Bumpas-Troy House 114 S .. Mendenhall Street (mid-Block, West

arm

Nc..,

10-300

,\0-

1

/1,)

\'i\e\l·

UNiTED

STATES

DEPARTMENT

OF

THE

INTERIOR

NATIONAL

PARK

SERVICE

HISTORIC

Bumpas-Troy House

STREET & NUMBER 114 S

..

Mendenhall

Street

(mid-Block,

West

side,

Between

Market

&

Rankin)

CITY, TOWN

Greensboro

STATE

North

Carolina

CATEGORY

OWNERSHIP

_DISTRICT

_PUBLIC

X-BUILDING(S)

X-PRIVATE

_STRUCTURE

_BOTH

_SITE

PUBLIC

ACQUISITION

_OBJECT

_IN

PROCESS

_BEING

CONSIDERED

NAME

Reverend

&

Mrs.

P.

H.

Stevens

STREET & NUMBER

P.O.-

Box

766

VICINITY

OF

CODE

37

STATUS

LOCCUPIED

-UNOCCUPIED

_WORK

IN PROGRESS

ACCESSIBLE

_YES:

RESTRICTED

_ YES: UNRESTRICTED

LNO

_NOT

FOR

PUBLICATION

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

6th

COUNTY

CODE

PRESENT

USE

-AGRICULTURE

_MUSEUM

_COMMERCIAL

_PARK

_EDUCATIONAL

-x-PRIVATE RESIDENCE

_ENTERTAINMENT

_RELIGIOUS

_GOVERNMENT

_SCIENTIFIC

_INDUSTRIAL

_TRANSPORTATION

_MILITARY

_OTHER:

CITY, TOWN STATE

COURTHOUSE.

REGISTRY

OF

DEEDS,ETC,

Guilford

County

Courthouse

STREET & NUMBER

He

Market

& Eugene

Street

CITY. TOWN

TITLE

DATE

DEPOSITORY

FOR

SURVEY RECORDS

CITY, TOWN

STATE

STATE

Form

No.1

0-3008

iRe·l.

,0-74)

UNITED

STATES OF

THE

INTERIOR

NATIONAL

PARK SERVICE

CONTI

NUATION

SHEET

one

with

tile.

The

wall

finish

is

rough

plaster

above

a

flat-paneled

wainscot

three

quarters

of

the

height

of

the

wall

and

a

molded

ceiling

cornice.

The

wainscot

was

probably

added

in

1911,

as

were

the

windows

and

window

seats

which

flank

the

fireplace

The

window

and

door

trim,

like

that

in

the

other

rooms

of

the

house,

is

post

and

lintel

type

with

an

applied,

plain

molding

around

the

outer

edge.

In

the

north,

front

room

there

is

no

paneling,

but

the

room

has

a

tall

molded

baseboard,

a

molded

ceiling

cornice,

and

a

fireplace

with

a

deep,

plain

frieze

carr~ed

on

heavy

pilasters,

which

are

probably

original.

The

fireplace

opening

has

been

adapted

to

coal

use.

The

walls

are

plaster,

and

the

doors,

hung

on

nineteenth

century

butt

hinges,

are

composed

of

two

full-length

vertical

panels.

According

to

family

tradition,

it

vlas

in

this

room

that

Frances

Bumpas

printed'

The Weekly

Message.

The

original

dining

room,

which

was

part.

of

the

rear

wing

of

thehouse,

has

been

severed

into

a

small

hall,

a

bathroom,

and

a

closet.

The

features

\vhich

remain,

ho\v-

ever,

are

a

tall

baseboard,

a

ceiling

cornice,

and

rough

plaster

walls.

Directly

behind

the

old

dining

room

is

the

original

kitchen.

Its

walls

are

rough

plaster,

and

there

is

a

large

proj

ec

ting

chimney

breast

on

the

\Ves

t

wall.

The

opening

has

been

entirely

enclosed

and

the

walls

have

been

covered

three

quarters

of

their

height

with

tile.

Ethel

Troy

wrote

of

her

grandparents

t

home

that,

"There

were

huge

chimneys.

.. ..

the

largest

was

from

the

kitchen

w~th

its

brick

oven.

DO'wnstairs

\Vas

parlor,

living

room,

dining

room,

and

kitchen."

A

small

back

porch

has

been

added

behind

the

kitchen.

The

twentieth

century

dining

room was

added

to

the

southwest

side

of

the

house

in

1911

in

the

form

of

a

rectangular

room

with

a

projecting

bay.

,This

room

has

a

wainscot

identical

to

that

of

the

living

room.

The

fireplace

is

on

the

west

\vall

and

has

a

mantel

shelf

supported

by

consoles

on

either

end

and

brackets

bet\veen

them.

Directly

to

the

rear

of

this

added

wing

is

a

sun

porch

\vhich

vlaS

built

in

the

1940s

or

1950s.

The

second

story

of

the

main

block

of

the

house

also

follows

a

central

hall

plan.

The

rooms

on

either

side

of

the

hall

are

very

similar

neither

is

ornate

but

both

exhibit

the

heavy

molded

baseboards

of

the

Greek

Revival

period;

as

well

as

thick,

plain

trim

'\;'7indm'7

and

door

frames,

and

fireplaces

capped

by

heavy

friezes

and

flanked

by

wide

pilasters.

The

ceiling

cornices

are

thin.

Both

rooms

have

an

unusual

projecting

curve

in

the

west

fireplace

wall

which

does

not

occur

on

the

first

floor.

Behind

the

south,

front

room

is

the

second

floor'

of

the

1911

addition.

The

wall

finish

in

this

room

is

consistent

with

the

original

rooms,

except

in

the

absence

of

cornice

molding.

The

fireplace,

located

on

the

west

wall,

is

surrounded

by a

very

heavy

architrave

and

has

a

vlide

pilaster

on

either

side

of

the

opening.

GPO

892

455

PERIOD

AREAS

OF

SIGNIFICANCE CHECK

AND

JUSTIFY BELOW

_PREHISTOR1C

_1400-1499

_1500-1599

_1600-1699

_1700-1799

X-1800-1899

_1900-

-ARCHEOLOGY-PREHISTORIC

-ARCH

EOLOG

y.

HI

STORIC

-AGRICULTURE

-ARCHITECTURE

-ART

_COMMERCE

_COMMUNICATIONS

SPECIFIC DATES

1847

STATEMENT

OF SIGNIFICANCE

_COMMUNITY

PLANNING

_LANDSCAPE

ARCHITECTURE

_CONSERVATION

_LAW

_ECONOMICS

_LITERATURE

XEDUCATION

_MILITARY

_ENGINEERING

_MUSIC

_EXPLORATION/SETILEM

ENT

_PHILOSOPHY

_'NDUSTRY

_POLITICS/GOVERNMENT

_'NVENTION

BUILDER/ARCH

ITECT

X RELIGION

_SCIENCE

_SCULPTURE

_SOCIAUHUMANITARIAN

_THEATER

_TRANSPORTATION

_OTHER

(SPECIFY)

The

Bumpas-Troy

house,

located

on

a wooded

lot

in

Greensboro,

is

one

of

the

few

examples

of

Greek

Revival

architecture

surviving

in

the

city_

Built

in

1847

for

the

Reverend

Sidney

D.

Bumpas,

the

house

remained

in

the

Bumpas

family

until

1975.

The

property

is

chiefly

associated

with

Mrs.

Frances

rloore

Webb

Bumpas, a

pious

lady

who,

as

a

widow,

carried

on

her

husbandts

ideals

of

Christian

education.

Mrs.

Bumpas

is

noted,

among

other

accomplishments,

for

her

role

as

an

early

newspaper

editor

and

publisher..

From

l8S1

to

1872,

she

managed

and

edited

The

"'eek1y

Message,

an

early

Methodis

t-rela

ted.

weekly.

newspaper

"."

:in

"North"."

Carolina.

Sidney

Bumpas was

born

in

1808

and

is

a

young

man

"had

concluded

to

yield

to

my

father's

wishes

and

become

a

farmer."

In

l83S.

however,

he

"received

an

invitation

from

the

Holy

Spirit

to

2

higher

and

holier

ealling,

"

and

in

1836

he

began

his

circuit

as

a

Methodist

minister.

In

December,

1842,

he

married

Frances

Moore Webb,

whom

he

described

as

"the

l~dy

who

should

po-ssess

most

of

the

excellencies

I

desired,

with

the

fewest

faults."

Sidney

Bumpas

had

informed

Frances

Webb

of

his

intentions

by

sendiE:g

her:

~:

Referente-'Bible

in:

which

he::

ii.ia.

marked

sev~ral

passages':

pert£d.ning

to

love.

Frances

Moore

Webb

was

born

in

1819

to

Isaac

and

Harriet

Webb

of

Mecklenburg

County,

Virginia.

~Vhen

she

was

very

young,

her

parents

moved

to

Person

County,

North

Carolina..

She

met

Sidney

Bumpas

when.

he

administered

he.r

final

examinations

at

the

school

'of,'the

Reverend

D. G. Doak

in

Orange

County,

North

Carolina.

Frances

Hebb

passed

her

examinations

andstaught

school

in

Granville

County

for

four

years

before

she

married

Bumpas

in

1842.

The

young

couple

was

stationed

.in

Raleigh,

Pittsboro,

.

Louisburg,

and

New

Bern

before

coming

to

Greensboro

in

1846.

~everned

Bumpas

had

been

appointed

the

Presiding

Etger

of

the

Greensboro

District.

In

1847,

Bumpas

bought

from

Greensboro

College

~and

on

which

he

soon

began

building

a home

for

his

family

which

\.,as,

according

t~

a

granddaughter,

Ethel

Troy,

"constructed

according

to

authentic

Greek

proportions.

u

While

the

house

was

being

built,

Frances

Bumpas

and

the

couple~s

"two

chilgren

stayed

at

Greensboro

Female

College

of

which

Reverend

Bumpas

was

a

trustee.

During

his

Greensboro

assignment,

Sidney

BUIllpas

began

to

fulfill

a

longtime

dreaTIJ_

of

starting

a

ne:~.,spaper;

as

he

wrote

in

his-

journal,

"the'

matter-

of'

which

sho~ld

be

adapted

to

the

popular

taste

and

the

price

within

reach

of

almost

everybody."

The

first

or

"specimen

issue"

\.,as

published

in

June

1851.

In

an

editorial

Sidney

Bumpas

\\lrote

that,

"The

Editors

great

aim

shall

be

to

point

out

the

relationship

bet\veen

religion

and

whatever

engrosses

the

public

attention

from

time

to

time.

. . .

For

Hant

of

a

paper

sufficiently

cheap

to

reach

the

masses,

we

have

found

them

not

par-

Form

No.1

0-300a

(Rev.

10-74)

UNITED

STATES

OF

THE

INTERIOR

NATIONAL

PARK

SERVICE

CONTI

NUATION

SHEET

ITEM

NUMBER

8

PAGE two

After

the

War,

Frances

Bumpas

continued

to

publish

The

tveekly

Message,

but

she

had

always

contended

that

'twhen

the

Hessage

has

accomplished

its

mission,

let

it

die

in

peace."

In

1872,

when The

North'Car6linaChristian

Advocate

appeared

as

the

official

organ

of

the

Mei?odist

Church

and

began

to

run

successfully,

The

Weekly

Message

ceased

to

exist.

But

Frances

Bumpas

still

had

work

to

do.

Mrs.

Bumpas

felt

that

Southern

women

must

be

more

active

and

assertive

outside

the

home:

"They

had

hesitated

fearful

lest

it

be

said

they

were

stepping

beyond

their

sphere

..

" The

time

had

come

for

the

Southern.

woman

to

take

part

in

the

world

around

her..

In

her

unassuming

way,

Frances

Bumpas

began

to

work

within

the

Hethodist

Church

to

s~t

up

women's

missidnary

societies.

She

succeeded

and

became

the

first

corresponding

secretary

of

the

North

Carolina

Woman's

Foreign

Missionary

Society,

as

well

as

a member

of

the

Board

of

Missions.

Mrs.

Bumpas

stated

her

feelings

about

women's

roles:

"Sisters,

we

have

tarried

too

long.

Each

of

us

owes

it

t~8herself,

in

this

favored

age,

to

rise

to

the

noblest

possibilities

of

our

nation."

Frances

Webb

Bumpas

and

her

daughter,

Eugenia,

continued

to

be

active

in

tvest

Market

Street

Methodist

Church.

Mrs.

Bumpas became

affectionately

knmm

as

"Aunt

Bumpas"

to

the

community,

and

her

gentle

manner

and

strong

spirit

have

become

almost

legendary.

She

died

in

Hay,

1898.

Bumpas'

wiTl

had

left

his

'\.;hole

estate

to

Frances

for

"her

natural

life

or

widowhood,"

but

if

she

should

die

or

remarry,

the

estate

was

to

be

divided

between

the

children

(Duella,

Eugenia,

and

Robah)

"except

my

dwelling

house,

furniture

and

utensils,

which

together

with

a

convenient

lot

about

it

so

laid

off

as

to

embrace

the

outhouses

and

garden

shall

be

held

un~istri~~ted

as

a

residence

for

my

single

daughter

or

daughters,

until

her

or

their

marriage."

His

~oughter,

Eugenia,

never

married,

but

Duella

wed

Captain

Robert

Preston

Troy

in

1871.

In

1872

Frances

Bumpas,

Eu

2y

nia

Bumpas,

and

Robah Bumpas

deeded

the

house

to

their

married

sister

and

her

family.

Duella

and

Robert

Troy

had

~2ven

children

who

upon

their

parents'

deaths

each

inherited

oneseventh

of

the

property.

~~lah

Troy,

a

daughter,

lived

in

the

house

most

of

her

adult

life,

and

her

three

sisters,

Lota,

Nina,

and

Ethel,

came

back

to

Greens'boro

fo

live

after

their

respective

retirements.

Allah

had

worked

for

a

Greensboro

insurance

firm,

Lota

had

been

head

of

the

art

department

at

Sophie

Newcomb

College

in

Louisiana,

Nina

had

been

a

missionary

to

China

for

over

t'\venty

years,

and

Ethel

had

traveled

in

the

northeastern

United

States

fO~3the

Y.

w.

C.

A. Upon

Ethel's

death

in

1975,

the

house

went

to

Greensboro

College.

The

College,

ho\vever,

did

not

have

the

f~nds

to

maintain

it,

and

in

Feb2~ary,

1976,

the

house

'vas

bought

by

tITilliam

P.

H.

Stevens

and

his

wife,

Margaret.

.

GPO

892

455

Form

No.1

0-300a

(Rev.

10-14)

UNITED

STATES

DEPARTMENT

OF

THE

INTERIOR

NATIONAL

PARK SERVICE

CONTI

NUATION

SHEET

ITEM

NUMBER

16

Troy

,

"Lady

Editor";

intervie~11

~l1ith

Sue

Vernon

Williams,

Greensboro,

N.C.,

August

23,

1976;

interview

with

Mrs

Bill

Brodnax,

.

Greensboro

,

N.C.,

August

18,

1976

17

Robertson,

"Frances

Webb

Bumpas,"

ppe

169-170.

18

Troy,

"Lady

Editor""

19Guilford

County

Estates

Office,

Book C

(1850),

p.

369,

Greensboro,

N.C.

20Interview

with

Sue

Vernon

Williams,

Greensboro,

N

..

C."

August

23,

1976.

21Guilford

County,

Register

of

Deeds

Office,

Deed Book

44,

p.

505,

Greensboro,

22Guilford

County,

Register

of

Deeds

Office,

. Deed Book

298,

p.

212,

Greensboro,

N.C.

N.C.

23

Eleanor

D.

Kennedy,

"Home's

Fate

Hangs,"

The

Greensboro

Daily

News

(July

6,

1972).

24Gui1ford

County,

Register

of

Deeds

Office,

Deed Book

2811,

p.

271,

Greensboro,

N.C.

GPO

892.

455

Form No,

10-300a

iRe\!,

10-74)

UNITED

STATES

OF

THE

INTERIOR

NATIONAL

PARK SERVICE

CONTI

NUATION

SHEET

ITEM

NUMBER

Caldwell,

Bettie

De,

compiler.

Founders

'and

'Builders

of

Greensboro.

Greensboro,

N C

James

J

Stone

&

Co

, 1925

Greensboro

Daily

New's0

Greensboro

NeC"

July,

1968~

July

6

1972~

August

21, 1975

Greensboro

Daily

Record..

Greensboro,

N.C..

May

10,

1925

..

Greensboro

Public

Library..

Caldwell-Jones

Room.

Bumpas

Files,

Historic

House

File,

West

Market

Street

Methodist

Church

File.

Greensboro,

N.C

Guilford

County.

Estates

Office.

Wills.

Greensboro,

N.C.

Guilford

County.

Register

of

Deeds

Office.

Deed Books

44,

298,

and

2811.

Greensboro,

North

Carolina

..

Interviews

by

Gwynne

S.

Taylor

with

Miss

Sue Vernon

Williams,

August

23,

1976.

Mrs.

Bill

Brodnax,

August

18,

1976.

Mr.

James

G.

MacLamroc,

August

18,

1976.

Robertson,

Lucy.

Mrs.

Frances

M.

Bumpas,

Autobiography

and

Journal.

Stroupe,

Henry

S.

"Beginnings

of

Religious

Journalism

in

North

Carolina,

1823-1865".

North

Carolina

Historical

Review.

XXX.

January,

1953.

The

Greensboro

Record..

Harch

10,

1951.

March 29,

1968.

Greensboro,

N.C.

The

News

and

Observer..

May

4,

1925..

Raleigh;

N.C

..

West

Market

Street

Methodist

Church.

Compiled by

Church

committee.

Greensboro:

1934.

West

Market

Street

Methodist

Church.

Women's

Foreign

Missionary

Society

Journals

and

other

papers.

Greensboro,

N.C.

GPO

892

455

OZ~Z66£/09LL09/LT

a

~::ma.lB

Jolf

HIll

A:luno

J

p.loJl"}:nf)

BU"}:1

0

.l

B

J

q:l.lON

'o.loqsuaa.lf)

:lao.l:lS

Il

B

Quap

ua

w

·S

~Tl

asnoR

AO.lI-sBdmnH