The Washington herald., 1910-10-03


way OF country houses which point 10 the
mode OF life peculiar 10 the far South
prior 10 the civil war. One OF the best
OF these Is the Hermitage. a rice planta-
ton on the Savannah River. which was
built about 1870 of brick manufactured
On the place. and preserves to this day
the quaint negro cabins, hospital, and
other quarters that were used during
slavery. the place. as q whole. having
been lightly touched by the hand OF
those given to modern improvements.
1t is curiously interesting during these
Gays, which even in the South are so
far removed in spirit from the days OF
half a century ago. to nnd oneself sur
rounded BY the symbol OF a life which
70 modern eyes is curiously unlike any
thing now existing. says Mrs Thaddeus
Horton in Uncle Remus' Home Maya
zine. Passing up the wide sandy road
that leads 10 The Hermitage" bordered
on either side with live oak trees, fes-
TONED with tillandsia Spanish mossl.
one sees the brick mansion itself at the
end Of q vista OF misty. swaying drapery
thanked 10 the front Tor the rear, which
TWO fronts. one facing the land and the
other the river road with parallel rows
Of negro huts-some OF brick. some OF
wood. still others of tabby. having as a
rule matched roofs.
Old Slave Quarters Gone.
Little by little the slave quarters have
fallen into disrepair but enough remains
even at this late date 10 interest not only
students OF American civilization but
even the casual observer, who as a rule
is not susceptible 20 historical impress
sion The Hermitage produces an indie
scribable impression. The house. more
or less Georgian in character, with a
tendency toward such thoughtful work
as could be produced in that locality at
that period. represents a later period
than the Georgian. Nevertheless. the
place as a whole, surrounded as II is
with slave huts. beyond which stretch
the low level rice lands and cotton fields
through which the broad Savannah River
3 wanders at pleasure, dawdling here and
hurrying there, stands for a mode OF
life more typical OF the far South Of the
United States than any of the more
Simplicity Of River Cottages.
The region between Savannah and
Brunswick around about Darien and up
and down the Altamaha River comprises
the richest rice lands in Georgia. These
regions exhibit great variety OF plan
tstion houses possessing no architectural
features, being for the most part mere
carpenter shacks. YET so obviously the
result of human existence and It's needs
Of demand and supply as to be valuable
as types. Ii is strange how a house
with no architectural enrichment, with
nc architectural grammar so 10 speak,
may yet possess a certain charm. a GER
tain original value Of Its own. The art OF
building, always so closely allied to
human life, is never more obviously so
than in the plantation districts Of the
far South. Take. for instance the typi-
cal cottage OF a sea island planter. a
rude little shack built in sections prob
ably to accommodate the OVerflowing
family (for We clearly see where there
was originally central building to
which wings were added. II illustrates
perfectly the winged pavilion type of
house and embodies in its crude material
a recognized architectural form.
This same idea OF eonstruction-a very
popular one IN the far South-was brought
out IN the T. R. r. Cobb mansion at
Athens. now a ruin. This house also
gave expression to the hexagon form.
once popular. as was shown in its winged
pavilions. This form may be said 10
have reached its EXTREMIST limit in such
houses as Hexagon Hall. Atlanta. the
residence OF S. B. Truman. It was built
by Col John Reed long before the civil
war and is a perfect hexagon. with a
veranda extending entirely around IT, To
complete the idea. every room in the
house Is hexagon and opens on a CEN
tral hallway. upper and lower.
Plantations Architecture CInEsIc
But 10 return 10 the region about
Savannah. Ga. which is so rich in in
terest. One OF the celebrated plantations
OF the Altamaha River was owned by
Pierce Butler, whose marriage 20 the
celebrated actress, Fannie Kemble, was
one OF the notable events Of the early
'31s. and II was while staying on this
plantation after her marriage that the
actress wrote her Journal OF Life on a
Georgia Plantation" condemnng all
Southern Institutions, particularly slav-
cry. This Journal was widely read. both
in this country and In England The
house on the Butler estate is no longer
standing. Perhaps the most pretentious
home on the Altamaha was HOpeton,
the plantation OF James Hamilton Cooper.
who in common With Pierce Butler, had
large holdings in this section of the State
as wen as on The sea islands that Rugged
the coast Hopeton house is now
a ruin. but from sketches OF il preserved
in tho family it appears 10 have been
wholly Georgian in character. The plans
were drawn by J. Hamilton Cooper HIM
self, who was noted amateur architect
The best example OF his work extant
Is beautiful Christ Church in Savannah,
a most serious and noble edihce a monu-
ment both 10 the builder and to the
period.
Hopeton was the seat of a very fash
ionable and elaborate winter life from
the early '30s to the late SOS. and guests
from all over America and abroad were
entertained there. the life that obtained
on the estate being not unlike that which
Is considered peculiar 20 England with
the exception that the crop was cult
waited by black instead OF by white labor.
One Of the many notable guests enter
tanned al Hopeton during the early SOS
was the Honorable Amelia Murray, lady
in waiting 10 Queen Victoria. who. while
touring the United States and Canada,
wrote her impressions TO England which
were first published IN the London Times
and later brought out in book form.
While at ''Hopeton" she enjoyed her .lrst
view OF American plantation life, and was