Explore Historic Oak Ridge | 2017

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Historic Oak Ridge Join us for a self-guided tour of Oak Ridge's historic heritage

Saturday, Sept. 16

12 -7:30 pm

Look inside for event details, parking info, tour sites, map and more! Purchase tickets at merchantsofoakridge.com/events or on-site at event Take me with you! This booklet is designed to serve as your guide for your Explore Historic Oak Ridge tour.

Thanks to our event sponsors Historic District Patrons ($500)

Closing Event Sponsor ($500)

Historic District Stars ($250)

Historic District Supporters ($150)

Best 4K9 • Bistro 150 • China Gourmet • Domino’s Pizza • Golden Antiques Ilona’s Bakeshop • Mitchell, Bartlett & Bell Orthodontics • Jim & Carol Kinneman • Oak Ridge Florist Olmsted Orthodontics • A Perfect Cut Lawn Care • Ramilya Siegel, Allen Tate Realtors ...and special thanks to our event partners: Merchants of Oak Ridge • Northwest Guilford Women's Club • Oak Ridge Garden Club • The Old Mill of Guilford Oak Ridge Elementary School • Oak Ridge Military Academy • Preservation Oak Ridge • PS Communications / Northwest Observer

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Explore Historic Oak Ridge | 2017

Event schedule Saturday, Sept. 16 9 am - 5 pm

Old Mill of Guilford (tour site 16) – Help celebrate the Old Mill’s 250th birthday!

Birthday cake available all day. Limited parking available on site.

12 - 4 pm

Self-guided tour of West Historic District (tour sites 1-4). Park at Oak Ridge Elementary School and State Employees Credit Union.

12 - 4 pm

Self-guided tour of East Historic District (tour sites 5-15); visit sponsor and merchant areas for food, information and activities. Park at Oak Ridge United Methodist Church or Oak Ridge Military Academy.

Tickets

Tickets are required to enter all tour sites except Oak Ridge Elementary School (tour site 2), Old Mill of Guilford (tour site 16) and Ai Church (tour site 17). Ai Church will be open only during closing reception (4:30-7:30 p.m.).

Hurry! Get your discounted advance tickets by Sept. 15.

Discounted advance tickets can be purchased online at merchantsofoakridge.com/events.

Tickets can be picked up at any ticket table (see map on back cover for locations), in person at Oak Ridge Town Hall, located at 8315 Linville Road and open Mon.-Fri., 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., or by mailing cash or check to Town Hall at P.O. Box 374, Oak Ridge, NC 27310.

Tour tips and rules  Event held rain or shine! Please dress accordingly.  Wear clean, comfortable, low-heeled shoes.

Do not wear high heels, as they may damage the floors of the sites you visit. Some sites may require you to wear protective booties.  Wristbands required for entry to all sites except Oak Ridge Elementary School, Old Mill of Guilford and Ai Church.  No pets, food or drink allowed inside tour sites.

Pets may not be tied or left unattended outside tour sites.  All children ages 6 -12 must have a ticket and be accompanied by an adult.  No strollers or backpacks allowed inside tour sites.

Adults: $10 • Kids age 6-16: $5 Kids 5 and under: FREE

 Most sites are not wheelchair accessible because they are privately owned; we regret any inconvenience.

2 -2:30 pm

Ticket purchases at event

 Respect the privacy of the homeowners who have graciously allowed us to tour their homes. Do not touch personal items, open closed doors or enter areas of the home not open for touring.

4:30 –7:30 pm

Tickets can be purchased at the ticket tables at Oak Ridge Elementary (cash or check only) and Oak Ridge United Methodist Church (cash, check or credit card).

Oak Ridge Military Academy parade on historic parade grounds, next to King Gym.

Closing reception and music hosted by Preservation Oak Ridge at Ai Church (tour site 17). Park on site. Food available for purchase. Tickets not required.

Adults: $12 • Kids (ages 6-16): $6 Kids 5 and under: FREE

 No photography of any kind allowed inside the tour sites, including photography with cell phones.

Sketchpads and notebooks are allowed.  A few sites do not offer interior tours. They are marked “exterior only” in the map on the back cover. Please enjoy these sites from the street.

Ticket purchases and sponsorships fund event costs (advertising, tour booklet, signage, rentals, music, and other expenses).

Any profits will support the Town of Oak Ridge's Historic Heritage Grants.

Explore Historic Oak Ridge online: visit oakridgenc.com, or visit the Town of Oak Ridge, NC on Facebook (click on "Events")

ROAD CLOSURE ALERT Oak Ridge Road will be closed 11:30-4:30 p.m. on event day, between N.C. 68 and E. Harrell Road. No through traffic permitted except emergency and police. Residents of Zack and Oak Ridge Roads affected by the closure will still have local access and are offered free tickets to the event! Stop by the ticket tables on event day and we'll have your name on our "Will Call" list.

Explore Historic Oak Ridge | 2017

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ou

have probably driven through the Oak Ridge Historic District more times than you can count.

This free community resource is published by

publisher of the Northwest Observer

in partnership with

Contributing writers: Kristin Kubly, Ann Schneider and Sandra Smith Photos by Sandra Smith, unless indicated otherwise

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Explore Historic Oak Ridge | 2017

But how much of it have you actually seen?

Explore Historic Oak Ridge offers the chance to walk through our historic district and explore 17 historic sites, including many private homes never before open to the public. It’s also a chance to help celebrate the 20th anniversary of the historic district and the 250th anniversary of Old Mill of Guilford.

Whether you walk, bike or jump on board a hayride, there will be fun for the whole family – including kids’ activities, food, merchant and craft areas, and live music.

End the day by enjoying a closing reception, complete with food and music to celebrate the 10 th anniversary of Preservation Oak Ridge’s efforts to save Ai Church.

So what’s special about the Oak Ridge Historic District? It’s a rural historic district, which means it recognizes the importance not only of our historic buildings, but also of our agricultural roots and open spaces.

Our district is unique because of the variety of time periods and architectural styles represented, from the Quaker simplicity of the Charles Benbow House (tour site 1) to the

picturesque Queen Anne style of Oakhurst (tour site 10) and the grand Neoclassical columns at Maple Glade (tour site 5) and Alumni Hall (tour site 6). In fact, more than 50 historic sites located on over 400 acres are part of our diverse historic district.

Preservationists agree that historic districts like ours help preserve a town’s unique charm and livability. That’s certainly true in Oak Ridge! Even as our commercial core and population have grown, our historic district has ensured there are visual and stylistic connections between the old and the new. It helped prevent N.C. 68 from becoming a four-lane highway. It has also played an important role in protecting property values and in supporting local businesses.

In the words of Bill Schmickle, a former Oak Ridge resident who helped establish our district and is now a nationally recognized preservation expert, our historic district is Oak Ridge’s signature civic achievement.

We invite you to help celebrate that achievement!

Begin your exploration of historic Oak Ridge on the following pages … and join us on Saturday, Sept. 16!

Ann Schneider, chair Oak Ridge Historic Preservation Commission

Charles 1 Benbow House 2030 Oak Ridge Road

 The view of the Charles Benbow house, shown in this undated photo, changed when the road was rerouted from the front to the back side of the house.

Built around 1823, Charles Benbow’s home has survived to the present day with little exterior alteration. A rare example of a brick house built in Guilford County before the Civil War, its style reflects the clean lines of traditional Quaker architecture. But the unusual eclectic detailing of its entrances, chimneys and exterior moldings combine elements of a variety of popular architectural styles, including Georgian, Federal and Greek Revival.

While the house has changed little, the view of passersby is different. When

Oak Ridge Road was moved from the south to the north side, the rear of the house became the front. Although the second story porch was removed in the early 1920s, it has since been replaced.

The one-story kitchen addition was likely added 20 to 30 years after the house’s construction.

An Oak Ridge native, Benbow owned a successful farm and tannery, and bricks for his home were made at his brickyard near the Haw River. The pattern in which the bricks were laid, called Flemish Bond, suggests the builder was of German derivation. Two bricks on the house exterior bear testimony to the building process: the date 1823 (when the bricks were made), the number 28,000 (likely the number of bricks fired for the house), and various initials (pos-

sibly those of the brickyard workers).

In addition to his businesses in Oak Ridge, Benbow had financial interests in Fayetteville, including Benbow & Co., which operated one of the state’s earliest cotton mills. Benbow was also a founding member and trustee of New Garden Boarding School (now Guilford College) in Greensboro. Although he and his family moved to Fayetteville in 1838, they continued to spend several months a year in Oak Ridge before returning permanently in 1855.

 In 1855, wealthy Oak Ridge native Charles Benbow returned to Oak Ridge, where he managed his 455-acre farm until his death in 1868.

Willow Way Benbow Terrell, the last member of the family to live in the home, died in 1995. The house received its National Register of Historic Places designation in 1982, and the Oak Ridge Historic Preservation Commission placed its first historic marker there in 2006. 

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Explore Historic Oak Ridge | 2017

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Oak Ridge Elementary School 2

 Although many schools built in the 1920s in Guilford County, including those in Summerfield, Stokesdale and Colfax, have been replaced, Oak Ridge Elementary remains a key structure in the Oak Ridge Historic District.

2050 Oak Ridge Road

Many things have changed in learning institutions in the last 90 years, and Oak Ridge Elementary School is no different.

The red brick structure of Neoclassical design opened in 1924 and replaced one- and two-room schools scattered throughout the community.

 Oak Ridge Elementary School nearly closed in the 1970s due to low enrollment, but community outcry convinced Guilford County's school board to rethink the decision.

Miss Notre Johnson served as both teacher and principal at the school, which accommodated 125 students in first through eighth grades.

A 1937 insurance report valued the original construction, with eight classrooms, an auditorium with seating for 300, and two restrooms with flush toilets – a novelty for many students – at $30,552. A cafeteria and gymnasium were added to the campus in the following decades.

The school was the heart of the community. Fall festivals and spring flings were held there, and adult and youth baseball players slid into home on fields built by the community. A grandstand was constructed, providing shade for spectators of baseball games and the Oak Ridge Horse Show, a 63-year charity event held for nearly 50 years at the school. A community library was established there in 1959. Oak Ridge Fire Department's first station was built on the school’s east side, where firefighters continued to cook the vinegar-based sauce for their near-legend-

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ary barbecue years after a new station was built farther down Linville Road.

The school was threatened with closure in the 1970s due to low enrollment. Community protests succeeded in preserving the original school structure, which continues to house the media center as well as a small museum. By the early 2000s, a population boom led to the addition of 24 mobile classrooms and plans to rebuild the school. Although the school was expanded, its location within the Town’s Historic District ensured that the new sections were designed to be consistent with the original brick structure. 

 The Stafford-Benbow House was often the site of community events.

A 1921 article in the Greensboro Daily News describes a community rabbit hunt and barbecue being hosted there, with 35 rabbit hunters from Greensboro and the surrounding county in attendance.

dormitory at the Academy in 1923, cadets were housed in neighboring houses, including the Stafford-Benbow house.

The Benbow family owned the house for over 50 years before Ola Benbow, Murrow’s widow, sold it in 1962. In the 1960s and ’70s, the house was used by Central Baptist Church as a parsonage, and it later served as a boarding house.

StaffordBenbow House 2111 Oak Ridge Road

Originally constructed in the 1880s as a simple two-room house, the StaffordBenbow House was expanded by owner Robert M. Stafford around 1890 into the elegant home you see today. Built on a river rock foundation, its two-story Doric columns, topped by a triangular pediment, reflect the popularity of Neoclassical architecture in the mid- to late

3 nineteenth century.

Stafford served as a popular Guilford County sheriff from 1865 to 1880.

An early jail is said to have once been located behind the house. He later owned the Saunders Mill, now known as Old Mill of Guilford (1888-1897).

Current residents Sam and Torie Cook bought the house in a dilapidated condition in 1988. They were advised to tear it down, but have instead worked tirelessly to restore and repair its historic features.

In recognition of the home’s historic and architectural significance, the Oak Ridge Historic Preservation Commission placed a historic marker there in 2014. 

After Stafford’s death, his son Bob, who had played professional baseball with the Philadelphia Athletics, sold the house to A. Murrow Benbow, second cousin of newsman Edward R. Murrow, who reportedly visited the house.

 Photo courtesy

of Guilford County Sheriff’s Office

Robert Stafford was Guilford County sheriff from 1865-1880.

The house also has ties to Oak Ridge Military Academy (ORMA). Jesse Benbow, an Academy founder, was Murrow Benbow’s grandfather, and generations of Benbows were educated at ORMA. When a fire destroyed a

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Explore Historic Oak Ridge | 2017

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David B. Stafford House 2115 Oak Ridge Road

David B. Stafford was the son of former Guilford County Sheriff Robert M. Stafford, who built the adjacent StaffordBenbow House (tour site #3). After living for many years in Greensboro, the younger Stafford built this handsome brick residence in 1937 next door to his boyhood home. Its Colonial Revival style is very different from that of his father’s home. While Robert Stafford’s home

was inspired by classical Italian architecture, his son’s home is distinctly American and distinctly 20 th century, even as it draws inspiration from traditions of early Dutch and English houses.

David Stafford attended Oak Ridge Military Institute and was reportedly a farmer and merchant before he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and run for the office of Guilford County Sheriff.

Although not successful in his first bid, he was elected two years later and served for nearly 20 years (1912-1932). Summerfield historian Gladys Scarlette writes that he traveled in his buggy to many, if not all, the townships in the county, asking for voters’ support. Stafford is one of the county’s longest-serving sheriffs,

second only to current sheriff BJ Barnes.

Stafford's wife, Bessie, who he married in 1915, was the granddaughter of Jesse Benbow and great-granddaughter of Charles Benbow. “Sheriff Dave” died in 1950, and Bessie followed in 1968.

The house was sold and belonged to several families until it was turned into a popular bed and breakfast in the late 1990s. After about 15 years, it returned to private ownership. 

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 Photo courtesy

of Guilford County Sheriff’s Office

David Stafford followed in his father’s footsteps to become sheriff of Guilford County; he served as sheriff from 1912 to 1932.

 David Stafford built his house next door to his boyhood home.

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What’s historic about the Oak Ridge Historic District

?

A lot! Oak Ridge boasts more than 50 historic sites on 400+ acres: • 37 historic buildings, including two National Register sites and the ORMA National Historic Landmark District.

• 16 tracts of open land, including our Town Park, which was developed on 70+ acres once farmed by the Benbow and Stafford families.

What’s the goal of the Historic District?

To preserve our history while allowing for compatible growth. It’s essentially a balance between no change and drastic change.

What are the benefits of having a Historic District?

It helps preserve Oak Ridge’s charm, livability, and unique historic character. And it’s good for business and local property values!

Why have Design Guidelines?

To give guidance about what kinds of exterior changes are compatible with the historic character of our district.

The Guidelines apply to the whole district – including what’s in between the historic buildings – to maintain its unique character.

What does the HPC do?

The Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) meets monthly (3rd Wednesdays, 7 p.m.) to review proposed changes in the Historic District. Both Town staff and the HPC are happy to help residents better understand the review process. The HPC also places historic markers and promotes preservation.

For more info, visit oakridgenc.com

Some of the major historic sites in the Oak Ridge Historic District (The map below shows just a portion of the over 50 sites!)

Maple Glade

2309 Oak Ridge Road

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Built in 1905, Maple Glade was constructed as the home of J. Allen Holt, co-principal of Oak Ridge Institute (now Military Academy). It was built to replace his previous house, a Queen Anne-style mansion which had burned the previous year on the same site.

 J. Allen Holt was a teacher and co-principal of Oak Ridge Institute from 1875-1914.

Named for its location in a grove of maple trees, Maple Glade sits back off Oak Ridge Road. It embodies grace and sophistication with its grand Neoclassical architecture, two-story Doric columns, large wrap-around porch and several leaded- and stained-glass windows. According to historians, the house originally

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featured a balustraded deck on top. An oval lunette window graces the gable located above the front entrance, and it is easy to imagine carriages or early motor cars dropping off visitors under the portecochere on the west side of the house.

years, some of those as chairman. He also served on the board of the University of North Carolina, directed a Greensboro bank and an insurance company, was a Mason, and served in the state senate from 1907-08.

Holt, a graduate of Oak Ridge Institute, began teaching there in 1875. Four years later, his brother, Martin Hicks Holt, joined him there. In 1884, they purchased Oak Ridge Institute and, over the next 35 years, established it as a highly respected college preparatory and business school for young men. Martin led a classical academic program for students interested in college degrees, while J. Allen led the business courses; J. Allen was a member of the Guilford County Board of Education for more than 20

Earle Holt, J. Allen's son, also taught at the school and served as principal after his father’s and uncle’s deaths. He also lived in Maple Glade with his family, and the house was deeded to the school in 1964.

Maple Glade has since served as the president’s residence and school offices.

The Academy's current president, John Haynes, lives there with his family. It is a key building in the Oak Ridge Historic District, which is included on the National Register of Historic Places. 

 J. Allen Holt had Maple Glade built in 1905 after fire destroyed his previous home on the site.

Alumni Hall

2317 Oak Ridge Road Alumni Hall was built in 1914 during a flurry of construction after two of Oak Ridge Institute’s primary buildings, the original Holt Hall and Chapel, were destroyed by fire earlier that year. Now the centerpiece of the campus, Alumni Hall is constructed of brick, with a front façade that features four two-story Ionic columns framing a gracious portico. The columns support a triangular pediment, punctuated by a semi-circular lunette

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window. Designed and built by G. Will Armfield, who also designed several prominent homes in Greensboro, it combines aspects of Colonial Revival and Neoclassical styles. Aspects of the dramatic front façade are mirrored on both sides of Alumni Hall.

The hipped roof originally had eight dormers, which were removed in 1967.

The interior plan has been altered somewhat over the years, but the ground floor remains mostly intact. The east wing of the second floor originally featured an auditorium, while the west wing housed literary society halls that were appointed with opera-style seating, fresoed ceilings

and trompe l’oeil paintings. The 250-seat auditorium had a vaulted ornamental steel ceiling. These wings were partitioned during a 1967 remodeling, ceilings were tiled, and the hallway extended east and west to the ends of the building.

The Oak Ridge Foundation received a Historic Heritage Grant from the Oak Ridge Historic Preservation Commission in 2016 to help repair and restore the front and side entrances of Alumni Hall.

The building is a central part of the Oak Ridge Military Academy Historic District, which is included on the National Register of Historic Places. 

 In 1901, Oak Ridge Institute had 259 boarding students and was touted as the largest “preparatory and fitting” school in the South. Now known as Oak Ridge Military Academy, the school was designated the official military academy of North Carolina by the state legislature in 1991.

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Explore Historic Oak Ridge | 2017

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Whitaker Dormitory and Holt Hall 2318 and 2326 Oak Ridge Road

 Holt Hall, built in 1924, was named for J. Allen Holt and Martin H. Holt. The brothers, who were co-principals, built the school into an esteemed institution of higher learning.

Whitaker Dormitory was named for Thomas E. Whitaker, president of Oak Ridge Institute (now Military Academy) from 1914 to 1929. It was built in 1927 in a brick Colonial style featuring Neoclassical details, such as a triangular pediment and an entrance flanked by trios of thin columns. An oval lunette window embellishes the pavilion’s gable roof, and flat arches with wedge-shaped stones and cement keystones top the windows.

Matching brick porches with arcades flank the east and west sides of the building.

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 Whitaker Dormitory is named for Thomas E. Whitaker, president of Oak Ridge Institute from 1914 until his untimely death in 1929. Generations of Whitakers have been associated with the school.  The Holt Memorial, an ornamental well, is inscribed with the words, "Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian Spring." Those words, penned by Alexander Pope in 1709, warn against shallow learning.

Directly in front of Whitaker Dormitory is an eight-sided granite, ornamental well built in 1921 by Robert O. Holt in memory of his brothers, J. Allen and Martin H. Holt, who served as co-principals at Oak Ridge Institute from 1875 to 1914. 

Atop a hill overlooking the athletic fields is Holt Hall, which was originally name Oakhurst Dormitry but later renamed for co-principals J. Allen and Martin H. Holt. The building was constructed in 1924 after fire destroyed the original dormitory.

The 1928-29 school yearbook describes the dorm as “one of the most complete dormitories for boys in the country.” Holt Hall is a twostory, Colonial Revival building with

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a hipped roof of metal shingles and three dormers on the front slope of the roof. Porches stand at the center of the front façade and at both ends of the building, and each porch is supported by four brick columns.

The Academy made significant upgrades to Holt Hall's bathroom facilities in 2014. Plans are underway to begin a major renovation of the building's foyer, dorm parent apartments, and all 25 cadet rooms. 

 Oak Ridge Military Academy celebrated Linville Chapel's 100th anniversary in 2014.

It was built to replace a chapel on campus that burned in 1914.

Linville Chapel

2324 Oak Ridge Road Nestled in a shady spot on Oak Ridge Military Academy's campus, Linville Chapel was built in 1914. It was constructed quickly to replace the original chapel, which was built in the late 1800s and later destroyed by a devastating campus fire. Although the original chapel stood where Alumni Hall now stands, Linville Chapel was built directly across Oak Ridge Road. In addition to serving students and staff, the chapel was also instrumental in the founding of many

9 other local churches. At least five other churches first held their meetings in Linville Chapel, including Oak Ridge United Methodist Church, Northwest Church of Christ, Oak Ridge Presbyterian Church, and Summer Oaks Presbyterian Church.

The elegant Neoclassical-style building mirrors the grandeur and iconic columns of Alumni Hall just across the road, but Linville Chapel is more intimate in its scale and style, with its rich stained glass and lovely lunette window. The double entrance doors are crowned with a broad fanlight.

The front stained-glass windows are topped with semi-circular transoms and other stained-glass windows contain the names of families associated with the Academy: Lowery, Donnell, Linville,

Holt, Stafford, Whitaker and others.

The chapel was named in honor of the late R.N. “Buster” Linville, a graduate of the Academy. He and his wife Edna were married in the chapel, and later funded a 1991 restoration and an ongoing maintenance fund.

Buster Linville was active in the Oak Ridge community for many years, helping to form the Oak Ridge Fire Department, Oak Ridge Swim Club, and Oak Ridge Horse Show. He was also a dedicated and influential member of Oak Ridge United Methodist Church.

On the occasion of its 101st anniversary in 2015, Linville Chapel was rededicated and received a historic marker from the Oak Ridge Historic Preservation Commission. 

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Oakhurst 2328 Oak Ridge Road

Oakhurst, the “grand dame” of Oak Ridge architecture, is a magnificent Queen Anne-style home located next to the Oak Ridge Military Academy campus.

Built in 1897 for about $7,500, the house, called “as significant a Queen Anne house as any in North Carolina,” was designed

by Frank P. Milburn, an esteemed Southern architect whose buildings grace most of the state’s major cities.

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 Oakhurst was designed by Frank P. Milburn, a prolific southern architect. During his first 15 years of practice, Milburn is said to have designed 26 county courthouses, 19 railroad stations, 15 residences and nine college buildings.

Queen Anne architecture typically includes a variety of features, such as asymmetrical façades, a prominent front gable, bay windows, towers, large pedimented front porches, and upper floor balconies, often constructed of different materials and textures. Oakhurst has two towers that rise two-and-a-half stories tall – an octagonal one on the east side, and a rectangular one on the west set at a 45-degree angle to the rest of the house. The front door, as well as the sidelights and transom surrounding it, feature stained glass. Pieces of colored glass grace an unusual clipped dormer

 Oakhurst was built for Martin Hicks Holt.

A graduate of Oak Ridge Institute, Holt and his brother later purchased the school and served as its coprincipals for over 35 years.

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on the front of the roof, and a portecochere is located on the west side of the house.

The house was built for Martin Hicks Holt, co-principal and owner of Oak Ridge Institute (now Military Academy).

An Academy graduate, Holt earned bachelor's and master's degrees before joining his brother, J. Allen Holt, as an instructor at the Institute. In 1884 the brothers purchased the Institute and began their 35year tenure as co-principals. Martin Holt was also a state legislator in 1893, one of the initial directors of Morganton’s N.C. Deaf and Dumb School, and a member of the University of North Carolina’s Board of Trustees from 1893 to 1897.

Interestingly, the original house had no kitchen. Martin's wife, it is said, did not like to cook, and the Holts obtained their food from Oakhurst Dormitory (later rebuilt as Holt Hall), which was located next door.

After the Holt brothers died, T.E. Whitaker, the institute's new principal, moved into Oakhurst. He purchased the home in 1917, and it remained in the Whitaker family until 1981. Whitaker family members still reside in Oak Ridge.

Oakhurst is a Guilford County Historic Landmark and a key building in the Oak Ridge Military Academy Historic District.

It received a historic marker from Town of Oak Ridge in 2007. 

Congratulations to the Town of Oak Ridge on the Historic District’s 20th anniversary

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 The Donnell House was built of rock in 1923 after D. Lanier Donnell's previous home, which had been built with logs, burned.

Donnell Rock House

2406 Oak Ridge Road Using locally gathered rocks with high iron ore content – giving the stones a distinctly reddish tint – this unique Craftsman-style house was constructed

by D. Lanier Donnell, Sr., in 1923. The one-and-a-half story home has a large porch spanning the entire front façade, supported by stone columns with exposed rafter ends. The shed dormer on the front forms a skylight that allows light to stream into the large downstairs family room and its stone fireplace.

The Donnell Rock House replaced a log house built in the early 1900s on the same site, which subsequently burned, resulting in the loss of nearly all of the family’s belongings. Grandson Drew

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Donnell, who currently lives in the house, believes that his grandfather’s inspiration for building a house almost entirely of stone was borne out of his desire to protect his home from future disasters.

D. Lanier Donnell, Sr., known as “Mr. Lan” to Oak Ridge residents, bought the 10 acres on which the Rock House is situated from T.E. Whitaker, then president of Oak Ridge Institute (now Military Academy). In 1916, Mr. Lan married

 Photo courtesy of Drew Donnell

A driver in top hat and tails ferries Betty Donnell and her inlaws, Doré and Lanier Donnell, at the Oak Ridge Horse Show.

The carriage originally belonged to Doré Donnell’s father, Jule Gilmer Körner, builder of Körner’s Folly in Kernersville.

Doré Körner, who was the daughter of Jule Körner, owner and architect of Körner’s Folly in Kernersville. Along with his brother Will, Mr. Lan co-owned Donnell Bros. Land and Lumber Company, whose offices were housed in a one-room log building (also built in the early 1900s) that still stands on the west side of the property. During the same period, he served as Guilford County’s first manager, county tax collector, and county commissioner. He also served as a state representative.

Miss Doré often invited Oak Ridge area residents to their home. A surviving stone barbecue pit, surrounded by 10 stone pedestals once topped with round oak tables that seated 10 guests each, bears testimony to her love for entertaining. 

Zack L. Whitaker House 2412 Oak Ridge Road

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The Zack L. Whitaker House is a two-story side-gabled, wood frame house with two exterior chimneys. Its symmetrical style, known as National Folk, incorporates elements of British Folk architecture popular in the U.S. during the 1800s. The front door is topped

by a triangular pediment that was added sometime after the original construction.

Other additions include a back sunroom, side porch, and kitchen.

The house was originally built in 1898 for Mary B. “Mollie” Clark Bradfield (1860-1928), a young Oak Ridge widow, who lived there with her three children and later her older sister Pauline. Bradfield’s family are among the earliest Oak Ridge residents. Mollie was the daughter of James Bennet Clark (1811-1888) and Rebecca Tatum Clark (1821-1901), both also born in the area. The graves of Mollie, James, Rebecca, and Mollie’s five

siblings can be found in the Oak Ridge United Methodist Church cemetery.

The Whitaker family had strong connections to the Oak Ridge Institute (now Military Academy), beginning with Zack Whitaker’s father, Thomas E. Whitaker, who served as president from 1914-1929. His son, “Col. Zack” as he was known in Oak Ridge, purchased the house that now bears his name in 1937. After graduating from the Institute and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, he returned to the Institute to teach English, Latin and history. He later became the school’s secretary-treasurer and a member of its Board of Trustees, ultimately serving the school for over 50 years. Col. Zack was also a member of the Guilford County Board of Education. He and his family lived in the house until he died in 1986 at age 92. 

 Built in 1898 for Mollie Bradfield and her children, the Zack Whitaker House was purchased by "Col. Zack" Whitaker in 1937.

Whitaker was associated with Oak Ridge Military Academy for more than 50 years.

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R.P. Larkins House 2345 Oak Ridge Road

The R.P. Larkins house is a two-story frame, Colonial Revival style house with a triangular pedimented entry supported by two Doric-style columns. A portecochere with a raised seam metal roof extends to the left. The house also features decorative motifs and a charming eyebrow roof dormer centered over the entry.

The house is named for Maj. Richard P. Larkins (1898-1957), Commandant of Oak Ridge Military Institute (now Academy) for over 25 years. He built the house in 1933 on land sold to him by Zack Whitaker, also

 Maj. R.P. Larkins was commandant of Oak Ridge Military Academy for over 25 years.

13  Owners of the R.P. Larkins house used historic photos to recreate the balustrades on the porch roofs in 2016.

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an administrator at the Institute, whose house is located across Oak Ridge Road.

A native of Wilmington, North Carolina, Larkins graduated from the Institute in 1951 and later the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He served overseas in World War I, returning to Oak Ridge to marry Doris Blackwell and serve at his alma mater. Prior to building the house which bears his name, Larkins and his two young children lived in the boys’ dormitory on campus. Larkins resigned from the Institute in 1951 and later served as

the first president of its alumni association.

Current owners Gary and Myra Blackburn received a grant from the Historic Preservation Commission in 2016 to help reconstruct previously removed balustrades atop the porch roofs on both ends of the house and window awnings. Most recently, they restored a second-floor balcony with another matching balustrade on the back of the house.

The house received its historic marker in 2016. 

J.L. Sawyer House 2421 Oak Ridge Road

 Builders of the J.L. Sawyer House used the same stone on the foundation and chimneys as was used in the nearby Donnell Rock House.

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This house, built around 1919, is named for J.L. Sawyer, longtime barber for Oak Ridge Institute (now Military Academy). All three of Sawyer’s sons attended school there, and he and his wife may have also boarded students in their home.

 Photo courtesy of Faye Ellison

The Black Lantern Tea Room was located on the grounds of the J.L. Sawyer House. Ladies of the community often held civic organization meetings there.

Designed as a simple farmhouse, originally two rooms wide and two rooms deep, the Sawyer House once commanded nearly 35 acres. It features a generous front porch and is distinguished by its double-sloped Dutch gambrel roof and side-gabled carriage porch, with columns set on stone piers. The piers, foundation and chimney are all made of stone – the same quarry used to complete the nearby Donnell House (tour site 11). Both houses also used the same builder to construct their foundations and chimneys.

In the 1930s, the Sawyers operated the “Black Lantern Tea Room” on the west side of their property. It was a popular place for the ladies of the community to gather, dressed in their finest. Ironically, cakes, pies, soft drinks and snacks were served at the Black Lantern, but no tea. The original sign for the tea room still survives.

There is evidence that a private miniature golf course may once have existed on the property. Such private mini-golf courses, designed for experienced golf-

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ers rather than children, had become popular during the 1920s. A small building that may have housed golf course equipment has been moved to the back of the house. It includes a fragment of a sign advertising a golf course, as well as a ledged window that might have been used for distributing clubs and balls to golfers.

The Sawyer House received a historic marker in 2014, and in 2016 it received a Historic Heritage Grant to help replace the front half of the roof with shingles designed to mimic the dimensional appearance of the original cedar shake roof. 

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St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church 6709 W. Sandylea Road

 Photo courtesy of St. James AME Church

St. James AME Church also served as a school for African American children.

A schoolhouse was later constructed on the site.

Tucked behind Oak Ridge First Baptist Church is St. James AME Church, a simple structure of vernacular style with a square bell tower which originally featured exposed rafter tails. During the Reconstruction Era following the Civil War, church history says African Americans in the area wanted a nearby place to worship.

 St. James AME Church, built for the first African American congregation in Oak Ridge, was constructed in 1895.

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The property for the original church was purchased in 1889 for $25 from Roland and Martha Parrish, who are buried in the nearby Old Union Graveyard.

In those days, church members would worship under a brush arbor on the property. The original one-room church building, still in use today, was built in 1895 on a stone foundation. A pot belly stove in the center of the room provided heat. After avoiding demolition in the 1980s, a fellowship hall, running water, and a bathroom were added.

St. James is believed to be the oldest African-American congregation in Oak Ridge, with grave sites on the church property dating back to the early 1900s.

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The church sanctuary also served as a classroom for the area’s black children until a schoolhouse was built around 1915 on the adjacent site where First Baptist Church now stands.

The church received its historic marker in 2013. In 2017, it received a Historic Heritage Grant to help restore architectural details of the bell tower and windows.

A small but dedicated congregation continues to worship regularly at the church under the guidance of Rev. Marcia Isley. 

Old Mill of Guilford 1340 N.C. 68 North

 The iconic water wheel on the Old Mill of Guilford was added in the 1950s.

No structure is more closely associated with Oak Ridge than the Old Mill of Guilford. In fact, an image of the Old Mill is included on the town’s seal.

The original water-powered grist mill was constructed on Beaver Creek by Nathan Dillon around 1767. Legend says the mill was seized by the British to grind grain for their soldiers on their way to the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in 1781.

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 Photo courtesy of Old Mill of Guilford

This photo of the Old Mill of Guilford shows the road running behind the mill.

N.C. 68 was built on the west side of the mill in 1932.

Joel Sanders purchased the mill around 1803. By the early 1820s, he decided to rebuild a larger mill about 200 yards downstream, using foundation stones from the original mill, as well as rough-hewn posts and beams joined with mortise and pegs. The mill’s structure has remained largely unchanged since then.

The new mill was the first merchant mill in Guilford County to grind and sell grain for area farmers. It also became a gathering place where farmers exchanged news and gossip while they waited for their grain to be ground.

The large red water wheel, the mill’s most iconic feature, was added in the mid-1950s by then-owner C.E. Bailes, a businessman who operated the mill largely as a hobby. After another change of hands, Charles Parnell, a British engineer, purchased the mill in 1977. He

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and his wife Heidi ran the mill until their deaths in 2007.

Amy and Darrell Klug purchased the mill in 2008. Annie Laura Perdue, who also worked with the Parnells, serves as the miller. Although the mill’s famous water wheel still turns, it no longer powers the mill due to corrosion of the steel pipe that carried water to the mill after N.C. 68 bisected the property in 1932.

Recently, the sluice gate that controls the dam at the millpond has also been compromised. The Klugs are seeking solutions to both issues, in hopes that the mill can once again be powered by water.

The Old Mill is on the National Register of Historic Places and received a historic marker from Town of Oak Ridge in 2013. Celebrating its 250th birthday this year, the Old Mill remains one of the oldest operating mills in the country. 

1616 NC 68 N, Oak Ridge (336) 644-7035 pscommunications-inc.com • nwobserver.com

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 Preservation Oak Ridge Foundation was formed in 2007 to help save the historic Ai Church.

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and was sold to Fairview Primitive Baptist Church. After that congregation also became inactive, the church sat vacant for years until Oak Ridge residents formed the nonprofit Preservation Oak Ridge Foundation in 2007. Its first project has been to save Ai Church.

Ai Church 1306 N.C. 68 North

A church may have existed on this unique hilltop site since the late 1700s.

By 1781, it was known as Ai Methodist Episcopal Church, but was reorganized as Ai Methodist Protestant Church in 1829.

The earliest marked grave in the cemetery is that of Nathan Dillon, who died in 1819.

He was the son of Daniel Dillon, owner of the Old Mill and possibly of the church property. The church’s name Ai means “heap of ruins” in Hebrew, likely a reference in the Book of Joshua to the Israelites’ victory over a Caananite hilltop city.

Dillon’s School, a Quaker secondary school built of logs, may also have been located on the hilltop site. In 1829, the school was moved across the road and in 1853 it may have merged with Oak Ridge Institute (now Military Academy).

The structure we see today was originally a one-room church built by Ai Methodist Protestant Church in 1901.

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Simple and symmetrical, the white wooden church has a gable roof and triangular motifs around the windows and doors. In 1929 the church was expanded to include two Sunday school rooms.

Contemporary reports in the Greensboro Patriot newspaper cite a number of activities at the thriving “M.P.” church.

By 1955, the church became inactive

To date, Preservation Oak Ridge has succeeded in stabilizing the building’s foundation and installing a new roof, wooden siding, new windows, insulation, HVAC and electrical service. Members are now working on the church’s interior.

Ai Church received a historic marker from the Town of Oak Ridge in 2016.

This year, Preservation Oak Ridge is celebrating its 10th anniversary. 

 Photo courtesy of Preservation Oak Ridge

This undated photo shows several members of the Peeples family (seated) on the grounds of Ai Church.

We do not choose between the past and the future; they are inseparable parts of the same river. – Carl Feiss, architect, urban planner

publisher of the Northwest Observer applauds the Town of Oak Ridge and its Historic Preservation Commission for recognizing the value in your community’s history, and for your efforts to connect your past to your present while looking to the future

Best wishes on your inaugural Explore Historic Oak Ridge event www.pscommunications-inc.com | www.nwobserver.com |

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Historic Oak Ridge Map

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This way to tour sites 16 and 17

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East Historic District

Parking at Oak Ridge Elementary and State Employees Credit Union 1 Charles Benbow House 2 Oak Ridge Elementary* 3 Stafford-Benbow House (exterior only) 4 David B. Stafford House (exterior only)

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Enjoy sweets or a cold drink at a recreated Black Lantern Tea Room on the J.L. Sawyer House lawn

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Sponsor area in front of Linville Chapel

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West Historic District

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Vendor area on lawn along Oak Ridge Road

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Oak Ridge Military Academy parade will take place at 2p.m. in front of the baseball fields near King Gym

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Parking at Oak Ridge Military Academy and Oak Ridge United Methodist Church 5 Maple Glade 6 Alumni Hall & Museum 7 Holt Hall (exterior only) 8 Whitaker Dormitory (exterior only) 9 Linville Chapel 10 Oakhurst

11 Donnell Rock House (exterior and grounds) 12 Zack L. Whitaker House (exterior only) 13 R.P. Larkins House 14 J.L. Sawyer House 15 St. James AME Church

Other tour sites Parking available on-site 16 Old Mill of Guilford* (9am-5pm) 17 Ai Church* (4:30 -7:30 pm only) * This site open to the public; tickets not required

Key  Interior tour available

 Restrooms inside Oak Ridge Elementary, and portable toilets near Oak Ridge  Exterior only; please enjoy Military Academy's King Gym and near this site from the street Oak Ridge United Methodist Church

 Parking at Oak Ridge Elementary,  Purchase tickets at Oak Ridge Elementary cash or check) or Oak Ridge Military Academy and near Oak Ridge United Methodist Church (credit cards accepted).

Oak Ridge United Methodist Church Advance purchase tickets can be picked up at either location or in front of Oak Ridge Military Academy's Alumni Hall.