Shout out to Monica T. Davis, R.O.C.K. East Wilson, and the students of Pratt Institute’s Historic Preservation program!
Pratt students put in work in Wilson.
shotgun house
Monica T. Davis: shaping memory and possibility.
I’m in awe of Monica T. Davis‘ work in East Wilson and am so glad that national lights are shining on her.
Read the full madamearchitect.com interview here, and marinate on this:
Signal Boost: Interior Design Camp at Sallie B. Howard School.
The Sallie B. Howard School Art Dept is excited to offer a unique Interior Design Summer Camp in partnership with UNC-Greensboro and designer/historic preservationist Monica Davis!
Tracing Changes and Revealing Culture: East Wilson Shotgun Houses.
In collaboration with Preservation of Wilson, where she now serves as Director, and North Carolina Greensboro Field School program, Monica T. Davis presented this in-depth discussion of shotgun (locally known as “endway” houses) in East Wilson Historic District.
1000-1020 Robeson Street.
The one hundred ninety-third in a series of posts highlighting buildings in East Wilson Historic District, a national historic district located in Wilson, North Carolina. As originally approved, the district encompasses 858 contributing buildings and two contributing structures in a historically African-American section of Wilson. (A significant number have since been lost.) The district was developed between about 1890 to 1940 and includes notable examples of Queen Anne, Bungalow/American Craftsman, and Shotgun-style architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
This 2003 aerial photograph shows a neat line of ten shotgun (“endway”) houses in the 1000 block of Robeson Street, differentiated only by the materials of their roofs. By 2007, they were gone.
As described in the nomination form for the East Wilson Historic District, 1000 Robeson Street was: “ca. 1913; 1-story; shotgun with hip-roofed porch and gable returns, diamond-shaped vent in the gable; white speculator and tobacconist J.C. Hadley probably had this shotgun and #1002-1018 erected in the early 1900s.”
The 1922 Sanborn fire insurance map of Wilson shows the original 11 endway houses in the 1000 block of Robeson.
The 1928 city directory shows these residents of the block:
In the 1930 city directory, 1002, 1004, and 1006 Robeson were vacant. 1020 is listed, but was gone by 1940.
Endway houses were built as rental properties, but occasionally a resident was able to purchase one. The 1940 census of Wilson reveals that Ashley Tillery, 29, Bank of Wilson elevator operator, owned 1008 Robeson Street, which was valued at $900. His wife Mary, 28, and children Mary E., 8, Bettie, 6, Geraldine, 4, and Ashley Jr., 1, lived in the house with him. Tobacco factory laborer Willie Gardner, 46, owned 1018, where he lived alone. Rents in 1940 were $8 to 10/month, and several dwellings housed two families, each apparently occupying a bedroom.
The 1000 block of Robeson Street is now part of Freeman Place, a city-developed housing community.
2003 aerial courtesy of Wilson County GIS Website; current aerial courtesy of Google Maps.
712 Viola Street, revisited.
The renovations of the double shotguns at 710, 712, and 714 Viola Street are complete. I love the investment in the renovation of existing housing stock happening across East Wilson, but was stunned to see the monthly rental amount — $850. Per unit.
Photo by Lisa Y. Henderson, July 2023.
929 Carolina Street.
The one hundred eighty-first in a series of posts highlighting buildings in East Wilson Historic District, a national historic district located in Wilson, North Carolina. As originally approved, the district encompasses 858 contributing buildings and two contributing structures in a historically African-American section of Wilson. (A significant number have since been lost.) The district was developed between about 1890 to 1940 and includes notable examples of Queen Anne, Bungalow/American Craftsman, and Shotgun-style architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
As described in the nomination form for the East Wilson Historic District: “ca. 1940; 1 story; shotgun with bungalow type porch posts.”
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In the 1928 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Bullock Joseph (c; Sadie) lab h 929 Carolina
In the 1930 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory, the house was vacant.
Wilson Daily Times, 29 October 1940.
This issue of the Wilson Daily Times reported that the draft numbers of James Woodard of 929 Carolina Street and Lewis Townsend of 506 Banks Street.
In the 1941 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Woodard James (c; Annie; 1) delmn h 929 Carolina
In the 1947 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Handley [Handy] Jessie (c; Levan) brklyr h 929 Carolina
Photo by Lisa Y. Henderson, September 2022.
924 Carolina Street.
The one hundred sixty-fifth in a series of posts highlighting buildings in East Wilson Historic District, a national historic district located in Wilson, North Carolina. As originally approved, the district encompasses 858 contributing buildings and two contributing structures in a historically African-American section of Wilson. (A significant number have since been lost.) The district was developed between about 1890 to 1940 and includes notable examples of Queen Anne, Bungalow/American Craftsman, and Shotgun-style architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
As described in the nomination form for the East Wilson Historic District, this building is: “ca. 1922; 1 story; shotgun with hip roof.”
In the 1928 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Lowe Charles (c) lab h 924 Carolina
In the 1930 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Chappman Viola (c) h 924 Carolina
The bend of Carolina Street between North East and North Vick Streets was once lined with endway [shotgun] houses. Detail from 1940 aerial photograph of Wilson, N.C.
In the 1941 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Cromartie Leslie (c; Nora; 6) lab h 924 Carolina
In 1942, James Leslie Cromartie registered for the World War II draft in Wilson. Per his registration card, he was born 31 August 1920 in Saint Paul, N.C.; lived at 924 East Carolina; his contact was Nolie Cromartie, 924 East Carolina; and he worked “Imperial Tobacco (season) … Defense work at present.”
In the 1947 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Mitchell McKinley (c; Augusta) porter RyExp h 924 Carolina
Wilson Daily Times, 5 June 1989.
This 1989 notice reveals that the six shotgun houses at 904 through 924 Carolina Street were built on a single lot and required a zoning variance for repairs because they did not meet setback requirements.
138 Ashe Street.
The one hundred-forty-fifth in a series of posts highlighting buildings in East Wilson Historic District, a national historic district located in Wilson, North Carolina. As originally approved, the district encompasses 858 contributing buildings and two contributing structures in a historically African-American section of Wilson. (A significant number have since been lost.) The district was developed between about 1890 to 1940 and includes notable examples of Queen Anne, Bungalow/American Craftsman, and Shotgun-style architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
As described in the nomination form for the East Wilson Historic District, this building is: “ca. 1930; 1 story; shotgun with shed-roofed porch.”
The house shown at 138 Ashe Street in the 1922 Sanborn map of Wilson is clearly not the house above. That house, which belonged to the Levi and Hannah H. Peacock family and was later numbered 218, was a multi-roomed bungalow with an auto shed in the rear. It was located much closer to Darden Allen (now Darden Lane) than the present 138.
It appears that, circa 1929, several in-fill endway houses were constructed mid-block on Ashe Street, necessitating the renumbering of houses lying northeast toward Darden Alley. At that point, the Peacocks’ 138 became 218. However, in the 1941 and 1950 city directory, house numbers on Ashe Street skip from 126 to 200. The crucial clue for the house featured above is found in the 1957 city directory, in houses 200- 224 are renumbered as 126-150. Thus, we see that 138 Ashe had been 210 Ashe.
Excerpt from Hill’s Wilson, N.C., City Directory (1957).
136 and 138 Ashe were constructed as mirror-image twins. (The side steps of 136 are just visible in the photo.) 138 was later modified with a rear addition.
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In the 1928 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Simpson Robert (c; Hattie) lab 210 Ashe [As a measure of the tenant turnover in Ashe Street endway houses, note that, when Hattie Simpson died in 1929, the family lived at 127, and when Robert Simpson died in 1934, they lived at 116.]
Rosa Mae Allen died 25 June 1937 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was 14 years old; was a student; lived at 210 Ashe; and was born in Wilson County to Wade Allen and Fannie Barnes.
In the 1940 census of Wilson, Wilson County: tobacco factory laborer Wade Allen, 37; wife Fannie, 35, tobacco factory stemmer; son John H., 16; Oddesa [illegible], 18, washer; and Mary E. Smith, 16, nurse.
In the 1941 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Allen Wade (c; Fannie) farmer h 210 Ashe
In the 1947 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Allen Wade (c; Fannie) lab City Street Dept h 210 Ashe
Photo courtesy of Briggs Sherwood.
1112 Queen Street.
The one hundred-forty-third in a series of posts highlighting buildings in East Wilson Historic District, a national historic district located in Wilson, North Carolina. As originally approved, the district encompasses 858 contributing buildings and two contributing structures in a historically African-American section of Wilson. (A significant number have since been lost.) The district was developed between about 1890 to 1940 and includes notable examples of Queen Anne, Bungalow/American Craftsman, and Shotgun-style architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
As described in the nomination form for the East Wilson Historic District, this building is: “ca. 1930; 1 story; shotgun with bungalow type porch posts.”
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In the 1940 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 1112 Queen, Luther McKethian, 27; wife Elizabeth, 23; and son Luther, 2.
In 1940, Luther Elworth McKeithan registered for the World War II draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 30 December 1911 in Cumberland County, N.C.; lived at 1112 Queen Street, Wilson; his contact was wife Elizabeth McKeithan; and he worked for F.A. Doren, Woolworth’s Nash Street, Wilson.
In the 1941 Hill’s Wilson, N.C. city directory: McKeithan Luther (c; Eliz B) porter F W Woolworth Co h 1112 Queen
On 24 October 1944, Wade Moore paid for an ad in the Daily Times seeking the return of several ration books to him at home or at Rex Shoe Shop, his place of employment.
Endway houses like 1112 Queen were built as rental property, and tenants turned over frequently. Here, the owner or agent listed the house for sale with two adjoining endway houses and several other East Wilson properties:
Wilson Daily Times, 6 September 1946.
In the 1947 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Wood Howell (c) emp City h 1112 Queen
Photo by Lisa Y. Henderson, December 2021.