Ammadelle
Encyclopedia
Ammadelle, in Oxford, Mississippi
is an Italianate mansion that is a fine example of design work by Calvert Vaux
. It was built by Thomas E. B. Pegues. Final details were incomplete when the American Civil War
started, and the missing details (balconies across the rear, and a wine cellar) were never finished.
It is a red brick building with white Italianate
trim and black shutters. It was designed in an irregular plan by Calvert Vaux
, an architect who had moved to America in 1850 to work with Andrew Jackson Downing
and would later work with Frederick Law Olmsted
. Vaux was 34 years old, and working independently after Downing's death, when he prepared plans for Ammadelle in 1857. That Vaux thought Ammadelle was one of his best works is suggested by his inclusion of a similar design in the second and third editions of his book Villas and Cottages.
The house is in very well preserved condition; it has been altered in only small ways of replacement of three mantels.
It was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1974.
Vaux's original plans are with the owner of the building.
It is located at 637 North Lamar Street in Oxford. It "demonstrates that wealthy Mississippians of that era could keep abreast of architectural fashions. The crippled economy which followed so shortly after has protected the environment from destructive development pressures."
Oxford, Mississippi
Oxford is a city in, and the county seat of, Lafayette County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1835, it was named after the British university city of Oxford in hopes of having the state university located there, which it did successfully attract....
is an Italianate mansion that is a fine example of design work by Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....
. It was built by Thomas E. B. Pegues. Final details were incomplete when the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
started, and the missing details (balconies across the rear, and a wine cellar) were never finished.
It is a red brick building with white Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
trim and black shutters. It was designed in an irregular plan by Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....
, an architect who had moved to America in 1850 to work with Andrew Jackson Downing
Andrew Jackson Downing
Andrew Jackson Downing was an American landscape designer, horticulturalist, and writer, a prominent advocate of the Gothic Revival style in the United States, and editor of The Horticulturist magazine...
and would later work with Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted was an American journalist, social critic, public administrator, and landscape designer. He is popularly considered to be the father of American landscape architecture, although many scholars have bestowed that title upon Andrew Jackson Downing...
. Vaux was 34 years old, and working independently after Downing's death, when he prepared plans for Ammadelle in 1857. That Vaux thought Ammadelle was one of his best works is suggested by his inclusion of a similar design in the second and third editions of his book Villas and Cottages.
The house is in very well preserved condition; it has been altered in only small ways of replacement of three mantels.
It was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1974.
Vaux's original plans are with the owner of the building.
It is located at 637 North Lamar Street in Oxford. It "demonstrates that wealthy Mississippians of that era could keep abreast of architectural fashions. The crippled economy which followed so shortly after has protected the environment from destructive development pressures."