Perched on a rise over looking the flood plain
of the Green River mansion called the Green River Plantation.The home is located in Western, North Carolina. Joseph McDowell Carson who
is the builder of the oldest section of the home first arrived at the lushly fertile and enchanting countryside
on the banks of the Green River between 1804-1807. It was for his wife Rebekah that he built the sprawling
four-story house. It is composed of three major architectural periods. It was first constructed as a Federal-style
house facing west. During the Greek Revival period of the pre-Civil War days (circa 1820-1840), a separate
structure of similar proportions was built slightly to the rear of the original house. It was built by Joseph's
half-brother Samual Price Carson.
Samual was a Senator for North Carolina and fought one of the most famous
duels between he and Dr. Lance Vance.The duel left Mr. Vance mortally wounded from just one shot. Following the
war, the two structures were united with a center hall which today contains the mansion's main staircase. Sixteen
hand carved mantels from Philadelphia, scores of millwork patterns and crown molding, hand glazed window panes and
intricately designed door hinges and window latches were also included in the construction of the "big
house."
Joseph McDowell Carson was a distingished lawyer and represented Rutherford
County in the North Carolina House of Commons in 1813 and 1814. He was elected to the state senate in 1832,
1836, and 1838.The plantation is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In the
tradition of landscaping grand homes of the 19th century, an English garden was designed, including a maze of boxwoods,
for the plantation's front lawn. Surrounding the "big house" were various structures including a
smoke house, ice house, plantation kitchen, stables, and slaves cabins. Following the Civil War, the plantation was bought by Frank
Coxe, husband of Mary Carson Mills, who was a granddaughter of the original owners and had lived there as a child.
They spent most of their time in Asheville and used Green River as a summer home. Coxe was an investor in real estate
and railroad interests and a leader in the development of Asheville as a health resort and vacation center.
The plantation later became the property of Miss Maude Coxe, daughter of Frank
and Mary Coxe. Miss Maude lived there for 30 years and after her death bequeathed the property to her niece,
Mrs. Daisy Coxe Forbes, whose sons later
inherited the property. Those sons, who were the great-great-great-grandsons
of the original builder, sold the property in 1958, and thus for the first time in six generations ownership of the property passed
out of the original family. Since then the house has passed from owner to owner and eventually sat uninhabited for a period
of over five years before Eugene and Ellen Cantrell purchased the plantation in 1987. The house had fallen into a serious state
of disrepair, and the restoration project which the Cantrells undertook to return the mansion to its former glory was an extensive
one. Great pains were taken in trying to recreate original paint colors and floor finishes. Window treatments and accessories
were carefully chosen in the interior design of the mansion, as the Cantrells worked to recapture the era in which
the home was built.
These black and white images were recently uncovered by a Ms. Rebecca Redding. Her mother purchased a book of images at a flea market in the early 1980's.
Rebecca decided to do a little research to try to find where the photographs were
taken, but there was not any information in the book except the photographers name. Without
her hardwork we would not have these images to show of the the way this home looked
around the early 1900's. Please note the size of the wonderful cedar trees, This
year we lost two of these beautiful marvels to a bad storm. They were estimated to be approximately two hundred years old, and they were over 80 feet tall.
Front of the stately mansion with the boxwood
gardens
The original boxwood gardens
The original boxwood gardens with iron archway
The main drawing room in the Federal home
This is the old ice house that use to stand
out back. The plantation used to be one of
the few places in the area that you could get ice from.
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