Tristram Bethea House
Encyclopedia
The Tristram Bethea House, also known as Pleasant Ridge, is a historic plantation
house near Camden
, Alabama
. The two-story brick house was built in 1842 in the Federal
style. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
on July 11, 1985.
. It was acquired by George O. Miller on October 7, 1850, when Bethea moved to Mobile
. Miller paid $2800 for the house and 157 acres (63.5 ha). It was later purchased by Joseph Eugene Strother and remained in that family until 1987, when it was purchased by Cliff Redenour and Ron Smith. Redenour and Smith did a major restoration of the house and sold it to the Blanton family in 1995. It was sold again to the Stewart family in 1999.
with simple box columns adorns the front elevation and shelters the doors on both levels. The front doorways on the first and second stories both feature sidelights and full fanlight
s. It is the only brick antebellum
house in Wilcox County
.
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
house near Camden
Camden, Alabama
Camden is a city in Wilcox County, Alabama, United States. The population was 2,257 at the 2000 census, at which time it was a town.-Geography:Camden is located at ....
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. The two-story brick house was built in 1842 in the Federal
Federal architecture
Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the United States between c. 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815. This style shares its name with its era, the Federal Period. The name Federal style is also used in association with furniture design...
style. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on July 11, 1985.
History
The Tristram Bethea House was built in 1842 by Tristram Bethea, an attorney from South CarolinaSouth Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. It was acquired by George O. Miller on October 7, 1850, when Bethea moved to Mobile
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
. Miller paid $2800 for the house and 157 acres (63.5 ha). It was later purchased by Joseph Eugene Strother and remained in that family until 1987, when it was purchased by Cliff Redenour and Ron Smith. Redenour and Smith did a major restoration of the house and sold it to the Blanton family in 1995. It was sold again to the Stewart family in 1999.
Architecture
A simple two-story central porticoPortico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
with simple box columns adorns the front elevation and shelters the doors on both levels. The front doorways on the first and second stories both feature sidelights and full fanlight
Fanlight
A fanlight is a window, semicircular or semi-elliptical in shape, with glazing bars or tracery sets radiating out like an open fan, It is placed over another window or a doorway. and is sometimes hinged to a transom. The bars in the fixed glazed window spread out in the manner a sunburst...
s. It is the only brick antebellum
Antebellum architecture
Antebellum architecture is a term used to describe the characteristic neoclassical architectural style of the Southern United States, especially the Old South, from after the birth of the United States in the American Revolution, to the start of the American Civil War...
house in Wilcox County
Wilcox County, Alabama
Wilcox County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Lieutenant J. M. Wilcox, who fought in the wars against the Creek tribe. As of 2010, the population was 11,670...
.