Waldwic, also known as the William M. Spencer, III, House, is a historic
Carpenter Gothic plantation house and
historic district
A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...
located on the west side of
Alabama Highway 69, south of
Gallion,
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 as the main residence and headquarters of a
forced-labor farm worked by
enslaved people, Waldwic is included in the
Plantation Houses of the Alabama Canebrake and Their Associated Outbuildings Multiple Property Submission.
The main house and plantation outbuildings were added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
on July 22, 1994.
History
The house for Robert Gracey started in 1840 as "an unpretentious galleried farmhouse"
[https://sah-archipedia.org/detail%2Fcontent%2Fentries%2FAL-01-065-0017.xml?q=%28section%3AAL-01%29%20AND%20decade%3A1840s ] and was then expanded and renovated in the
Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
style in 1852.
The facade then resembled a rendering of “Waldwic Cottage” from volume two of
William H. Ranlett’s "The Architect: A series of original designs for domestic and ornamental cottages and villas (1851)."
Ranlett could have been involved with the design of the renovation as he was retained by other wealthy southerners, but just as likely is that Ranlett's design inspired the house and name (to which a “k” was eventually added). The carpentry work was completed by Peter Lee and Joe Glasgow, skilled craftsmen enslaved by Captain
H.A. Tayloe, who owned the neighboring
Macon Station Plantation. Lee and Glasgow also built
St. Andrew's Episcopal Church (Prairieville, Alabama)
St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, also known as St. Andrew's Church is a historic church building on County Highway 12 in Prairieville, Alabama. Built by slaves in 1853, it is a remarkably well-preserved example of Carpenter Gothic architecture, ...
(1853–1854) in the Carpenter Gothic style and the decorative interior woodwork. Gracey's widow remarried after Robert's death to Willis Bocock in 1856. The
1860 United States Census of
Marengo County indicates that Bocock
enslaved 127 people in that year and the 1870s map of Hale County lists him as the owner still.
The Waldwic property was originally within
Marengo County, but this portion of Marengo was added to
Hale County Hale County is the name of two counties in the United States:
* Hale County, Alabama
*Hale County, Texas
Hale County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 32,522. The county seat is Plainview ...
upon its creation in 1867.
Robert Gracey's granddaughter, Bertha Gracey Steele, married at Waldwic in 1889 to William Micajah Spencer. He was a lawyer and was elected to the
Alabama Senate in 1901.
The house is one of only about 20
Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
residential structures remaining in Alabama.
Other historic
Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
residences in the area include
Ashe Cottage
Ashe Cottage, also known as the Ely House, is a historic Carpenter Gothic house in Demopolis, Alabama. It was built in 1832 and expanded and remodeled in the Gothic Revival style in 1858 by William Cincinnatus Ashe, a physician from North Caroli ...
in
Demopolis and
Fairhope Plantation
Fairhope Plantation is a historic Carpenter Gothic plantation house and historic district, located one mile east of Uniontown, Alabama, US. The -story wood- framed main house was built in the Gothic Revival style in the late 1850s. The planta ...
in
Uniontown.
References
External links
*
Photograph of Waldwic in 2004
{{National Register of Historic Places
History of slavery in Alabama
National Register of Historic Places in Hale County, Alabama
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Alabama
Carpenter Gothic architecture in Alabama
Houses completed in 1840
Plantation houses in Alabama
Houses in Hale County, Alabama
Historic districts in Hale County, Alabama
Historic American Buildings Survey in Alabama
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Alabama