled” minister nor regular supply pastor until the Rev. James McRee took up the post and served from 1778 to 1797. Under his pastorale, the small church stabilized and gradually increased in numbers. ⁶ His introduction of Watt’s Psalms & Hymns, however, split the congregation and resulted in the loss of a number of members who left to form other churches in the township: Central Steele Creek (1794); Lower Steele Creek 1794) and Little Steele Creek (1800). These churches were the result of the unwillingness of several members of Steele Creek to compromise on the issue of singing hymns, not over dissension about doctrine. ⁷

Rev. McRee left in 1797, and the church had no regular pastor again until 1804, when the Rev. Humphrey Hunter came, who served until 1827. He was succeeded by the Rev. Samuel Lytle Watson (1828-40). ⁸ In the early 1800s. Steele Creek was considered large and important, even though it only had one hundred white and about twenty black members. But from the turn of the nineteenth century to 1832, the congregation was “so infected with intemperance, infidelity, Universalism and Unitarianism that strife and erratic church attendance were frequent.” But in 1832, a wave of illness, (quite possibly the influenza epidemic of that year) and emigrations seemed to steady the congregation. ⁹

The next major concern for the church came with the Civil War. Two hundred and four men from Steele Creek enlisted for service and one hundred and one are buried in the church cemetery. The minister during the war was Rev. Samuel Carothers Alexander (1861 – 1865), who was a native of Pennsylvania. There was continuous conflict between the minister and the congregation, such that the latter asked the Presbytery to dissolve his relationship with the church. ¹⁰

After the war, it appears that the worst struggles for the church were over. The new minister, Rev. John Douglas (1866-79), wrote the first history of the church. His successor, Rev. J. T. Plunkett (1880-82) recruited 110 new members to the fold, which helped to make up for losses due to illness and the war. The Rev. A. P. Nicholson, who served from 1882 to 1886, is remembered as an austere and upright man; he had “no patience or place for modernistic views which became popular in some places at this time.” ¹¹

The end of the century also saw the enthusiasm with which the members of Steele Creek threw themselves into missionary and building programs. Missionary support began in the 1880s through the establishment of various church organizations: the Childrens Band of Earnest Workers (1898); the Ladies Aid Society (1880); the Young Ladies Missionary Society (1888); and the Gentlemen’s Foreign Missions Society (1896). ¹²

Exactly how and when the land was assembled for the church in its present configuration cannot be determined from the deed records. The first known mention of the property is in a deed dated January 7, 1771, in which William Bigham and his wife, Sarah (see Bigham family, above), sold 300 acres to a Robert Brownfield. In the description of the land, the following appears: “(Four acres of said land including the Old and New Meeting Houses the grave yard and spring on the North side of said Meetinghouses Only Excepted and Exempted in the Deed for the use of Congregation).” ¹³ The next recorded deed was the acquisition of an adjoining 9-3/4 acres in 1837, ¹⁴ and in 1858, they bought another adjacent 6-3/4 acres. ¹⁵ In 1883, the trustees added another 2-1/2 acres. ¹⁶ By the descriptions in the deeds, however, it is not possible to determine exactly how these parcels fit together.

The first church at Steele Creek was made of logs, “like Solomon’s temple…paved with love, but had no silver pillars or coverings of purple.” About 1780, the meeting house was enlarged into an octagonal shape. Soon after the arrival of the Rev. Humphrey Hunter as pastor, about 1804, a third church was built a few paces south of the old church. It was sixty-five feet long and forty feet wide, made of wood frame and weatherboards, hip roof, wood shingles, and eventually had a gallery put in for slaves. ¹⁷ These early churches were within the boundaries of the present cemetery.

Around 1858, the congregation put up a fourth church about 175 yards southeast of the previous one, which is the site of the present church. The fourth church burned on January 24, 1888, and four days later, the congregation determined that they would build a new church on the same site. A building committee was formed, and H. J. Norris was hired as the contractor. The fifth church was, for the first time, built of brick, which was made from clay at the bottom of a hill near the church. The new sanctuary measured fifty-three by eighty feet, had a gallery across the front, a twenty-four foot ceiling, and could seat about 1,000. The women furnished the new church with carpets, chandeliers, and indeed, everything but the pulpit, which was a gift of the twelfth pastor, Rev. W. O. Cochran (served 1887-1889). The students of Davidson College supplied a Bible, Minnie Robinson Price (Mrs. P. D. Price) provided a hymn book and the Sunday school class led by Maggie Whiteside provided a baptismal bowl and Sunday school bell. The new sanctuary was completed in March, 1889, and the dedication service took place on the following April 7th. ¹⁸

Plans for a building expansion program began in the early twentieth century. The Rev. J. W. Orr indicated in a 1915 pamphlet that there was a great need for a Sabbath School building. In that year, the push for financial support for the project began under the “every Member” plan in which every member contributed to the church on a weekly basis. ¹⁹ The result was the completion of a two-story educational building in 1923 and a community house in 1926 (which was given a brick veneer and completely renovated for offices in 1968). The sanctuary was renovated and given its present form in 1950, and in 1989, a new chapel and gymnasium were added to the south of the office building. ²⁰

The church cemetery has some of the oldest graves in Mecklenburg County. Among them are to be found the names of many pioneering families of that part of the county: Allen, Bigham, Davis, Grier, Hart, Herron, McDowell, Neely, Porter, Sloan, Tagart, and Vance. Thirteen veterans of the Revolutionary War are buried there, and a number of families who buried members as far back as 1763 still attended in the 1970s, and thus span seven generations: Berryhill, Bigham, Cathey, Clark, Freeman, Grier, Herron, Knot, Mitchell, McDowell, Neel, Neely, Porter, Price, Sloan, Spratt, Stilwell, Whiteside and Wilson. ²¹ The cemetery has four sections: the eastern quarter was the original burying ground; the western quarter was used after 1840; the middle between the two was opened in 1884; and the north side was added in 1884. ²²

The Steele Creek Presbyterian Church is an excellent example of the founding Presbyterian churches of the early Scotch-Irish settlers in the county and the role it played as the center of that rural community.

Notes

¹ The History of Steele Creek Church 3rd Ed. (Charlotte: Steele Creek Presbyterian Church, 1978), p. 23.

² R. E. McDowell, Historical Committee, Steele Creek Church, “Historical Summary of Steele Creek Church,” dated October 14, 1980.

³ J. W. Orr, “Historical Sketch,” 1915.

⁴ Ibid.

⁵ The History of Steele Creek Church, p. 21.

⁶ Ibid., pp. 2-31.

⁷ Ibid., p. 53.

⁸ Ibid., pp. 39ff

⁹ Ibid., p. 48.

¹⁰ Ibid., p. 62.

¹¹ Rufus Grier. “Steele Creek Presbyterian Church: A Historical Sketch,” 1935, p. 4.

¹² Ibid., p. 6.

¹³ Mecklenburg County Deed Book 5, p. 328.

¹⁴ Ibid,, Book 24, P 44

¹⁵ Ibid., Boot K, p. 869.

¹⁶ Ibid., Book 34, p 247.

¹⁷ History, pp. 105.

¹⁸ Ibid., pp. 7B and 14B.

¹⁹ Orr, cited above.

²⁰ “Historical Summary,” cited above. History, pp. 149-150.

²¹ History, pp. 191ff.

²² Ibid., p. 203.

Bibliography

Clark, Edward W. “The Bigham Carvers of the Carolina Piedmont: Stone Images of an Emerging Sense of American identity.” In Richard E. Meyer, ed, Cemeteries and Gravemarkers: Voices of American Culture. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan Press, 1989.

Gatza, Mary Beth. “Architectural Inventory of Rural Mecklenburg County.” 1987. On file at North Carolina Division of Archives and History, Raleigh.

Grier, Sadie. “Stones in Steele Creek Graveyard.” 1941 article in Charlotte Observer, not otherwise identified.

Grier, Rufus. “Steele Creek Presbyterian Church: A Historical Sketch ” 1935.

The History of Steele Creek Church. 3rd edition. Charlotte: Steele Creek Presbyterian Church, 1978.

Little-Stokes, Ruth, ed. “Southern Tombstones.” Newsletter of the Association for Gravestone Studies. Special issue. 6 (1982): 2-10.

McDowell, R. E. “Historical Summary of Steele Church.” October 14, 1980.

Mecklenburg County, N.C. Deed Books.

Orr, J. W. “Historical Sketch.” 1915.

Cornelius

This report was written on 25 February 1991

1. Name and location of the property: The property known as the Sloan-Davidson House is located at 314 West Eighth Street, Charlotte, in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.

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

Diane E. LaPoint
311 West Eighth Street
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

Telephone: (704) 3345255

Tax Parcel Numbers: 078-036-08

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.

5. Current Deed Book Reference to the property: The most recent deed to Tax Parcel Number 078-036-08 is listed in Mecklenburg County Deed Book 5803 at page 916.

6. A brief historical sketch of the property: This report contains a brief historical sketch of the property prepared by Ms. Paula M. Stathakis.

7. A brief architectural description of the property: This report contains a brief architectural description of the property prepared by 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 /or cultural importance: The Commission judges that the property known as the Sloan-Davidson House does possess special significance in terms of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. The Commission bases its judgment on the following considerations: 1) the ca. 1820’s original section of the Sloan-Davidson House is one of the earliest dwellings in Fourth Ward; 2) the ca. 1890’s enlargement and renovation of the Sloan-Davidson House made it a prominent house in Fourth Ward; 3) the Sloan-Davidson House is architecturally significant for exemplifying the vernacular interpretation of Folk Victorian housing with Queen Anne detailing; 4) the Sloan-Davidson House is one of the few original houses remaining in Fourth Ward; and 5) the Sloan-Davidson House provides valuable insight to the life of city families in early Charlotte.

b. Integrity of design, setting, workmanship, materials, feeling, and/or association: The Commission contends that the architectural description by Ms. Nora M. Black included in this report demonstrates that the Sloan-Davidson 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 a designated “historic landmark”. The current appraised value of the improvements is $42,200. The current appraised value of the .098 acres is $35,220. The total appraised value of the property is $77,420. The property is zoned UR1.

Date of Preparation of this Report: 25 February 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

Ms. Paula M. Stathakis

The current owner of the home located at 314 West Eighth Street in Fourth Ward believes that part of the structure was built in 1820. It is possible to trace deeds to the property to 1801, but it is unclear how old the structure is. The house is on the Beer’s Map for the city, 1877. It appears that the house was built in two sections. The oldest section includes what is now the kitchen and the dining room. One neighborhood legend is that this segment of the house was built as a shelter for the construction workers who built the Overcarsh House located at the opposite end of the block. ¹ If this is the case, this eliminates the possibility that the structure at 314 West Eight Street is the oldest home in Fourth Ward (as has been suggested).

The owner believes that the rest of the house was built in 1890, because during recent renovations, an 1880 nickel was found in a wall as well as a newspaper obituary for Jefferson Davis (d. December 6, 1889). Two shoes were also found in this same wall; one lady’s high top boot and a smaller girl’s canvas slipper. The owner believes that these were deliberately placed with the wall during construction for good luck. The grounds of the property regularly produce antique curiosities, such as small glass bottles, old coins, and nails.

During this same renovation, Roman numerals were found stamped on wall timbers that suggested to the renovation contractor that the walls were prefabricated and put together according to a standard plan. The owner was told that these walls had Sears stamped on them as well and the oldest part of the house was probably an early Sears prefabricated structure. Subsequent inspection of the structure has shown that the house was not a Sears house, and the Roman numerals may simply show the plan of the house as it was designed on the site.

The earliest deed to the property is dated February 18, 1801. John Sloan purchased the 48 acre property from Robert Sloan. ² Twenty acres of this property were purchased by E. D. B. Sloan in 1836, for $260.20. ³ By the time of the next sale, between E. D. B. Sloan and R. F. Davidson, the property was broken into squares and lots, indicating that the Fourth Ward neighborhood was already blocked out. ⁴ Among the squares bought by Davidson was number 66, the block in which this property is found. Davidson’s purchase of 21.5 acres cost $300.

Davidson sold the property in 1854 to Daniel H. Byerly for $200. ⁵ The property remained in the Byerly family until the end of the nineteenth century. After this time, it was purchased by several other people, ⁶ and remained with the heirs of T. R. Magill until 1963. After this time, the property suffered along with the general decline of the Fourth Wand neighborhood. It was sold in 1976 to Berryhill Preservation, Inc. Berryhill Preservation, Inc., was organized to salvage and restore the Fourth Ward area during a period of flight to Charlotte suburbia.

The neglected house was purchased by Christopher and Pam Geiger in 1977 for $13,000. They learned about the property because it was featured in a story about Fourth Ward renovation in The Charlotte Observer. ⁷ The house has been extensively renovated since 1976 and stands renewed as does the rest of the Fourth Ward.

Notes

¹ Information was gathered from an interview with Ms. Diane LaPoint, current owner of the property, 16 October 1990.

² Deed Record Book 17-690, 18 February 1801. Register of Deeds, Mecklenburg County Courthouse.

³ Deed Book 4-486,30 December 1836. Register of Deeds, Mecklenburg County Courthouse.

⁴ Deed Book 2-222, 10 March 1847. Register of Deeds, Mecklenburg County Courthouse.

⁵ Deed Book 3~501, 21 August 1854. Register of Deeds, Mecklenburg County Courthouse.

⁶ Chain of Title between 1892 and 1976:
T. M. Shelton, Deed Book 84-498, 19 Dec 1892;
Kate Russell, Deed Book 116-118, 11 January 1895;
T. R. Magill, Deed Book 123-630,8 March 1898;
after Magill’s death the property was conveyed to his heirs and descendants as follows: Mary M. Horton, Bess H. Edwards, and M. E. Gano who sold the property to M. S. Alverson, Jr., and his wife, Deed Book 3888-389,18 October 1976;
they sold to M. S. Alverson, Deed Book 3888-395,17 October 1976;
Alverson sold to Berryhill Preservation, Inc.

⁷ “For Sale: A Bit of Bygone Days,. The Charlotte Observer: 10 November 1976 (n.p.; article lent by Ms. Diane LaPoint).

Ms. Nora M. Black

The Sloan-Davidson House is located on the north side of West Eighth Street The house is within Fourth Ward between North Pine Street and North Poplar Street. It is one of the few houses in Fourth Ward that is original to its site; additionally, it has not been reoriented an its site. The front or south facade of the house faces West Eighth Street; the rear or north facade overlooks a small yard with a gazebo. The Sloan-Davidson House shares the West Eighth Street streetscape with the Overcarsh House (326 West Eighth Street), a Queen Anne style house.

The Sloan-Davidson House is believed to be an enlargement of a two room building or cottage that originally stood on the site. An investigation of the attic revealed a portion of a smaller roof with wood shakes encapsulated by the larger roof. The wood shake roof portion is located beside the chimney which separates the living room and the dining room. Furthermore, a portion of an old sill is visible near the same chimney in the crawl space. ¹

Exterior

As mentioned in the Historical Sketch, it is believed that the two room cottage grew into a Folk Victorian House ² in approximately 1890. A photograph from “An Inventory of Older Buildings in Mecklenburg County and Charlotte for the Historic Properties Commission” conducted in the summer of 1975 shows a house exterior much like the present one with three notable exceptions. The 1975 photograph shows flat, jigsaw-cut trim at the top of the porch supports; a simple repeating cross-in-square pattern forms the balustrade. The two front gable ornaments had decorative detailing that appears to consist of flat boards parallel to the ground connecting the spindlework. Renovations in the late 1970’s have replaced these three Folk Victorian details with the Queen Anne style of decorative detailing.

The siding is painted lapped horizontal boards; much of it is original. The current owner has replaced some rotten boards with weatherboarding of equal width. All siding is painted dark blue; the trim is painted white. The spindlework is painted white with mauve accents. The wooden porch floor is painted gray. The underpinning of the house consists variously of red brick and of stuccoed concrete blocks.

The black composition shingle roof has a moderate pitch. Due to the complexity of the roof, the roof pitch and the black shingles, there is a great deal of contrast between the roof planes and the blue wall surfaces. The black roof gives the house a heavy, weighted appearance. The boxed eaves have a moderate overhang with bed moldings. There is a moderate overhang on the gable ends with wide shingle moldings. The simple window surrounds consist of painted white boards. Many windows in the house have leaded glass and appear to be original. The current owner has installed interior storm windows that are not visible from the exterior

At a quick glance, it would seem that the Sloan-Davidson House has a compound, gable-front-and-wing shape; the ground plan of the house would appear to be that of a side-facing T with a hip-roofed porch. Upon investigation, it become obvious that the builders were not content to stop with a simple Folk Victorian shape for this small one-story house. Influenced by the Queen Anne style that was popular in Fourth Ward, the builders have constructed a complex tripped roof with cross gables. Yet even the tripped roof is an illusion, for the top of the hip is actually flat and contains a skylight over the center passage. Unlike the Queen Anne style houses, the gables are not secondary to the fake tripped roof but are of equal height. The gable pitch varies around the house facades. Furthermore, them is an irregularity in the ground plan to avoid a flat front wall surface; the front porch wraps around a small foyer that precedes the center passage.

The very complex roof divides the house and speaks of additions and renovations over the many years of life of the Sloan-Davidson House. The south (West Eighth Street) facade is three units wide. The west unit is gablefront with one centered 2/2 double-hung sash; it has an interior masonry chimney exiting at the ridge. There is a wooden, louvered vent in the gable as well as a Queen Anne style gable ornament of spindlework with beads. The center unit houses the entry with its glass and wood-paneled door; this unit gives the illusion of being tripped roofed The east unit has one 2/2 double-hung sash; it has a narrow, steep gable framed into a cross-gabled roof. The east unit gable ornament is spindlework with beads.

The porch fronts both the center unit and the east unit of the house. The hip-roofed porch wraps around the foyer of the house. The ceiling is board with the complex framing visible. The wooden porch supports are turned spindles connected with lace-like brackets and friezes.

The east facade of the house consists of four units. The east-most wing is one unit deep; it has a single double-hung 2/2 sash centered under the gable. The window-less second unit formed by a north-facing cross gable holds the electrical service panel. The window-less third unit is formed by a cross gable contained within the larger cross gable of the second unit. The fourth window-less unit is a small shed roofed addition.

The north (rear) facade of the house consists of three gables with a shed roofed porch. The east gable of the north facade has a single fixed pane of glass within a Gothic arch. That same cast gable also has a smaller, lower gable extruded from it The smaller gable has a high octagonal window. The third gable, having legs of unequal length, covers the kitchen area. The shed roofed porch does not extend the full width of the north facade; however, the east end of the porch has been enclosed to form a laundry/storage area. The remainder of the porch shelters two windows on either side of a double door that enters directly into the kitchen. The two ten light doors were added to the house during the 1970’s renovations. The east window is a 6/9 double hung sash; the west window is a 6/6 double hung sash. The eave of the porch roof is trimmed with flat, jigsaw cut trim. The square porch supports are trimmed with Queen Anne spindlework matching that of the front porch.

The west facade is the least complex of the Sloan-Davidson house. It is three units wide. A centered gable has a wooden louver for attic ventilation but no gable ornament. Each unit has one centered 6/9 double hung sash.

Interior

The plan of the house is also complicated by old additions and 1970’s renovations. It must be remembered that during the late 1970’s, the house was near collapse. It had to be renovated and repaired to bring it to a livable state. Some detailing was broken beyond repair, rotten, or simply missing. The damaged plaster had to be replaced with gypsum wallboard. Had these renovations not occurred, it would have been torn down. Then the lot might have been used as the site for a modern house similar to those constructed on either side of the Sloan-Davidson House.

The west section of the house consists of a living room, dining room, and kitchen; they are in line from front to back of the house. The wall between the living room and dining room has been removed. The two rooms are divided by a fireplace with open front and back; spindlework hanging from the ceiling serves as a further room divider. The living room is approximately fourteen feet square with hardwood floors of random width. The gray walls (at some places plaster and other places gypsum board) have a white chair rail and crown moldings. Half-corner posts beside the archway to the foyer are carved and dimpled. The chair rail and the crown molding continue throughout the dining room. Window surrounds with carved corner blocks in both rooms are painted white.

The dining room and the kitchen are believed to be the 1820’s two room building that was first constructed on the site. The dining room is approximately fourteen feet square with hardwood flooring. The original front door of the Sloan-Davidson House has been installed between the dining room and the kitchen. it is an elaborately carved door with a large pane of glass bounded by smaller panes over two carved wooden panels.

The kitchen has undergone much renovation due to the collapse of the ceiling during the 1970’s. The brick floor was installed in 1974; the previous wooden floor had rotted. The wainscot is stained a dark brown as are the door and window surrounds. Wood beams have been added to the ceiling.

The center section of the house is devoted to a small foyer and a center passage which the present owner uses as a parlor. There is a bedroom at the north end of the center passage (back of the house). A small bathroom opens off the north bedroom. The foyer entrance has a carved door surround with corner blocks. The door is also carved and consists of two small square panels over a single large glass panel over two rectangular vertical panels.

A fixed sash on the east side of the foyer has a square, clear pane of glass surrounded by smaller square panes of stained glass The foyer is divided from the parlor by beaded spindlework within the framework of the door surround. The parlor (center passage) has a dark wainscot and door surrounds. The ceiling of the parlor is taken up by a stained glass window; the current window replaces one destroyed by Hurricane Hugo in 1989.

The east section of the house consists simply of a rectangular bedroom with a bathroom on the north side. According to the current owner, both bathrooms were added in 1974. The house has been updated to include air conditioning and a gas furnace. Interior storm windows were added for energy conservation. A wood stove insert was added to the parlor fireplace.

The parlor fireplace is part of an interior chimney system that serves three rooms. Corner fireplaces have a long history in North Carolina having been introduced by German immigrants as early as the 1770’s in their Continental plan house. ³ The parlor fireplace has a mantle of dark stained wood surrounding a mirror. The actual parlor fireplace is of normal size; however, the overall impression created by the massive, extended mantelpiece is that of a much larger fireplace. The east bedroom has a carved fire surround painted white around tiles with a delicate floral pattern. The north bedroom also has a painted, carved fire surround.

Door and window surrounds in the two bedrooms have elegantly carved corner blocks; the elaborate surrounds are painted white. Chair rails have been installed in both bedrooms. Many of the interior doors are two panel wooden doors with early hardware. A two panel wooden door, possibly removed from an interior opening, has been installed in the laundry/storage area on the back porch.

The Sloan-Davidson House has survived the ups and downs of the area of Charlotte known as Fourth Ward. Throughout its life, it has changed from a two room cottage to a Folk Victorian dwelling with Queen Anne details. The current owner, who was raised nearby on Seventh Street, said that her grandmother attended church circle meetings in the Sloan-Davidson House. For the owner, the house has been an opportunity to return to the warmth of home in the center of Charlotte.

Notes

¹ Interview with Milton Grenfell . Mr. Grenfell visited the Sloan-Davidson House and inspected the attic and crawl space in May, 1990.

² Virginia & Lee McAlester, A Field Guide to American Houses (New York, 1986),309-317.

³ Doug Swaim, “North Carolina Folk Housing,” in Carolina Dwelling, ed. Doug Swaim, (Raleigh, N.C., 1978), p.35.

Click here for a video:  Mecklenburg County Rosenwald Schools

1. Name and location of the property:  The property known as the Siloam Schoolhouse is located on John Adams Road in Charlotte, North Carolina.
2. Name and address of present owner of the property:

Young Properties of Charlotte, LLC

1510-A Third Street, Wilmington, North Carolina 28402

(910)-251-5030

1. Representative photographs of the property:  This report contains representative photographs of the property.
2. Map depicting the location of the property:
3. UTM coordinates:  523505 E, 3909964 N.
4. Current deed book and tax parcel information for the property:

The tax parcel number of the property is 02965105.  The most recent reference to this property is recorded in Mecklenburg Deed Book 19115, page 559.

1. A brief historical sketch of the property:  This report contains a brief historical sketch of the property.
2. A brief architectural description of the property:  This report contains a brief architectural description of the property.
3. Documentation of why and in what ways the property meets the criteria for designation set forth in N.C.G.S. 160A-400.5:

Special significance in terms of its history, architecture, and/or cultural importance:  The Commission judges that the property known as Siloam Schoolhouse does possess special significance in terms of Charlotte –Mecklenburg.  The Commission bases its judgment on the following considerations:

1. The Siloam Schoolhouse, a rural primary school for African Americans in northeast Mecklenburg County, is a rare surviving example of the institutions built by newly-freed blacks after the Civil War.  The school stands as a testament to the perseverance of Mecklenburg’s black residents, who were willing to undergo severe hardships in order to obtain a basic education.
2. The Siloam Schoolhouse was built in the 1920s and replaced an earlier schoolhouse on the site and is a rare surviving example of the institutions built during the Jim Crow era; and
3. Siloam Schoolhouse is a physical legacy to a rural lifestyle that is fast disappearing as development expands to that portion of the County where Siloam is located, Mallard Creek.
4. Ad Valorem tax appraisal:  The Commission is aware that the designation would allow the owner of the property to apply for an automatic deferral of 50 percent of the Ad Valorem taxes on all or any portion of the property which becomes a “historic landmark.”  The current appraised value of the 1.12 acre lot is $20,000, the building has no appraised value.

Historical Overview

Prior to the 1880’s educational opportunities for all but the most elite children of Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s were non-existent.  Though the Freedmen’s Bureau had established schools for black children at the end of the Civil War, there was little local or state government support for public education in the first decade after the War.  Growing concern over the lack of educated workers to staff Charlotte’s rapidly expanding economy, led the City’s civic leadership to weigh in on the issue of education.  Among these men was Charlotte Observer Editor Charles R. Jones.  In March of 1880 Jones submitted a petition to the Charlotte Board of Alderman demanding the establishment of a public school in accordance with the North Carolina State School Law (1874).  He additionally called on the Board to find funding for schools and proceed with the election of an eight member school board.[1]  In 1882 the City of Charlotte established its first graded schools, one for white children and another for black.

By the 1890’s Mecklenburg County began to buy land for county schools for the education of black children.  All school buildings were locally funded, with the county school board paying for teacher salaries and supplies such as wood out of local tax revenues, which led to disparities between the quality of education in wealthier communities and poorer rural ones.[2]

In 1890 there were 43 public school buildings in the county for the education of black children.  Most of these schools were located on the grounds of local churches. They were originally built and financed by African American churches in response to newly freed black’s ardent desire for education.  The census for that year shows that there were 6,617 black children between the ages of six and twenty-one in the County. Though most Blacks recognized a link between freedom and literacy, the difficulty of county rural life meant that only about half of county children were enrolled in school by their parents in 1890.  White children of the area also attended school in similarly bleak numbers.[3]

Though the county school board provided operating costs disparities in funding, teacher training, and lack of general support for black education, on the part of the all white school board, led blacks to seek control over their own schools.   In 1890 a petition by the “Colored Citizens” of Mallard Creek, the location of Siloam, was brought before the Mecklenburg County Board of Education.  These civic minded men, ignored Jim Crow race etiquette, and asked the Board to appoint a “committee of colored men to look after the interests of the colored school in said district.” Like Blacks throughout the Reconstruction South this group sought control over its own institutions, believing that “the present committee of white men fail to take that interest in the welfare of their school”[4]

On September 11, 1903  the County Board of Education purchased an acre of land from F.C Query, for  $101.00.[5]  The lot, located on John Adams Road, a dirt road off of Mallard Creek Church Road, became the site for the Siloam School. The school is named after the Siloam Presbyterian Church, located 1.5 miles north of the school.  This church at one time educated newly freed blacks at a school building on church property[6]

There is anecdotal evidence that the original structure built on the land acquired from Query was log.[7] Oral history suggests that the current building was constructed in the 1920’s, after the demolition of the original log structure.  The current building is similar to the Rowenwald School Plan No. 1-A.  However there is no indication that the school building

was constructed using funds from the Rosenwald program.  Rosenwald plans were widely published, and it is likely that these published plans influenced the design of this particular building.  Attendance and budget records exist for the 1922-23 and 1924-25 school years. Children attended school for a six-month term during the 1920’s, and Siloam was one of five schools for the education of African-American children in the Mallard Creek district.   Though it housed grades one through seven the school employed a single teacher.  During the 1922-23 school year Margaret Gilliard was the teacher at Siloam, the following two years Mattie Osborne taught.  Gilliard was paid a monthly salary of $50.00; the next years Osborne earned $55.00 a month.[8]  The 1930 Charlotte City Directory lists both women as residents of the City of Charlotte.  It is likely that during their tenure they lived in the city, and made the long commute out to the County.

Eighty-seven year old local white resident Jean Kirk recalls seeing the teachers of Siloam on their way to and from work.  He recounts that from his family’s property he often saw Siloam teachers disembarking the bus that made the 15-mile journey from the city each morning.  They would arrive between 9:00 and 10:00 in the morning, depending on conditions.  The teachers then walked three miles from the bus stop to the school, the last leg on the dirt John Adams Road. The last bus left at 3:30 from the rural community, with these women on board.[9]

Between 1938 and 1952 many of Mecklenburg’s rural schools were closed as part of an effort to consolidate students into more modern and centralized locations.  Though it is not clear which year Siloam ceased to operate, beginning in 1947 the County School Board sought an owner for the Siloam School property. In 1951 The Young family purchased the one-acre lot and schoolhouse.[10]

The Young family already had an extensive historical attachment to the school.  Eighty-year old Reverend James Young, the most recent private owner, attended school there in the 1930’s.  Young’s father, Nelson, worked as the school’s janitor.  The elder Young’s duties included maintaining the property, starting the fire in the coal stove that served as sole heat sourced for the building, and obtaining water from a spring located a quarter mile away.  During the building’s use as a school it never had indoor water and plumbing.[11]

Young’s family initially lived five miles away from the schoolhouse, and as a boy as young as six he would walk five miles each way to attend school.[12] Under such difficult conditions it is not surprising that while in 1924, 72 African-American school age children lived in the school’s zone, only 63 children registered and the average daily attendance was 39 for that year.[13] Lack of transportation, the demand for child labor in agriculture, and poverty conspired to prevent higher attendance.  While limited economic and social mobility was possible for blacks in the nearby city of Charlotte, most county blacks faced limited employment opportunities primarily as domestics, laborers, or agricultural workers.  The hardships rural Blacks were willing to overcome, in the face of such bleak prospects, to educate their children is astounding.

When the Young family purchased the property they made internal structural changes. Initially used by the family as a residence, Nelson and his wife Cora added the wall at the rear of the building in order to accommodate a kitchen, and walls for bedrooms. The Youngs lived in the tiny residence with their three youngest children, nine others including James had left home by this time.[14]

By 1973 Nelson and Cora had moved into the city of Charlotte.  It was then that they conveyed the property to Reverend Young and his wife Vera.  Young converted the property to an auto shop.  He demolished most of the internal walls and built the large garage door that now exists on the east side of the property.  Young closed his shop in the 1980’s, and the property began to serve primarily as a dumping ground.[15]

Architectural Description

West Elevation

The Siloam Schoolhouse is located near the intersection of John Adams Road and West Mallard Creek Church Road.  It stands on a one-acre lot approximately 150 feet from John Adams Road, at the top of a steep hill. The schoolhouse is a one-story front gabled wood shingled structure. The building rests on rectangular brick piers, which run in five rows, each containing five piers for a total of twenty-five.  The moderately sloped roof is covered with 3-v metal sheets, with  exposed rafter ends.

East Elevation

The front façade of the building, which faces north, is three bays wide.  The front entrance, currently without a door, is reached by three-riser high set of stairs, which is currently in very poor condition.  A small wood awning covered with green roof shingles shelters the doorway.  A small louvered vent is located above the doorway. On either side of the door are six-over-six double-hung windows. Most of the glazing is missing.

Rear Elevation

Originally the east elevation of the building contained five large fixed-pane windows, approximately eight feet in height.  These windows are typical of schoolhouses of the era and would have provided light to the un-electrified school.  Of the original six windows only three are extant.  The center of the wall currently has a large opening. The opening at one time accommodated a large wooden garage-type door, which was installed by James Young in the 1970’s to accommodate his automotive business.[16] Currently the door is all but gone, with the exception of a few panels that hang from the top of the doorframe. A brick chimney flanks the north side of the doorway.

The east façade of the building has more random fenestration, with two levels of irregularly placed windows.  A window, now boarded, is located in the middle of the lower level.  Near the rear/south end of the facade is a doorway.  The doorway is sheltered by a shed roof.  Closer to the roofline are three small fixed-pane windows. The south façade of the building is the simplest and contains one window and a door that is also sheltered by a corrugated metal awning.

The interior of the building measures approximately 22 feet across and 40 feet in length. Originally a single room, the interior of the building has undergone a number of renovations.  Currently the front of the building has a small vestibule that is formed by the walls of two small rooms, which flank either side of the front entrance.  It is not clear when these rooms were added, or what their purpose was.  Their dimensions preclude their use as sleeping quarters, and were probably used by either the Young family or James Young’s automotive business as storage space. Both rooms originally opened into the large main room, and had doors, which are currently missing.  The exterior door and that between the vestibule and the main room are no longer present.

The large main room measures 22 feet wide by 29 feet in length.  In the 1950’s the room was divided into living and sleeping quarters. When James Young turned the dwelling into an automotive garage in the 1970’s he removed those dividing walls. In the southwest corner of this room is a chimney that vented a coal-burning stove. At the rear of the building is a 22 foot wide by 8 foot deep room.  The partitioning wall that forms this room was not part of the original schoolhouse structure.  Nelson Young partitioned the room from the rest of the buildings space when he bought the house in 1951 to accommodate a kitchen.[17]

Interior

The wooden floors of the building are in varying states of disrepair. While intact in much of the building, in other places the floor has rotted out.  Most of the interior walls are covered in beadboard, as is a portion of the ceiling. In much of the building however the ceiling has been removed and the space is open to the rafters.

[1] City of Charlotte Board of Aldermen Minutes, Book 5, page 127, March 23, 1880

[2] Thomas Hanchett, “Rosenwald School Survey,” Charlotte Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission.

[3] Minutes, Mecklenburg County Board of Education, July 7, 1890 and August 16, 1890.

[4] Ibid., September 1, 1890.

[5] Mecklenburg County School Property. University of North Carolina at Charlotte Special Collections, J. Murrey Atkins Library.

[6] Map of Mecklenburg County, 1911. The Carolina Room, Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.

[7] Interview with James Young, December, 2005.

[8] Revised and Final Budget of Mecklenburg County Schools (Colored), 1922-23 and 1924-25.  The Carolina Room, The Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.  For information on Rosenwald Schools in Mecklenburg County see: Rosenwald Schools

[9] Interview with Jean Kirk, December 2005.

[10] Mecklenburg County Deed Book 1648, page 109.

[11] Young Interview.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Revised and Final Budget, 1924-25.

[14] Young Interview.

[15] Ibid.

[16] Ibid.

[17] Ibid.