Thornhill (Alabama) Facts for Kids

Thornhill in 2010

Thornhill is an old and beautiful plantation house located near Forkland, Alabama. A plantation was a very large farm where crops like cotton were grown. This grand house was built in 1833 by James Innes Thornton. It was designed in the Greek Revival style, which means it looks like ancient Greek temples.

In the early 1830s, Thornhill was a huge cotton plantation. It covered more than 2,600 acres of land. By 1860, 156 enslaved people were forced to work on the plantation. About a third of these enslaved people lived in small houses behind the main house.

The House's Design
The Schoolhouse
Gallery
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The House's Design

Many people believe that William Nichols was the architect who designed Thornhill. The main house is 55 feet wide. Inside, there is a long central hall that is 14 feet wide and 40 feet long. At the back of this hall, you can find a beautiful spiral staircase.

There are two rooms on each side of the central hall. On the left side, the front room was used as a parlor, which is like a living room. The dining room was located right behind it. On the front right side of the house was the master bedroom. Behind that was the plantation office.

Upstairs, there is another hall that matches the one downstairs. There are also four bedrooms on the second floor. All eight rooms, both downstairs and upstairs, are about 19.5 feet square. The ceilings downstairs are 12 feet high, and the upstairs ceilings are 11 feet high.

There used to be a brick kitchen building behind the house, but it later burned down. Some parts were added to the original house between 1890 and 1949. However, these additions were removed in 1994. New parts were then rebuilt to look more like the original design of the house.

Around 1850, a large, two-story portico was added to the front of the house. This portico has six tall columns in the Ionic style.

The Schoolhouse

The plantation also had its own schoolhouse, which was built around 1845. The children of the Thornton family and children from nearby plantations would come here to learn. Surrounding the schoolhouse are very old post oak trees, some of which are 230 years old!

Thornhill was recognized for its historical importance. It was officially placed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 10, 1984.