Barton Hall, also known as the Cunningham Plantation, is an
antebellum
Antebellum, Latin for "before war", may refer to:
United States history
* Antebellum South, the pre-American Civil War period in the Southern United States
** Antebellum Georgia
** Antebellum South Carolina
** Antebellum Virginia
* Antebellum ar ...
plantation house
A plantation house is the main house of a plantation, often a substantial farmhouse, which often serves as a symbol for the plantation as a whole. Plantation houses in the Southern United States and in other areas are known as quite grand and e ...
near present-day
Cherokee
The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...
,
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
. Built in 1840, it is a stylistically rare example of
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...
in Alabama, with elements from the late Federal period. The house was designated a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
in 1973 for its architecture.
Description and history
Barton Hall is located in a rural setting about west of the town of Cherokee and south of
United States Route 72. It is set on of land, accessed via an elliptical drive from Cedar Lane. The house is a -story wood-frame structure, with a clapboarded exterior, and a truncated hip roof topped by a
belvedere Belvedere (from Italian, meaning "beautiful sight") may refer to:
Places
Australia
*Belvedere, Queensland, a locality in the Cassowary Coast Region
Africa
*Belvedere (Casablanca), a neighborhood in Casablanca, Morocco
*Belvedere, Harare, Zim ...
. Single-story gable-roofed wings extend to the rear. The main facade is five bays wide, with a symmetrical arrangement of windows around the central entrance. The central bay is set off from the others by fluted pilasters, which also appear at the building corners. The entrance is sheltered by a deep porch supported by fluted Doric columns, and featuring Doric triglyphs in its cornice. The porch is topped by a balcony accessed via a second-story entrance stylistically similar to the main entrance below. The entrance is flanked by sidelight windows and topped by a transom window and eared architrave.
Period interior features include a unique stairway which ascends in a series of double flights and bridge-like landings to an observatory on the rooftop that offered views of the plantation.
[ and ]
In 1840, Armestead Barton, a native of
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, moved to the area and purchased , on which he began construction of this house. The house remained unfinished at the time of his death in 1847 and was completed two years later under his widow's supervision. The property was sold out of the Barton family in 1908. In 1967, a Barton descendant repurchased the house.
In November 2008, the noted photographer
Charles Moore took his final documented images on this property. The home continues to be privately owned and occupied, and it is not open to the public.
Gallery
Image:Barton Hall Alabama 02.jpg, View of the stairwell, up to the observatory.
Image:Barton Hall Alabama 03.jpg, Stair treatment on the west side of the main hall.
Image:Barton Hall Alabama 04.jpg, The front entrance porch.
Image:Barton Hall Alabama 05.jpg, View of the rear courtyard.
Image:Barton Hall Alabama 06.jpg, Pocket doors between the parlors.
Image:Barton Hall Alabama 07.jpg, Window treatment in living room.
See also
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in Alabama
The National Historic Landmarks in Alabama represent Alabama's history from the precolonial era, through the Civil War, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Space Age. There are 39 National Historic Landmarks (NHLs) in Alabama, which are located in ...
*
References
External links
*
{{National Register of Historic Places in Alabama
Houses in Colbert County, Alabama
National Historic Landmarks in Alabama
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Alabama
Houses completed in 1840
Plantation houses in Alabama
Greek Revival houses in Alabama
Antebellum architecture
Historic American Buildings Survey in Alabama