Belle Mina
Encyclopedia
Belle Mina, known as Belmina during the 19th century, is a historic plantation
and plantation house in Belle Mina, Alabama
, United States. Completed in 1826, the Late Georgian
-style house was built for Alabama's second governor, Thomas Bibb
.
Originally at the center of a 2500 acres (10.1 km²) plantation, the red brick main house is one of the earliest Alabama examples of a stereotypical columned plantation house. The house and surrounding 9 acres (3.6 ha) were added to the National Register of Historic Places
on October 31, 1972.
and a brick kiln
built. As the area was still being converted from a frontier, there was no sawed lumber or ready-made brick available. Bibb obtained skilled slave
artisans to produce the construction materials and build the house. It took him several years to find a highly skilled slave mason and an expert carpenter. The house was basically complete by 1826, although work on various buildings of the plantation complex
continued up to 1835.
Bibb died in 1839, but the plantation remained in his family until 1941. At that time it was purchased by Dr. and Mrs. Berthold Kennedy, who renovated the mansion shorty afterwards. Another renovation was completed in 1967. At that time a kitchen wing and garage were built and some minor interior modifications were done.
hexastyle portico that spans the entire five-bay
, 60 feet (18.3 m) wide front facade. The floor of the stylobate
and the columns are brick. The portico shelters the main front entrance with its delicate fanlight
and sidelight
s in the central bay. A three-part window is centered above the front entrance. The remaining bays are defined by rectangular twelve-over-twelve sash window
s on both levels. A hip roof
, originally crowned by a balustrade
, covers both the portico and main structure. An original one-story, semi-detached brick service wing with three rooms is located towards the rear of the house, on the south side.
The house and grounds were originally surrounded by a 5 feet (1.5 m) high brick wall. It was demolished during the American Civil War
. The rooftop deck and balustrade were destroyed in a tornado on July 16, 1875.
The interior of the house features Federal
style woodwork, Adam style
fireplace mantels, and a spiral primary stairway
. The floor plan
is based on the center-hall
prototype, with two large primary rooms to either side of a 15 by 60 ft (4.6 by 18.3 m) hallway. The first floor also features a side hall and a secondary stairway.
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
and plantation house in Belle Mina, Alabama
Belle Mina, Alabama
Belle Mina is an unincorporated community in southeastern Limestone County, Alabama, United States.-History:The community of Belle Mina was named for the plantation of the same name that belonged to Governor Thomas Bibb, the second governor of the state of Alabama. It was originally called "Belle...
, United States. Completed in 1826, the Late Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
-style house was built for Alabama's second governor, Thomas Bibb
Thomas Bibb
Thomas Bibb was the second Governor of the U.S. state of Alabama from 1820 to 1821. He was born in Amelia County, Virginia in 1783. He was president of the Alabama Senate when his brother, Governor William Wyatt Bibb, died in office on July 10, 1820, and took over as governor for the remainder of...
.
Originally at the center of a 2500 acres (10.1 km²) plantation, the red brick main house is one of the earliest Alabama examples of a stereotypical columned plantation house. The house and surrounding 9 acres (3.6 ha) were added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on October 31, 1972.
History
Prior to the construction of the main house, Bibb had to have a sawmillSawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
and a brick kiln
Kiln
A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, or oven, in which a controlled temperature regime is produced. Uses include the hardening, burning or drying of materials...
built. As the area was still being converted from a frontier, there was no sawed lumber or ready-made brick available. Bibb obtained skilled slave
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
artisans to produce the construction materials and build the house. It took him several years to find a highly skilled slave mason and an expert carpenter. The house was basically complete by 1826, although work on various buildings of the plantation complex
Plantation complexes in the Southeastern United States
Plantation complexes in the Southeastern United States refers to the built environment that was common on agricultural plantations in the American South from the 17th into the 20th century. The complex included everything from the main residence down to the pens for livestock...
continued up to 1835.
Bibb died in 1839, but the plantation remained in his family until 1941. At that time it was purchased by Dr. and Mrs. Berthold Kennedy, who renovated the mansion shorty afterwards. Another renovation was completed in 1967. At that time a kitchen wing and garage were built and some minor interior modifications were done.
Architecture
The two-story brick structure features exterior walls that are 3 foot (0.9144 m) thick, laid in Flemish bond. The front (east) elevation of the house is dominated by a monumental TuscanTuscan order
Among canon of classical orders of classical architecture, the Tuscan order's place is due to the influence of the Italian Sebastiano Serlio, who meticulously described the five orders including a "Tuscan order", "the solidest and least ornate", in his fourth book of Regole generalii di...
hexastyle portico that spans the entire five-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
, 60 feet (18.3 m) wide front facade. The floor of the stylobate
Stylobate
In classical Greek architecture, a stylobate is the top step of the crepidoma, the stepped platform on which colonnades of temple columns are placed...
and the columns are brick. The portico shelters the main front entrance with its delicate fanlight
Fanlight
A fanlight is a window, semicircular or semi-elliptical in shape, with glazing bars or tracery sets radiating out like an open fan, It is placed over another window or a doorway. and is sometimes hinged to a transom. The bars in the fixed glazed window spread out in the manner a sunburst...
and sidelight
Sidelight
A sidelight is a window, usually with a vertical emphasis, that flanks a door. Sidelights are narrow, usually stationary and found immediately adjacent doorways...
s in the central bay. A three-part window is centered above the front entrance. The remaining bays are defined by rectangular twelve-over-twelve sash window
Sash window
A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels or "sashes" that form a frame to hold panes of glass, which are often separated from other panes by narrow muntins...
s on both levels. A hip roof
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
, originally crowned by a balustrade
Baluster
A baluster is a moulded shaft, square or of lathe-turned form, one of various forms of spindle in woodwork, made of stone or wood and sometimes of metal, standing on a unifying footing, and supporting the coping of a parapet or the handrail of a staircase. Multiplied in this way, they form a...
, covers both the portico and main structure. An original one-story, semi-detached brick service wing with three rooms is located towards the rear of the house, on the south side.
The house and grounds were originally surrounded by a 5 feet (1.5 m) high brick wall. It was demolished during 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...
. The rooftop deck and balustrade were destroyed in a tornado on July 16, 1875.
The interior of the house features Federal
Federal architecture
Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the United States between c. 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815. This style shares its name with its era, the Federal Period. The name Federal style is also used in association with furniture design...
style woodwork, Adam style
Adam style
The Adam style is an 18th century neoclassical style of interior design and architecture, as practiced by the three Adam brothers from Scotland; of whom Robert Adam and James Adam were the most widely known.The Adam brothers were the first to advocate an integrated style for architecture and...
fireplace mantels, and a spiral primary stairway
Stairway
Stairway, staircase, stairwell, flight of stairs, or simply stairs are names for a construction designed to bridge a large vertical distance by dividing it into smaller vertical distances, called steps...
. The floor plan
Floor plan
In architecture and building engineering, a floor plan, or floorplan, is a diagram, usually to scale, showing a view from above of the relationships between rooms, spaces and other physical features at one level of a structure....
is based on the center-hall
Central-passage house
The central-passage house, also known variously as center-hall house, hall-passage-parlor house, Williamsburg cottage, and Tidewater-type cottage, was a vernacular, or folk form, house type from the colonial period onward into the 19th century in the United States.It evolved primarily in colonial...
prototype, with two large primary rooms to either side of a 15 by 60 ft (4.6 by 18.3 m) hallway. The first floor also features a side hall and a secondary stairway.