The Wetter House was a residence in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...

, United States. Originally built in 1822, it was expanded and remodeled in 1857 for Augustus Wetter, a Savannah architect and businessman. Its demolition in 1950 was an impetus for the formation of the

Historic Savannah Foundation Historic Savannah Foundation is a preservation organization founded in 1955 and based in Savannah, Georgia, United States. In 1950, the four-story Wetter House on East Oglethorpe was demolished.Oglethorpe Avenue Oglethorpe Avenue is a prominent street in Savannah, Georgia, United States. Located, in its downtown section, between York Street to the north and Hull Street to the south, it runs for about from the Atlantic Coastal Highway (U.S. Route 17) ...

, at its junction with Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard;''Lost Savannah: Photographs from the Collection of the Georgia Historical Society'', Luciana M. Spracher (2003), pp. 32–34 ''Savannah, 1733 to 2000: Photographs from the Collection of the Georgia Historical Society'' – Susan E. Dick, Mandi D. Johnson,

Georgia Historical Society The Georgia Historical Society (GHS) is a statewide historical society in Georgia. Headquartered in Savannah, Georgia, GHS is one of the oldest historical organizations in the United States. Since 1839, the society has collected, examined, and tau ...

(2001), p. 50 its original address was 215 South Broad Street. It was originally built as a three-storey stucco building for Anthony Barclay, next door to a mansion owned by Mary Magdalene Marshall. Marshall's adopted daughter, Margaret, married Anthony's son, Adalbert in 1855. From 1837, the property was owned by Margaret Telfair. Augustus Wetter, who acquired it in 1857 on his marriage to Alberta Telfair, had it remodeled and added

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impur ...

balconies by Wood & Perot of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, which included 50 medallions portraying poets, artists, and statesmen. The ironwork cost $100,000 and had been created for the Georgia state capitol at Milledgeville, but was reportedly rejected as too expensive. In 1862, during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, the house was briefly the headquarters of Confederate Army general Robert E. Lee, and

Confederate President The president of the Confederate States was the head of state and head of government of the Confederate States. The president was the chief executive of the federal government and was the commander-in-chief of the Confederate Army and the Confe ...

Jefferson Davis was a friend of Wetter's and a frequent visitor. The final use of the building was by the Savannah Female Asylum and Orphanage. In 1950, a Chevrolet dealership built a new showroom across the street from the house, bought it, and demolished it to make use of the site. Some interior decoration, such as mantlepieces, was sold, and the decorative ironwork was donated to the orphanage to sell for fundraising. Only a section of wall survives from the Wetter House.''Stories Set in Stone: Savannah and Her Unique Architecture''
– ''

Savannah Morning News The ''Savannah Morning News'' is a daily newspaper in Savannah, Georgia. It is published by Gannett. The motto of the paper is "Light of the Coastal Empire and Lowcountry". The paper serves Savannah, its metropolitan area, and parts of South ...

'' special publication Its demolition, along with that of the City Market, sparked the formation of the

Historic Savannah Foundation Historic Savannah Foundation is a preservation organization founded in 1955 and based in Savannah, Georgia, United States. In 1950, the four-story Wetter House on East Oglethorpe was demolished.Savannah Historic District Savannah Historic District may refer to: *Savannah Historic District (Savannah, Georgia), a National Historic Landmark district in Georgia * Central of Georgia Railroad: Savannah Shops and Terminal Facilities, Savannah, Georgia, a historic district ...

, which was declared a

National Historic Landmark District National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

in 1966.James Dillon (1977) , National Park ServiceSavannah Historic District
National Historic Landmark summary listing, National Park Service

Augustus Wetter

Augustus Peter Wetter was born in Mentz, Germany, in 1829."Augustus Peter Wetter "
– Patrick Walsh,

Georgia Southern University Georgia Southern University (GS or Georgia Southern) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia. The flagship campus is in Statesboro, and other locations include the Armstrong Campus in Savannah and the Liberty Campus in Hi ...

, Fall 1990 He emigrated to the United States, arriving in Savannah before the Civil War. He worked as a civil engineer under General Jeremy Francis Gilmer and was also a captain of the DeKalb Riflemen,Augustus P. Wetter financial record
–

part of the

Chatham Artillery The Chatham Artillery is an artillery unit that has played a leading role in the history of the state of Georgia since the American Revolution. In 1776, Thomas Lee was authorized to enlist a provincial company of artillery for the defense of Sav ...

. On April 21, 1857, Wetter married Sarah Alberta Cobb Telfair (April 5, 1834Wetter v. United Hydraulic Cotton Press Co., 75 Ga. 540 (1886), Feb. 19, 1886 · Supreme Court of Georgia 75 Ga. 540
– Caseless Access Project, Harvard Law School – 1866),''Mary Telfair to Mary Few:Selected Letters, 1802–1844, Mary Telfair (2011) daughter of Pierce Cobb and Mary Eliza Telfair."Mary Telfair's 'madness' leaves positive mark on Savannah history"
– The George-Anne Media Group She had previously, while a minor, married Charles S. Arnold, and the couple had divorced after a few years. In 1859, Wetter purchased the Sharon Plantation, just outside Savannah on land bounded by Louisville Road and the Ogeechee Canal. In November 1870, with

Eugene Kelly Eugene Kelly (born 9 August 1965) Eugene Kelly allmusic biography. is a Scottish musician who is a member of the group The Vaselines, a founding member of the now disbanded Eugenius and has had a number of solo releases. Eugene Kelly formed The ...

and six others, he was a founding member of the Southern Bank of the State of Georgia. Augustus and Alberta Wetter had four children, sons Edward and Conrad and daughters Mary ("Meta") Martha and Louisa Alberta. Alberta Wetter died on July 28, 1866, aged around 32. Her

great-aunt An aunt is a woman who is a sibling of a parent or married to a sibling of a parent. Aunts who are related by birth are second-degree relatives. Known alternate terms include auntie or aunty. Children in other cultures and families may refer ...

Mary Telfair Mary Telfair (January 28, 1791 – June 2, 1875)Mary Telfair
–

died in 1875, bequeathing $21,000 to the Wetters' daughters via a

trust Trust often refers to: * Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality It may also refer to: Business and law * Trust law, a body of law under which one person holds property for the benefit of another * Trust (bus ...

."Mary Telfair's Will"
–

Telfair Museums Telfair Museums, in the historic district of Savannah, Georgia, was the first public art museum in the Southern United States. Founded through the bequest of Mary Telfair (1791–1875), a prominent local citizen, and operated by the Georgia Histo ...

, July 27, 2018 Wetter challenged the will in court, claiming that she was "mentally incompetent" and suffering from

monomania In 19th-century psychiatry, monomania (from Greek , one, and , meaning "madness" or "frenzy") was a form of partial insanity conceived as single psychological obsession in an otherwise sound mind. Types Monomania may refer to: * De Clerambaul ...

to the detriment of others, and demanding $10 million for his children from the estate. His case reached the Supreme Court but failed. In the mid-to-late 1870s, Wetter's financial situation declined; his mortgage was foreclosed in December 1877. On September 30, 1878, his daughter Meta died at the age of 17. He died on September 8, 1882, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, at the home of one of his children. He was aged around 53. His funeral took place on September 12 at Savannah's Independent Presbyterian Church, and he was interred at the Sharon Plantation.

1934 photographs

Historic American Buildings Survey Branan Sanders, Photographer March 1934 NORTHWEST VIEW - Wetter House, 425 Oglethorpe Street, Savannah, Chatham County, GA HABS GA,26-SAV,44-2.tif Wetter House, 425 Oglethorpe Avenue, West, Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia.jpg Historic American Buildings Survey Branan Sanders, Photographer March 1934 SOUTHWEST VIEW - Wetter House, 425 Oglethorpe Street, Savannah, Chatham County, GA HABS GA,26-SAV,44-1.tif

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wetter House 1822 establishments in the United States 1950 disestablishments in the United States Houses in Savannah, Georgia Houses completed in 1822 Former houses in the United States Demolished buildings and structures in Georgia (U.S. state)