Five weeks and a couple firsts later

This week we will have been officially opened a mere five weeks. Already it seems that Statesville is taking us to heart. I can't begin to thank everyone for their support, words of encouragement and (most of all) for visiting us. At the Art Crawl on September 17th, we counted 273 visitors in three hours! Many of those who didn't make it down to visit us that evening encountered our Victorian ladies strolling through the crowds that night. As you can see, we think history doesn't have to be dull and it certainly isn't dead.

So far we have opened our first exhibit "Tastefully Superficial: The Art of Victorian Dressing" (September 17 - October 15), hosted our first workshop luncheon "Victorian Dressing 101" and welcomed our first rental by the Iredell Senior Democrats for a Wine and Cheese Fundraiser to support their candidates. But there is more to come!

The United Daughters of the Confederacy and Youth Leadership Statesville each plan to stop by for group visits this month. We will also be the starting point of this year's Haunted Statesville tours---another first. In November, we are proud to have been selected by Mitchell Community College for the elegant pre-party reception to kick off their Dancing With The Stars fundraiser. And of course we can't forget the third annual United Way Victorian Teas in early December. Add to that a growing number of private events and it's a very busy social calendar for this great historic house. I hope we will see more of you at one of these great events.

Bloomers and bubble wrap

Late 19th century . . .
Each spring and fall, a local dressmaker spent two or three days at the big Sharpe House, making or remaking clothes for the family. For a while, it was Miss Nancy Nicholson, but over the years there were others. Sarah was not a slave to fashion like some society matrons, but she did appreciate nice things and her role as wife of the Colonel certainly required her to be appropriately dressed at all times. She recognized good quality textiles from years of managing the production of cloth from "sheep to shawl" at the former McKee plantation: fine and coarse cloth of wool, linen and cotton. Although she regretted that her efforts to establish silk production at the plantation never took hold, she could now afford to purchase silk for the finer dresses worn by herself and her daughters. Where did she turn for information on the latest styles? Godey's Lady's Book, of course, her favorite magazine!

. . . 2010
Our inaugural exhibit on Victorian costumes will open in a matter of days. There is a flurry of activity to display eight reproduction ensembles on dress forms around the house. Right now there is an explosion of colorful fabric confections hanging from a shower curtain rod upstairs , just waiting their turn to be carefully placed on each form. But how do we handle the shortage of bustles? "Bubble wrap," Kathy Laughlin tells me with a straight face. Kathy has been gracious enough to donate her talents, time and considerable knowledge of Victorian fashion for this exhibit. Who am I to doubt her? The ubiquitous lightweight packing material of the modern age can be molded easier and will serve to support these glamorous reflections from the past. I just hope no one decides to peek under the dresses expecting to find frilled and lacy petticoats. They will be in for quite a surprise!

The start of a new era

1866 . . .
Moving into their new house on Center Street brought mixed emotions to Silas and Sarah Sharpe. The big airy house was a mark of Silas' success as the owner of the local tannery--despite the collapse of the Confederate economy. Their family was young and another child was on the way. The future should be bright for the family, but what would that future look like? The Old South that Silas and Sarah had been raised in was gone. It was time to reinvent themselves and their community. What trials and triumphs lay ahead for their generation as they turned their war-battered energies to the process of rebuilding.

. . . 2010
The dust mice have been evicted, the cobwebs swept away. Everything that can be done to prepare for opening day has been done. Our invitation to "come see us sometime" is out there, but will Statesville respond? If what I have heard is any indication, then we are off to a good start. Interest has definitely been piqued! The big calendar I will use to corral all the different activities is slowing starting to fill and there are more to be added soon. What does the next few months hold in store for us?

Stopping time

Image courtesy of Statesville Historical Collection

 1902 . . .
The photographer stood in South Center Street and pointed his camera at the stately Sharpe House. The windows and doors of the house are open wide to catch the breeze. On the portico and balcony are chairs, rockers and small tables inviting all to sit, relax and maybe pass the time with an elderly gentleman enjoying the fine day. Seated in a rocker, the colonel's long white beard stands out in sharp contrast to his dark suit and dapper bowler hat. His long career or public service was largely at an end, but the residents of his town still looked to him for an opinion on what was good for the community. Little more than a year later, he would die of a massive stroke.

. . . 2010
Steve Hill kindly sent me a scanned image from his collection of historic images this week. Like a kid at Christmas, I devoured every detail of the 1902 image to glean details from that snapshot in time. I was struck by the number of chairs and tables on the porch and reminded that in our modern air-conditioned South, we have lost the fine art of sitting on front porches just to pass the time with friends and neighbors or watch the world go by. I hope we can remedy that soon.

Gentlemen callers

1866 . . .
Sarah McKee Sharpe understood the importance of gracious hospitality in the South. On the McKee plantation, she was accustomed to long visits from family and friends to their home. Distances were great, transportation slow. You didn't come visit for a couple hours, you stayed for days or even weeks. The same was true after the Civil War as her family moved into town. Statesville's role as the county seat meant long quarterly meetings of the court which provided government and dispensed justice for the residents of Iredell County. Family and friends could count on the Sharpe household to provide room, board and the latest news. To turn them away would have been unthinkable.

. . . 2010
Have you ever noticed that unexpected visitors come when your house is completely torn apart? The house was a small disaster yesterday morning when I got a call from Dave Ibach, editor of the Statesville Record & Landmark. They wanted to do a story for the newspaper on the reopening of the house. Wonderful! When? Today and we're sending a photographer. (Gulp!) So with a whirlwind slap-dash effort at clearing or camouflaging the chaos at the house, I met with reporter Jim McNally and photographer Bruce Matlock in the afternoon. Although I knew the house was "presentable", you wonder how someone else perceives it when they view it for the first time. The results of their visit made the front page of today's Record & Landmark. Gentlemen, thank you all for your gracious attention to this grand old house. Our doors will always be open to you. Sarah would have expected nothing less.

It all started in 1866

1866 . . .
Silas Alexander Sharpe was eager to move his young family from the plantation home of his wife's family to his dream house on Center Street just south of town. It was an ideal location for the successful owner of the Sharpe Tannery which was located only one block south of the house. He was finally able to set aside his duties as colonel of a NC militia unit and resume civilian life. It was time to accept the defeat of the Confederacy and begin the process of healing. And for him, the way to start was by getting settled in a stylish and expansive house he had started building almost a decade before.

. . . 2010
The Silas Alexander Sharpe Foundation has struggled for years with a problem facing many groups charged with caring for historic houses: "How do we bring this piece of the past into the 21st century?" The answers aren't easy and there is no one-size-fits all solution. So over the course of the next few months, we'll be trying a lot of new things. Not all of them will be successful, others will. It's going to be interesting to see where this journey takes us!