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

 

 

Historical Overview  

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).

 

 

Architectural Description  

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

Rosenwald School Plan 1-A

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.

Julius Rosenwald

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.

 

 

This report was written on 29 January 1992

1. Name and location of the property: The property known as the John W. Sheppard House is located at 601 North Poplar 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:

Mr. Joseph Ashley Parlier
601 North Poplar Street
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

Telephone: (704) 358-1464

Tax Parcel Number: 078-031-06

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.

5. Current Deed Book Reference to the property: The most recent deed to Tax Parcel Number 078-031-06 is listed in Mecklenburg County Deed Book 6526 at page 417.

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, architectural and /or cultural importance: The Commission judges that the property known as the John W. Sheppard House does possess special significance in terms of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. The Commission bases its judgment on the following considerations: 1) the John W. Sheppard House was completed by 1899; 2) John W. Sheppard was one of the first university-trained professional pharmacists in the United States; 3) John W. Sheppard joined with J. P. Woodall to open the Woodall and Sheppard Drugstore in 1896 at the corner of Trade and Tryon Streets; 4) the John W. Sheppard House was owned and maintained by the family of Edith Sheppard Shaw until 1961; 5) the John W. Sheppard House has survived through the years with most interior appointments, such as wood paneling, stained moldings, and wooden pocket doors, intact and in very good condition; 6) the John W. Sheppard House has many exterior appointments, such as original front doors and full facade porch, intact and in very good condition; 7) the John W. Sheppard House is architecturally significant as one of the best examples of the Free Classic, Queen Anne style house in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County; and 8) the John W. Sheppard House is one of only a few houses that is original to site and orientation in Fourth Ward.

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 John W. Sheppard 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 $141,060. The current appraised value of Tax Parcel 078-031-06 is $99,840. The total appraised value of the property is $240,900. The property is zoned UR1.

Date of Preparation of this Report: 29 January 1992

Prepared by: Dan L. Morrill in conjunction with Ms. Nora M. Black
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission
The Law Building, Suite 100, 730 East Trade Street
P. O. Box 35434
Charlotte, North Carolina

Telephone: 704/376-9115

 

 

Historical Overview  

P.M. Stathakis

The John W. Sheppard House at 601 North Poplar Street was built in 1898 and 1899 by John W. Sheppard. Sheppard, a native of Cedarville, New Jersey, came to live in Charlotte in 1896. In that year, he and his partner, J.P. Woodall, bought the Reese and Robertson Drugstore on the Northwest corner of Independence Square. ¹ Sheppard received his degree in pharmacy from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy. After completing an internship at the prestigious Philadelphia firm of Henry C. Blair, Sheppard moved to Memphis, Tennessee and worked for James A. Robinson with his friend J.P. Woodall. ² Two years later, Sheppard and Woodall decided to go into business for themselves. After touring several Southern towns for potential business opportunities, Sheppard discovered Charlotte. He was “so pleased with the town and the people” that he wrote his friend Woodall and urged him to come see Charlotte for himself. ³

 

The Sheppard and Woodall Drug Store The Woodall and Sheppard Drugstore opened in 1896. Woodall and Sheppard quickly secured their niche among the other established drugstores in Charlotte at that time: Burwell and Dunn, McAden’s, and Jordan’s. The gala grand opening for the drugstore was described by the newspaper as a “record breaking” event, and as “one of the most successful affairs of the sort, if not the most notable in the history of the city.” It was standing room only on opening day at Woodall and Sheppard; Charlotteans were attracted by the advertised low prices and the limited supply of free gifts to be given to the first customers. Free ice cream was available for part of the day and special gifts were provided for ladies. ⁴ Sheppard later attributed part of his early success to the fact that Woodall and Sheppard was the first drugstore in Charlotte to make and sell ice cream all year long. Other drugstores only kept their fountains open in the summer. Woodall and Sheppard were also the first in town to offer bicycle delivery to their customers. The delivery man was James Davidson. “Whistling James” as Davidson was commonly known, delivered for Woodall and Sheppard for twenty-five years. When Davidson became too old to make bicycle deliveries, Sheppard arranged employment for him in a local bank. ⁵

In 1899, Sheppard returned to Cedarville, New Jersey to marry his childhood sweetheart, Anna Stanton Mulford. Their wedding, held on October 10 at the Mulford home, was described by the Cedarville paper as an elegant affair. The paper also noted that after their “wedding tour”, Mr. and Mrs. Sheppard would reside in Charlotte, “in their furnished home now awaiting them.” By 1899, Sheppard was clearly well established, and, in accordance with the gentlemanly practice of the day, was able to provide a home for his wife in advance of her arrival. ⁶

Sheppard acquired the lot at 601 North Poplar Street on February 22, 1898 from William and Lillie Morse, who lived on the adjacent lot, and from Thomas and Eliza Davis. ⁷ Sheppard’s lot was originally part of the 100′ x 198′ lot owned by the Morse family. The Morse family acquired the land in 1892 for $2500.00. A house already occupied the lot, built by the previous owner of the property, Joe McClure. (McClure died in 1885 and according to legend, haunted the Morse house.) Sometime between 1892 and 1898, the Morse family decided to divide the lot. To accommodate this decision, they moved the house from the middle of the lot to the half away from the corner, and ultimately sold the corner half to Sheppard for $1000.00. ⁸ Unlike many houses in Fourth Ward, the John W. Sheppard House was an original part of the neighborhood and occupies its original site.

When John Sheppard built his house in Fourth Ward, Charlotte was still a walking city. The commercial core was at the center of town, and immediately flanking this core were the homes of the wealthiest citizens. Since everyone walked to work, only the most prestigious and prosperous people lived close to their jobs. Unlike the present spatial arrangement of Charlotte, the finest homes were found at the edge of the commercial district; on Tryon and on Trade Streets.

The middle class occupied the area immediately behind the upper class. Fourth Ward was a middle class neighborhood, and was situated near enough to town for its residents to walk to work. Sheppard bicycled to work everyday, as did many of his Fourth Ward neighbors. The working poor were relegated to the outer fringes of this residential arrangement. ¹⁰

John and Anna Sheppard had three sons and one daughter. Tragically, all three sons died in childhood; James died at age 6 of spinal meningitis, infants John and Louis died of colitis when the family was on summer vacation in New Jersey. ¹¹ Daughter Edith survived, and she and her parents were a typical family in the neighborhood. Mr. Sheppard was a professional man; Mrs. Sheppard tended the house with the help of her day servant Ora McIlwee; and Edith was sent to school and spent most of her youth amusing herself with her friends in Fourth Ward.

Edith’s best friend was Mildred Morse, who lived next door. Edith, Mildred, and other girlfriends; Katherine Blakely, Mary and Margaret Blair, and the Grandy sisters played together and grew up together in Fourth Ward. As young girls, Edith and Mildred played see-saw on a loose plank in the fence that separated the Sheppard and Morse yards. They also crawled on their bellies exploring under the Morse house and cut paper dolls out of magazines. One afternoon, Mildred and Edith found a rat in the Sheppard’s garage. Mildred, showing off for Edith, poked the rat in the face, and the rat bit her finger. Mrs. Sheppard had to administer first aid. Such dangerous pursuits were not generally the norm; Edith and Mildred and their friends liked to go to the movies. For a quarter they could catch up on the weekly installments of serials such as the “Perils of Pauline” and have enough money left over for ice cream. Because there were so many neighborhood churches, Edith and her friends could frequently find weddings to attend. The fact that the girls were not formally invited to most of these ceremonies did not trouble them; they found that they could observe most weddings undetected. ¹²

Edith Sheppard attended the neighborhood schools- Bethune Elementary and Brevard Street High School. Edith also attended college at a time when few girls were allowed to leave home and pursue higher education. She graduated from Swarthmore College in 1923 with a degree in History and returned to Charlotte to teach third grade at the Elizabeth School for two years. In 1925, Edith married Thomas Willard Shaw, also a graduate of Swarthmore. Her wedding was held at home; the ceremony took place in the front parlor with approximately fifty guests in attendance. ¹³

Edith and her husband moved to New Jersey after their wedding and also lived in Maryland before returning to Charlotte in 1934, prior to the birth of their third son, Robert. The Shaws moved back to 601 North Poplar to stay with John Sheppard (Anna Sheppard died in 1932). Edith Shaw raised her sons in the same house and neighborhood where she grew up. The Shaw boys attended Bethune Elementary School, and later attended Alexander Graham Junior High School (when it was located on Morehead Street) and Central High School.

Edith’s sons enjoyed growing up in Fourth Ward as much as she did. They played baseball and football in various vacant lots in the neighborhood. The boys and their friends were adept at sneaking rides and small pieces of ice from the ice man. They tied tin cans to car bumpers (this was best done when cars waited at stop signs at night) and tried to hit the Poplar Apartments with marbles shot from slingshots from their bedroom windows. ¹⁴

The Shaw boys were also able to enjoy the companionship of their grandfather until his death in April of 1955. John Sheppard used to take them for walks to the train station, and would also walk them to Sunday School and to church when they were young. Sheppard offered his grandsons gold watches if they did not smoke or drink before their twenty-first birthday. ¹⁵

The John W. Sheppard House remained with the Sheppard family until 1961. The property was subsequently purchased by Mrs. Robert Neal. The Neal family maintained the property and kept the house in good condition during the years that the rest of Fourth Ward declined.¹⁶ The present owner, Joseph Ashley Parlier, acquired the property in 1991. Parlier has refurbished most of the house back to its original style, and uses the house as his private residence and as a bed and breakfast. This restoration has not been unusually difficult because the house was never allowed to fall into disrepair.

 

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Notes

¹ Charlotte Observer, section three, September 13, 1942, “Interesting Carolina People” by Mrs. J.A. Yarbrough.

² Sheppard and Woodall were among the first wave of university-trained professional pharmacists in the United States. The professionalization of the discipline began in Germany in the mid-nineteenth century, and expanded into British and American universities by the late nineteenth century. Further information about this issue may be found in Charles Singer and E. Ashworth Underwood, A Short History of Medicine. New York: Oxford University Press, 1962.

³ Charlotte Observer, September 13, 1942.

⁴ Clipping from Charlotte Observer, 1896, n.p. from the files of Mr. Robert Shaw, grandson of John W. Sheppard. Interview with Robert Shaw, 1-10-92.

⁵ Charlotte Observer, September 13, 1942. Interview with Mrs. Edith Shaw, daughter of John W. Sheppard, 1-10-92.

⁶ Wedding Announcement from the Cedarville, New Jersey newspaper, October 11, 1899. Property of Robert Shaw.

⁷ Deed 123-581, County Court House.2-21-1898. Register of Deeds, Mecklenburg County.

⁸ Copy of letter of Mildred Morse McEwen to Mrs. Robert Neal (former owner of 601 North Poplar), May 19, 1976. Copy property of Mr. J. Ashley Parlier, present owner of the property. Deed 123581.

⁹ Thomas Hanchett, Charlotte and Its Neighborhoods. The Growth of a New South City. 1850-1930. Unpublished manuscript compiled for the Charlotte Mecklenburg Historic Properties Commission.

¹⁰ Ibid. This kind of pattern is described here in general terms, but is a fairly accurate description of late nineteenth century Charlotte and of other cities in the preindustrial phase of their development. For further discussion of the transitions in the spatial arrangement of urban areas see David Ward, Cities and Immigrants. A Geography of Chance in Nineteenth Century America. New York: Oxford University Press, 1971; David R. Goldfield and Blaine A. Brownell, Urban America. From Downtown to No Town. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1979.

¹¹ Interview, Robert Shaw and Mrs. Edith Shaw.

¹² Interview, Mrs. Edith Shaw. Mildred Morse McEwen, Growing Up in Fourth Ward, Charlotte, N.C.: Heritage Printers, 1987, pp. 50, 67, 77-78.

¹³ Interview with Edith Shaw, Charlotte Observer, October 7, 1925, p. 20.

¹⁴ Interview, Robert Shaw.

¹⁵ Ibid. The Sheppards and the Shaws attended Second Presbyterian Church, which at this time was located on North Tryon Street next to Montaldo’s.

¹⁶ The Charlotte Observer described 601 North Poplar Street as “one of Fourth Ward’s best kept homes” in 1974, when interest in reviving the downtown suburb was initially publicized. The Charlotte Observer, December 1, 1974, sect. D-1. Mrs. Neal was featured in a story about the house in 1976. In this story, Mrs. Neal described the fine construction and detailed work in the house. This article also describes the Neal’s interior changes to the house which included red wall to wall carpeting downstairs (red carpet was intended to evoke the house’s Victorian heritage) and paneling that covered the plaster walls. Parlier has removed both of these features in his attempt to restore the house to its original form. The Charlotte News, May 15, 1976, “Victorian Classic” by Edie Low, n.p.

 

Architectural Description  

Prepared by: Ms. Nora M. Black

The John W. Sheppard House is located in Charlotte’s Fourth Ward on the north side of North Poplar Street at the intersection of West 9th Street. During the era of rebuilding in Fourth Ward, the City of Charlotte closed several streets to reduce cut-through traffic. One of those closed was West 9th Street on the southwest side of the John W. Sheppard House. A small “pocket park” with a noisy fountain and benches fills the narrow area once used by cars. The driveway is located toward the rear of the lot at a point where West 9th Street remerges beyond the “pocket park” seen from North Poplar Street. The front or south facade of the house faces North Poplar Street; the rear or north facade overlooks the side of an adjacent house. The house is located on a rectangular-shaped lot (roughly 48′ wide by 104′ deep) owned by Mr. Joseph Ashley Parlier. A low retaining wall runs along the south side of the tract facing North Poplar Street.

The John W. Sheppard House is a Victorian House built in the Queen Anne style. The house is a subtype of the the Queen Anne style called the Free Classic typed Houses built between 1860 and 1900, the last decades of the reign of Britain’s Queen Victoria, are usually referred to as “Victorian.” The advent of balloon frame construction, replacing heavy timber construction, simplified the home building industry making it easier to add bays and overhangs and to construct irregular floor plans. Industrialization in the United States allowed large factories to mass produce wire nails, doors, windows, siding, and decorative details; the growing railroad system carried these mass-produced items throughout the country. ² The John W. Sheppard House displays many of the benefits of the era including the projecting bays; the dormer and its decorative details, and the cross-gables of the varied roofline.

The ground plan of the John W. Sheppard House is a compound plan with irregular projections from the principal mass. The house presents an asymmetrical, two-story elevation to North Poplar Street. The front-view is dominated by the one-story porch that encircles half of the first floor and the two-story cutaway bay. The band of shingles at the wall-roof juncture and in the gable ends adds the wall texture variation that is common in the Queen Anne style. The mansard roof with lower cross gables is a common roof type found in this style.

Exterior

The John W. Sheppard Houses has three types of siding: original horizontal board siding, Masonite siding, and wood shingles. The Masonite siding was applied in the 1970’s by the Neal family, the owners at that time, to replace deteriorated horizontal board siding. The Masonite siding was cut down in width to match the original siding. Wood shingles form a band around the main block of the house at the roof-wall juncture. A narrow band of molding, painted eggplant as an accent, tops a single wide board that serves as a cornice dividing the horizontal siding from the wood shingles. Narrow corner boards terminate at the single board cornice. The cross gable ends are covered with wood shingles; the shingles are even laid at an angle to meet the fascia and shingle molding. The exterior of the house has a palette of seven colors including the cream-color of the trim and grey-green, the predominant color.

The mansard roof is tripped and dual-pitched with a steep lower slope. It encloses a large attic; however, the attic does not provide usable space to the interior of the house. Two interior brick chimneys with corbeled tops pierce the slate roof. The roof is supported by rafters of rough cut timber; the random width boards forming the roof sheathing are 3/4″ thick. The original slate roof is laid in a simple, coursed pattern with four-course decorative bands cut and laid in a fish scale pattern. The metal ridge caps are finished with tall slender finials. The ledge-like, boxed eaves contain interior gutters which carry roof runoff to the downspouts. The high cost of repairs to a slate roof are well known to the current owner, Mr. Parlier. He paid $6100 in 1991 to repair his slate roof. ³

Many of the windows in the John W. Sheppard House contain the original leaded glass. Most are double hung wooden sash; each sash contains a single large pane of glass. Custom-built, aluminum-framed storm windows have been added to conserve energy; they are painted white to match the simple window casings. Originally the house had interior screens to provide protection from insects. Only three of those screens are still in place. Both the front bay and the west bay have a shallow rectangular stained glass window over a rectangular main window of a single pane of beveled glass. A cantilevered wall extension (with curved support bracket) on the east side of the house contains a single square stained glass window.

The front elevation is three units wide with the widest unit being the two-story cutaway bay. The cutaway bay, characterized by the walls of the bay receding under the corners of the gable, is located on the southwest corner of the front facade. The front entry forms the center unit; a single window completes the first floor of the front facade. The second story center unit is composed of two square windows with each having a St. Andrew’s cross combined with a Greek cross. The last second story unit, on the southeast corner, has an oval stained glass window with a keystone detail at both the top and bottom of the wooden casing. The shingled gable end of the attic story (over the cutaway bay) has a three part decorative element; the oval-headed stained glass window flanked by wooden vents lends a Palladian look. A dormer with shaped front decorated with flat jigsaw cut trim is located in the attic story just off the centerline of the house. Its asymmetrical location, contrasting colors, and stained glass add a distinctive, although characteristic, touch to the lively Queen Anne facade.

The one-story porch extends across the front of the house, wraps around the bay in a quarter circle, and extends halfway down the west side of the house before terminating in a steep, narrow stairway. Engaged pilasters with moldings of contrasting colors flank the bay. The roof of the porch is supported by Tuscan columns raised to the level of the porch railing on brick pedestals. The porch railing is a simple wooden balustrade. Bands of molding painted in contrasting colors add interest to the otherwise plain architrave. The porch is floored with tongue and groove boards painted hunter green. It has a ceiling of beaded board painted soft blue. Four concrete steps, flanked by brick piers, lead to the porch. Although the exact age of the light fixtures is unknown, it is believed that they were installed when electricity was installed in the house.

The front entry has a wooden screen door, decorated with a Greek key design, that has been converted to a storm door. The owner simply replaced the screen with glass. The knob on this door bears an inscription that says it was patented in 1898. The inner door is also of wood with three lower wooden panels, a middle panel of glass, and one high wooden panel. The hardware is original.

The John W. Sheppard House has no porch on the back or north facade of the house at this time. Originally, the house had a large first floor porch enclosed with lattice and a second floor sleeping porch. The- framework of that porch has been enclosed with the same siding as the rest of the house. The back door, which not original, is approached by a single flight of steps running parallel to the back of the house.

Interior

The interior of the John W. Sheppard House has not been modernized to any great degree. The beautiful paneling, balustrade and woodwork were never painted. This can be explained by the fact that the house remained in the same family for many years. The descendants of Mr. Sheppard had little desire or inclination to change the house of their forebears. Most of the historic fabric is not only intact but visible. The rooms have original pine moldings and original hardware for the wooden interior doors. Walls are of plaster; however, the plaster ceilings were so damaged that they had to be covered with sheetrock. The ceilings are approximately 11′ high throughout the house. Tiger oak was used for the flooring on the first floor while pine was used on the second floor. Stained glass windows have a stylized floral motif portrayed in opalescent glass. Some of the stained glass windows are copies made when the originals were said to be far beyond repair. Several original sconces, reminders of the gas light era, are still in place in rooms and hallways.

The front door opens to a large entry hall; an open staircase to the second floor is to the right (east) of the door. The entry hall is striking in appearance. Pine paneling, with a rich honey stain, encloses the closet at the base of the stairwell. A built-in bench, of the same wood, has a seat that lifts to reveal a storage area. The wainscot matches the paneling. A fireplace adds a welcoming touch to the entry hall. The fire surround is of stained pine with laurel wreathes used as decorative elements. Tucked beside the fireplace is a small projecting window seat with a stained glass window. The square newels on the first floor and the landing have laurel wreath decorations; each newel corner is beaded. Urns top each newel.

To the left (west side of the house) when standing at the front door is the guest parlor. It is approximately 14′ by 16′ although it appears larger because of the bay. There are fixed stained glass transom lights over the windows. The focal point of the guest parlor is the delicate fire surround with oval mirror. The maple fire surround has tall slender columns on each side of the fireplace; each column supports a disc designed to hold a plant or a knickknack. Pale green, rust and ivory tiles (looking almost like marble) surround a black cast iron fireplace insert. This is the only fireplace in the house that is not usable. It was closed in 1915 when the boiler was installed to provide central heat. Privacy could be provided for the guest parlor by closing the 9′ tall pocket doors. The seven-panel doors, made of pine, are still operable.

From the front door, a person could continue through the entry hall past the the guest parlor to the family sitting room also on the west side of the house. The family sitting room is approximately 16′ by 18′ and has a bay with a door that opens onto the west side of the porch. This bay also has a fixed stained glass transom light over the center window. The fire surround has slender posts supporting two shelves. One shelf is high, placed above the rectangular mirror, while the other shelf is above the the fire tile surrounding the fireplace opening. This fire surround has a much sturdier feel than that of the guest parlor. The simple floral wreath and dentil molding lend it a masculine air. Brown and white tiles surround a cast iron fireplace insert which has a floral motif. A large closet (with a window to provide light) is adjacent to the family sitting room.

The dining room is approximately 16′ by 15′ and is located on the east side of the house beyond the entry hall. The fireplace occupies the south wall of the room to share a chimney with the entry hall fireplace. The fire surround is flanked by Ionic columns which support a single shelf; laurel wreathes provide a decorative element. Variegated beige tiles surround the fireplace opening; a cast iron fireplace insert repeats the laurel motif. A plate rail with small support brackets surrounds the dining room. An original corner cupboard stands in the northwest corner of the room. A radiator from the butler’s pantry, complete with a top warming section, has been moved to the dining room.

The dining room has a doorway leading to a butler’s pantry. This room has not undergone rehabilitation. The cracked plaster and layers of old paint speak to the true age of the John W. Sheppard House. A smaller storage pantry is located to the west side of the butler’s pantry. To the rear (north side) of the butler’s pantry is the kitchen. The kitchen was partly renovated several years ago, but the cabinets, sink, and floors are not in good condition. The original plaster walls and pine wainscot are covered with sheets of paneling. The kitchen does have an original built-in pie safe with an unusual pass-through door to the storage pantry.

The last room on the first floor is the enclosed back porch. It is located on the northwest corner of the house. At the extreme northwest corner of the enclosed porch is a bathroom. Originally installed by the Sheppards, it was for the sole use of the maid who worked for the family. The fixtures have been replaced in recent years. The tongue and groove flooring and the beaded board ceiling are original finishes. An item of interest is the wood conduit found on the back porch.

The front staircase climbs from the entry hall to a landing large enough to accommodate a grandfather clock. The stair continues to climb into an opening that reaches the full height of the second floor ceilings. Two oval stained glass windows, one on the south wall and one on the east wall, provide light in the stairwell. The balustrade has simple turned balusters. The long single-run stair ends in a room sized landing on the second floor. The second floor has a double newel, each topped with a carved ball rather than the urns used on the first floor and landing. A service stair is located at the rear (north end) of the house. That stair, unlike the main stair, is narrow, winding and dark.

The second floor landing has plaster walls with a pine wainscot. It also has the original plaster ceiling. The rounded plaster corner turning from the landing into the second floor hallway was rebuilt by the current owner. The second floor landing has one of the original gas sconces mentioned earlier. It is located on the south wall of the landing adjacent to a door to the trunk storage room. One day, early in the life of the house but after the installation of electricity, someone left the door to the trunk storage room open against the globe of the sconce. A large scorch mark on the door attests to the hazard of living with open flames during the gas light era. When Mr. Sheppard saw how close he had come to losing his beloved home to fire, he ordered the gas line to the sconces disconnected immediately. ⁵

The room with the scorched door off the second floor landing is located over a portion of the entry hall. It was originally used to store the trunks used by the Sheppard family for their long summer trips. The current owner converted the trunk storage room into a bath to be used by guests of the bed and breakfast. The trunk storage room has the two windows with crosses mentioned in the exterior description of the front facade. The windows, called “pie windows” by the current owner, were rebuilt to the original look using an early photo of the house.

To the left (west) of the second floor landing is a bedroom overlooking North Poplar Street. This room contains a piece of the original stained glass which the current owner found and purchased. The stained glass window hangs in front of a clear glass window located high in the bay. The second bedroom on the west side of the house overlooks West 9th Street. Situated above the family sitting room, it was originally Mr. John W. Sheppard’s bedroom. In fact, Mr. Sheppard died in this bedroom in April of 1955. Mr. Sheppard’s room has an adjacent closet with a window to provide light. Both of these bedrooms have received a fresh coat of paint and are used as guest rooms.

A third bedroom is located on the east side of the house. It has not been repainted yet. In the future it will be spruced up to receive guests of the bed and breakfast. A narrow closet, located in the northeast corner of the room, has a shelf with a semicircular cut-out sized to accommodate the opening closet door.

Unlike the elaborate fireplaces of the more public first floor, the bedroom fireplaces have simpler wooden fire surrounds with cast iron fireplace inserts. The color of the fire tiles is varied. Again the predominant decorative motif is that of laurel and stylized vegetation.

The only entrance to the attic is a trap door in the ceiling of a closet located between Mr. Sheppard’s bedroom and the back service stair. The bathroom on the east side of the upstairs was the only bathroom when the house was constructed. It has not been refurbished. A high-back sink protected the walls from splashes.

The fourth bedroom, formerly the sleeping porch on the rear (north) side of the house, is encircled by original windows. However, the ceiling has been lowered to allow insulation to be placed between the original ceiling and the new ceiling. Inexpensive paneling has been installed on the walls. The current owner plans to return this area to its original condition as time and money permit.

The John W. Sheppard House was constructed without a basement. The installation of central heat in 1915 necessitated the digging of a room-sized cellar to hold a boiler to serve the radiators. It is roughly the size of the library and has brick walls and a concrete floor. The original boiler has been removed. The house now has an electric central air conditioning system and a natural gas furnace. One damaged chimney has been repaired recently.

Conclusion

The John W. Sheppard House is an intact example of a Free Classic, Queen Anne style house from the last years of the 19th century. It is one of the few houses in Fourth Ward that is original to its site and its orientation to the street gird. The finishes and decorative details of the John W. Sheppard House stand in contrast to those of the simpler farmhouses moved to Fourth Ward during urban redevelopment. It can provide insight into the town houses that businessmen new to Charlotte and North Carolina constructed with wealth accumulated during the rise of the New South.

 

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Notes

¹ Virginia & Lee McAlester, A Field Guide to American Houses (New York, 1986), 264-265.

² Ibid, 239.

³ Interview with Mr. J. Ashley Parlier,current owner; 12 January 1992.

⁴ Interview, as in #3.

⁵ Interview, as in #3.