Bellevue is a historic mansion house at 204 Ben Hill Street in

LaGrange, Georgia LaGrange is a city in and the county seat of Troup County, Georgia, United States. The population of the city was estimated to be 30,858 in 2020 by the U.S. Census Bureau. It is the principal city of the LaGrange, Georgia Micropolitan Statist ...

, United States. Built in 1853–1855, it was the home of Senator

Benjamin Harvey Hill Benjamin Harvey Hill (September 14, 1823 – August 16, 1882) was a politician whose "flamboyant opposition" to Congressional Reconstruction is credited with helping inaugurate Georgia's Ku Klux Klan. His famous "brush arbor speech" in Atlan ...

, and is one of the state's finest examples of

Greek Revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

architecture. Now a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that is preserved as a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a variety of ...

, it was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 1973, and is a contributing structure in Broad Street Historic District.

Description and history

Bellevue is located in central LaGrange, on an oval parcel located at the north end of Ben Hill Street, and flanked on both sides by McLendon Circle. It is a two-story wood-frame structure with a two-story Greek temple front, featuring six fluted Ionic columns with four-sided capitals, and a heavy multi-level entablature below a dentillated cornice. Set within the temple front is a second-floor balcony with a turned balustrade, and a center entrance recessed in an opening flanked by pilasters and topped by an entablature. Ells extend the house, joining it to what was once a separate kitchen building. Bellevue, originally a plantation estate, was established in 1853 by

, one of Georgia's leading politicians of the antebellum and

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, 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.J ...

era. Its architect is only known by his last name, Taylor, and is one Georgia's finest example of antebellum Greek Revival architecture. Hill (1823–82) was a highly regarded orator and politician, who opposed secession in the years prior to the Civil War. When Georgia did secede from the Union, he served in the Senate of the Confederacy, and was opposed to

Reconstruction Era The Reconstruction era was a period in History of the United States, US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the Abolitionism in the United States, abol ...

legislation after the war. His house is now owned by the LaGrange Women's Club, which offers tours of the house and rentals for special events.

References

External links

Bellevue official site
{{National Register of Historic Places National Historic Landmarks in Georgia (U.S. state) Houses completed in 1855 Historic house museums in Georgia (U.S. state) Museums in Troup County, Georgia Houses in Troup County, Georgia Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state) National Register of Historic Places in Troup County, Georgia Historic district contributing properties in Georgia (U.S. state) Greek Revival houses in Georgia (U.S. state)

Description and history

See also

References

External links