Gaineswood facts for kids
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Gaineswood
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North facade in October 2011, after completion of an exterior renovation
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 Location in Alabama
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| Location | 805 South Cedar Avenue Demopolis, Alabama |
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| Built | 1843–61 |
| Architect | Nathan Bryan Whitfield |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| Website | www.gaineswoodmuseum.org |
| NRHP reference No. | 72000167 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | January 5, 1972 |
| Designated NHL | November 7, 1973 |
Gaineswood is a beautiful old plantation house located in Demopolis, Alabama, United States. It is known as one of the most impressive plantation homes ever built in Marengo County. It's also a great example of Greek Revival architecture in Alabama.
The house was built using money from forced labor. Many of the people who built it were enslaved. The construction took almost 20 years and finished just before the American Civil War began.
Today, the Alabama Historical Commission takes care of Gaineswood. It is open to visitors as a historic house museum.
Contents
History of Gaineswood
Gaineswood was designed and built by General Nathan Bryan Whitfield. He started building it in 1843. At first, it was a simple log cabin. Whitfield was a cotton farmer who moved to Marengo County, Alabama in 1834.
In 1842, Whitfield bought the land from George Strother Gaines. Gaines was the younger brother of Edmund P. Gaines. By 1860, Whitfield owned a lot of land and had many enslaved people working for him.
The Pushmataha Oak
The land where Gaineswood stands has an interesting history. While George Gaines owned the property, he was a U.S. Indian Agent. He met with the famous chief Pushmataha of the Choctaw Nation. They met under an old oak tree on the estate.
They were discussing a treaty that would lead to the Choctaw people moving to Indian Territory. This special tree became known as the Pushmataha Oak.
Changing Names and Owners
In 1843, Whitfield named his farm Marlmont. Later, in 1856, he changed the name to Gaineswood. This was to honor George Gaines, the previous owner.
The Whitfield family believed that Gaines' original log house was the starting point for the mansion. General Whitfield sold the house to his son, Dr. Bryan Watkins Whitfield, in 1861. The Whitfield family lived in Gaineswood for many years. In 1923, the family sold the house.
After being a private home for a long time, the state of Alabama bought Gaineswood in 1966. They wanted to preserve it as a museum for everyone to visit.
Gaineswood's Architecture
Gaineswood was finished in its current Greek Revival style in 1861. Many people consider it to be one of Alabama's most beautiful neoclassical homes. It's also seen as one of America's most unique neoclassical mansions.
Gaineswood is special because it uses all three of the ancient Greek architectural orders. These are the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian styles. Even though tastes were changing to the Italianate style, Gaineswood has a partly asymmetrical design. Whitfield designed most of the house using ideas from famous architecture books.
Outside the House
The outside of Gaineswood looks like it's made of large stone blocks. This is because it has a special stucco finish over brick. The house features many columns. There are eighteen fluted Doric columns and 14 plain square pillars. These support the three porches, the main portico, and the porte-cochère (a covered driveway).
Gardens are located off the main north portico and south porch. They have low walls and feature plants and marble statues from the time period. On top of the house, there's a special observation area. It has a decorative railing and was used to look out over the estate.
Gaineswood still has three buildings from its early days. These include a cook's house, a garden pavilion with eight fluted Corinthian columns, and a large gatehouse. The main entrance gate has huge pillars and fancy cast iron gates. The gatehouse and gates were moved closer to the house later on.
Inside the House
The inside of Gaineswood has amazing decorative plasterwork on the main floor. The library and the dining room both have fancy domed ceilings. These domes have skylights in the middle to let in sunlight. The main entrance hall has fluted Ionic columns. There are also reception rooms on each side of the hall.
The master bedroom has two fluted Ionic columns. These columns support a cornice that divides the room into a sleeping area and a sitting area.
The mistress' bedroom has a large, curved bay with curved windows. Two fluted Corinthian columns stand in front of it. Doors on either side of the bay lead to a curved porch outside. This porch has six Doric columns.
The ballroom is very grand. It has four fluted Corinthian columns and 24 fluted Corinthian pilasters (flat columns). It also has mirrors facing each other, fancy plaster cornices, and a coffered ceiling (a ceiling with sunken panels).
The second floor is simpler. It has a boudoir (a lady's private room), a nursery, and four large bedrooms.
Whitfield Canal
General Whitfield also oversaw the digging of a drainage canal between 1845 and 1863. This was done to stop water from flooding the plantation. Enslaved people dug this canal by hand. Before the canal, rainwater on the Gaineswood estate had to travel a long way to reach the Tombigbee River.
The canal is about one mile (1.6 km) long. In some places, it was dug more than 30 feet (9 meters) deep through the ground. It quickly sends surface water into the river at Demopolis.
Gaineswood Today
Gaineswood is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was also named a National Historic Landmark in 1973. The state of Alabama owns the estate. The Alabama Historical Commission manages it.
Some damage to the dining room ceiling was fixed with help from a "Save America's Treasures" grant. The Whitfield family has given or sold many of their original furniture pieces and statues to the Historical Commission. These items are now used in the house. A painting called The Burning of the Eliza Battle by Nathan B. Whitfield still hangs at Gaineswood. He saw the steamboat accident in 1858 and painted it.
See also
In Spanish: Gaineswood para niños
