Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1889-12-07

7 k''iNAAN Ntf 'hai lIfN Nv TIC fuAhAiAN
and suayity which should very properly
distinguish the drawing-room entertain
ments OF the Chief Magistrate of arepublic.
oFFEE or HOUSE.
Proud Of becoming the capital Of the
Confcderacy, dCsirous TO do honor TO
/ President Davis. and anxious to give him
/ the hcartiest possible welcome here, the
/ City Council purchased and furnished
. what was ever afterwards known rs "the
JeH. Davis Mansion" and offered It to him
as free gift.
He declined II.
lie would not accept any present Of
/ value; but be agreed 90 make tho house
his home upon condition that the city
/ wouidreccivc from The GOscrument, whose
duty 1t was 20 furnish him a nome. rent
therefor. lie occupied tho house IN the
early summer of 1861 and bade farewell 20
1t April ., 1868.
VIEW FROM THT PRESIDENT g WINDOWS.
From the windows Of this house there
. was q Wow rorthwarl into the county of
| HcnficO. II j. a high nil. az the foot of
: which rms ShOckoe creek. Before the
President was q prospect of small farms
/ and orchards: Of humble suburban houses
set in the midst Of trees and -four miles of
he caught a glimpse Of the tall green trees
growing IN the swamps OF tho Chicka-
I hOminy.
His outlook was 70 the front-not to-
| ward the James. The river was back of
him. and at the battles around Richmond IN
June. 1862, had lie been 20 home instead Of
. ia the saddle with his generals las hc often
wasl he could have seen the fash of orr
1 artillery al Mechanicsvillc and at Ellersons
/ mil. From the windows Of the house
! looking east he could see the Jame3 mean
/ dorinS towards Drcwry's Bluff and Dutch
Gap.
TIE JETT. DAVIS MANSION.
The house was built in 1917 and 1913 by
| Or. John Brockenhrough, from whom It
passed TO Mr.. james NJ. Morsou. and thence
/ 10 Hon. james A. Seldom. and thence 10
Mr. Lewis d. Creashaw.
Mr.. Crenshaw sold If. and most Of tho
! furniture which 1t contained, 20 the city
for $4,000.
From the front porch the entrance door
| opened into the principal hall 04xlS feetl,
! clliptiCal in form with two inches, each
! containing n bronze statue utilized, II not
designed, for gas purposes. The front OF
the building 10 the right Of the hall was
/ divided into q staircase hall, with two
inches containing marble statuettes,
| and cosy library l1l-3Xl4 fect). and
| TO the left was a private stairway.
/ and the entry ahording ingress - the
/ dlninC-rOOm and egre-s Hom the building.
/ The elegant apartments for entertaining
were IN rear and cq sl1t, the parlor lsXH
/ fcct) being located between the with
/ drawing-room (abOut % feet square, and
! the diuine-rOOm labOut 22X29 feet. Each of
these rooms was lighted by a large side
/ light window extending 20 the floor and
affording acces, to noble piazza 02Xo1
/ fcCt) facing the south. The dnlnC-rOOm
/ had two additional windows on the east
SIDE, both opening upon terrace, -.
II was from the window of this building
that President Davlss little son Joe fell
, and lost his lfe
As YOU entered the house from Clay
! street on the right We a small aute-rOOm
/ 20 the beautiful parlors where all state re-
/ coptions were held during the war. On
the opposite side Of the hall or passage
/ was the library and dnlncroon. p
I stairs were the cham Ocrs and private office
Of Mr.. Davis In the basement was the
pantry and store-rOOns OF various sorts.
UNION HEADQUARTERS.
After the occupation of Richmond by
! the Union armies IN 1850 I'll the rostora-
/ ton of civil government under Oil
bert G . Walker i'm 1870 the building was
occupied in whole or part as residence
or headquarters 10y the military COM
mandcrs of tho distrct-vlz: Generals
Godfrey WortZel, +. Q. G. Ord, II. ". Hal
leck. A. H. Ferry, John VI. Scbo6cld,
George Stoucmau, Alexander >. Webb,
aud L. Il. 5. Candy.
A sCHooL-UoUsE.
Since 1870 the building has been used rs
a public school-hOuse-sc school children are
IN the chambers. parlors, library, dining
/ room, pantry. kitchen, and IN the carnage
I house even. Few changes have been made.
The belfrv Is "A modern Improvement Re
Gently. however. IN view o. the acnlltltd
| inadcquacy of the building for schQol puT-
poses q proposition was introduced NJ the
School Board to inquire INTO the eXpe-,
dleucy either Of dem0lishing the house and
! erecting new building III Its etead, or
| putting an addition on the Iweiith-strcet
| side
This proposition was referred to a CON-
! mittce.
Richmond people are opposed TO 1t.
SO are Nirglnlans generally.
SO are all sOUtherneT5.
As for the North it looks on in wonder.
The popular verdict Is let the building
! stand. Keep off the hand Of Improvement.
| Don't tear it down. Don't add 10 It.
Leave it alone. Erect the needed school
house on another lot.
OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT.
The Presidents Office was on the third
I floor of the Treasury building custom
house and at the head of the steps as you
entered from Bank street.
Within two years past the custom-hOuse
/ building has been remOdelled and enlarged
ard "A new front has been put on Bank
FlIttts UUl llt IU'lI1 NAl'h AN Wv ''r"t.-Nt
have been lett intact and are reached al
most exactly as they were twenty-tveyears
ago. cn
The room Of the private secretary of the
. Prcsideht, Burton \. Harrison. was that
I which subsequently became the ONCE OF
the United States Marshal.
The room long occupied by Matthew I.
Peasants, Clerk of the United States Dis
trict Court. was the Presidents room.
The room across the passage. long occu-
MED as the office OF the Clerk of the United
States District Court, was the room used
/ 10y President Davis.
PRESIDENTS OFFICIAL HOUSEHOLD.
The aids TO the President On 18G3) were
Colonel William NJ. Browne, residence ON
Franklin street. Church Hi, second door
from 1wenty-siXth street.
/ Colonel James Chestnut, OF South Caro-
lima. =.
{ Kentucky, residence at Mr. Dnls, on the
Meadow-B Bridge road.
Colonel Joseph c. Ives. of Mississippi,
residence corner Grace and First streets.
Colonel q. ". Gusts Lee, of Virginia,
residence Franklin between Seventh and
Colonel John T. Wood, residence Sixth
street south Of Main, in rear OF Second
Baptist church.
Presidents Private Secretary, Burton \.
/ Harrison of Mississippi, residence at the
+ Presidents house.
/ Messenger. Master William Davies (Dow
proprietor of photograph-sallery here).
ATTENuTFD ASSASSINATION.
! Unless detained by pressing business Mr..
/ Davis usually left ms Office at about
o'clock. Sometimes Mrs. Davis would
| come for him in her carriage, hut ottener
| he would walk. and about sundown wonld
| be seen on his horse Che was beautiful
/ rider galloplng along some street leading
/ to the country.
On one Of these rides when he was pass
| inc through the eastern sections OF the
/ city. in the noighborhood of Glllic's creek
/ and Williamsburg avenue he was hred
upon and narrowly ESCAPED death from the
/ bullet of an assassin hidden III one ot the
| small houses IN that vicinity.
The matter was kept very quiet indeed,
few people in Richmond ever heard OF II,
/ but the arrest of a man suspected OF the
crime WAS made az the time. No positive
| evidence could be procured against him
and he was discharged.
This incident has recently been the sub
iect of letter written by Mr.. DAVIS, IN
I L.. iva