City Directories and History: This home is certainly one of Blacksburg’s oldest remaining structures. Constructed in ca. 1870s, of brick, most likely using the clay removed from the hillside on which it sites. The basement was excavated to allow for two formal rooms and a large storage area, accessed from the main floor by a staircase, which in the 20th century was removed.
Collection of images taken in 2016 upon close examination of the home by R&R.
Ghost marks remain of previous walls having been in place both in the basement and main floor area. It appears likely a wall once separated the living room from the front hall.
Massive circular sawn timbers are found throughout the home but the attic rafters are clearly undersized and were not on the same structural integrity as the balance of the home.
Note the attic was unfinished and the dormers only served as an architectural feature of the house.
The main floor features four rooms and a central hallway which ran from the front door to the rear wall of the home. It features very high ceilings, 11-12 ft., and fireplaces in three of the four upstairs rooms. At a later date, the wooden porch area to the west end of the home was added, though due to having handsome transoms over the windows at that end of the home, it is most likely the owners were planning on this extension as most likely an open porch. Later the porch was enclosed to allow for an interior bathroom and added storage.
Evidently, the basement served as the cooking and preparation area as well as perhaps a servant’s room. Most of the original interior architectural features are intact as well as the brackets and barge board mouldings which adorn the exterior.
Judging from the construction features, the house was constructed shortly after the Civil War, using a Gothic Revival architecture plan very commonly used both prior to and in the post Civil War era. The style became highly popular in Blacksburg, where a number of these house styles remain.
It is believed that Rock Hill attorney Bob Ward lived here with his parents as a youngman. His father, Rembert Ward worked for the railroad at the depot and was transferred to Rock Hill. Mr. Ward originally worked as a photographer and writer for the Rock Hill Evening Herald and later took the bar exam without any formal schooling — he passed.
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