Museuming - Loise Swanee


Thursday, October 26, 2005
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Museuming
Lois Swanee
Museum Curator

Hamilton House on Christmas Tour

The Hamilton House was built in 1838 and was the largest mansion in town. It is located at the end of Memphis Street.

Hamilton Place will be on the Marshal County Historical Museum’s Christmas Tour for 2006. Tour dates are Sat., Dec. 2, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sun., 1-5 p.m.

The house originally was three stories and had six massive Greek revival columns across the front. Don’t you know that was impressive? Memphis Street was the corridor leading to the house that sat across the end of the street. In 1928 it was struck by lightning and only the first floor was saved. For a long while one of the columns was in the yard but years of sweet honeysuckle vines and weeds have eaten it up. This beautiful front porch was the one where Maria Mason sat and watched Grant’s army march in front of her house and turn eastward to the Waterford Road (Center Street). She commented that she was looking for General Grant but never saw him. She wrote of how well dressed these soldiers were compared to the Confederates who were raggedy and some were even barefoot.

Mrs. Mason also was sitting on this porch in 1878 and wrote of the black clouds of mosquitoes swarming over the town. She didn’t know it then but that was what was causing the Yellow Fever.

The house was given to Bethlehem Academy, a Catholic school for girls that Colonel Walter had started for the daughters of the Irish workers who came here to work on the Railroad.

The house is now owned by Mr. and Mrs. Bobby Clanton.

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