Cedar Grove Plantation
Encyclopedia
Cedar Grove Plantation, also known as the Charles Walker House, is a Greek Revival
plantation
house located near Faunsdale
, Marengo County
, Alabama
. It is notable in having been the residence of Nicola Marschall
for a brief period while the Walker family owned the property. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places
on 13 July 1993 as a part of the Plantation Houses of the Alabama Canebrake and Their Associated Outbuildings Multiple Property Submission.
. In 1848 Charles and Margaret Walker purchased the property and hired a builder from Virginia
, Theophilus Fowler, to begin construction of the main house. The house served as the center of the large plantation, Charles Walker owned 154 slaves in 1860. The former log house is believed to have been incorporated into the main house to become the dining room and a bedroom. The house remained under construction until 1858.
Nicola Marschall was a friend of the Walker family and lived with them briefly at their home. The two-story schoolhouse behind the main house is believed to have been used by him as a studio during his time there. This schoolhouse served as a school for children in the area until 1925. The house remained in the Walker family until 1982.
Greek Revival
style. The original porch was altered in 1915 from a one-story design with simple turned wooden column
s, spanned by arched latticework
, to the multi-level configuration with paneled box columns seen today.
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
plantation
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...
house located near Faunsdale
Faunsdale, Alabama
Faunsdale is a town in Marengo County, Alabama, U.S. At the 2000 census the population was 87. The town was named for nearby Faunsdale Plantation. Faunsdale is home to a medium-sized community of Amish Mennonites and the only Amish Mennonite community in this area of Alabama outside of Greensboro,...
, Marengo County
Marengo County, Alabama
Marengo County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is named in honor of a battlefield near Turin, Italy, where the French defeated the Austrians on June 14, 1800. As of 2010 the population was 21,027...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. It is notable in having been the residence of Nicola Marschall
Nicola Marschall
Nicola Marschall was a German-American artist who supported the Confederate cause during the American Civil War. He designed the original Confederate flag, the Stars and Bars, as well as the official grey uniform of the Confederate army....
for a brief period while the Walker family owned the property. The house was 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 13 July 1993 as a part of the Plantation Houses of the Alabama Canebrake and Their Associated Outbuildings Multiple Property Submission.
History
The house had its beginnings in 1830 with the construction of a two-story log house by Dougal and Malcolm McAlpin, two brothers from ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. In 1848 Charles and Margaret Walker purchased the property and hired a builder from Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, Theophilus Fowler, to begin construction of the main house. The house served as the center of the large plantation, Charles Walker owned 154 slaves in 1860. The former log house is believed to have been incorporated into the main house to become the dining room and a bedroom. The house remained under construction until 1858.
Nicola Marschall was a friend of the Walker family and lived with them briefly at their home. The two-story schoolhouse behind the main house is believed to have been used by him as a studio during his time there. This schoolhouse served as a school for children in the area until 1925. The house remained in the Walker family until 1982.
Description
The house is a two-story frame structure with a gabled roof and double veranda. It is built in a vernacularVernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
Greek Revival
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
style. The original porch was altered in 1915 from a one-story design with simple turned wooden column
Column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
s, spanned by arched latticework
Latticework
Latticework is a framework consisting of a criss-crossed pattern of strips of building material, typically wood or metal. The design is created by crossing the strips to form a network...
, to the multi-level configuration with paneled box columns seen today.