Hayes Barton Historic District
The Hayes Barton Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. Portions of the content on this web page were adapted from a copy of the original nominationd document. [‡]
Hayes Barton Historic District, located to the northwest of downtown Raleigh, is significant as an early twentieth century suburban neighborhood that developed from about 1920 until after World War II. Although sections of Hayes Barton were adjacent to the streetcar line on Glenwood Avenue and a portion of the neighborhood east of Glenwood Avenue was developed with modest homes, the neighborhood was marketed primarily to Raleigh's elite citizens who could afford automobiles. (See Early Automobile Suburbs, 1908 to 1945) The large number of garages in the Hayes Barton Historic District testifies to the importance of the automobile in the development of the neighborhood, as well as the growing importance of the automobile to general development trends in cities and neighborhoods throughout the state.
The Hayes Barton neighborhood was designed by noted landscape architect Earle Sumner Draper. Draper's design signature was the preservation of the natural beauty of the rolling terrain using gently curving streets that followed the contour of the land and the incorporation of small streams into naturalistic median parks such as Potomac Park. This park became the center of the most elaborate dwellings in the Hayes Barton Historic District. Sited on a hill overlooking the park, these houses were conceived of as small estates. Surrounding this core were more modest (though still generous) lots that were marketed for their proximity to the elite core. Elite residential developments from this period were often planned to accommodate the natural surroundings in a manner that incorporated park spaces at locations within the neighborhood and that placed the best home sites at points of prominence, with views of natural settings, and with a sense of being secluded or of the nature of estates. Such commissions were often awarded to prominent designers, such as John Nolen's 1911 commission for Charlotte's Myers Park [see Myers Park Historic District], which he later turned over to his fledgling designer Earle Draper. After his work at Myers Park, Draper went on to design some of the most prominent early twentieth century suburbs in North Carolina including Forest Hills in Durham, High Point's Emorywood, and Hayes Barton in Raleigh. Thus, the Hayes Barton Historic District is an important local example of a suburb planned by the regionally significant designer, Earle Draper. The Hayes Barton Historic District is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places for community planning and development.
Politicians, upper-level businessmen, physicians, lawyers, insurance agents, bankers, and other professionals made their homes in Hayes Barton in houses representing some of the finest period revival architecture in Raleigh. The collection of Georgian Revival dwellings is exceptionally large, and other styles such as the Tudor Revival are also well represented. A number of houses were designed by prominent local architects, such as William Deitrick and Thomas W. Cooper, although the majority appear to be derived from stock plans. Many of the houses were constructed by Howard Satterfield and J.W. Coffey and Son, being two of the best-known and most sought-after contractors in Raleigh from the 1920s through the 1940s. Therefore, the Hayes Barton Historic District is also listed on the National Register for its collection of illustrative and representative examples of architectural styles from the period of significance. This collection, while it may hold several notable individual dwellings, is significant as a distinctive entity where most of the individual components are not individually important. As a whole, the Hayes Barton Historic District is a notable collection of early twentieth century architecture.
Furthermore, the attractiveness of the Five Points neighborhoods to potential buyers was heightened by the proximity of the elite Hayes Barton suburb. Hayes Barton is representative of the development of early suburban neighborhoods from their conception through the transitions inherent in altering lifestyles, technologies, and postwar changes in taste. It is also representative of the acceptable size, use, and social segregation that was a part of many early twentieth century restrictive developments. The role of Hayes Barton in the suburban development of Raleigh is significant and makes the district eligible to the National Register for community planning and development.
The period of significance of the Hayes Barton Historic District extends from 1920, the construction date of the oldest contributing resource to 1952. This period encompasses the majority of the buildings representing the popular revival styles, such as Colonial Revival, Georgian Revival, and Tudor Revival, that make up the first phases of development of the neighborhood during the 1920s. This period also encompasses other styles pervasive in the district, including Craftsman, American Foursquare, and Neoclassical Revival. Furthermore, it incorporates styles that gained popularity during the Recovery Era and the post World War II period such as Period Cottage, Cape Cod, Minimal Traditional, and Ranch styles. Though there are fewer resources dating from the postwar era than from earlier decades of the district's development, these resources nonetheless contribute to a greater understanding of the overall development of the neighborhood and the changes in tastes and technology indicative of post World War II society. The neighborhood continued to be developed into the 1950s and 1960s, however, this period is not of exceptional significance, and therefore the period of significance ends with the fifty-year cut-off.
Historical Background
Before 1920, the Five Points intersection was little more than the junction of several dirt roads and the streetcar line on Glenwood Avenue. The dirt roads linked the area farms and mills while the streetcar served Bloomsbury Amusement Park to the north. The park and streetcar line were installed in 1912 by Carolina Power and Light Company.[1] Consequently, the earliest development followed the streetcar and other transportation lines. This scattered construction consisted of only a few homes in the Five Points area and possibly a store prior to World War I.[2]
Other development was limited to two farms near Glenwood Avenue. B. Grimes Cowper owned a farm on the west side of Glenwood Avenue and Mrs. B.P. Williamson owned another on the east side. In 1919, Dan, Frank, and William Allen of Allen Brothers Realty made an agreement with these two property holders to develop their farm land.[3]
The Allen brothers, desiring to create a fashionable new suburb for Raleigh's elite, turned to landscape architect Earle Sumner Draper. Draper's involvement in the prestigious and trendsetting development of Myers Park in Charlotte made him a logical choice as designer of the elite suburb the Allens envisioned. Furthermore, based on comments made by Draper himself during a 1982 interview, it appears he became involved in the project via a connection with Secretary of the Navy, Josephus Daniels, who erected an imposing house on Caswell Street around 1920.[4] Of representative and relative significance as compared to other works of Draper, Myers Park in Charlotte, Forest Hills in Durham, and High Point's Emorywood, the design utilized the natural terrain to its best advantage by creating naturalistic Potomac Park and wooded lots that gave the effect of small private estates and parks. A history of the neighborhood published in the News and Observer in 1935 found that "much thought was given to the planning of streets and cutting of lots so that the natural beauty might be preserved..."[5]
Apparently Draper's design was given to Charles L. Mann, a civil engineering professor at North Carolina State College, who delineated the plat map after a survey during the summer of 1920.[6] By 1921, improvements such as sewage connections, sidewalks and paved roads were installed on the entire 175-acre tract.[7] These municipal services were made possible by the extension of the city limits in 1920. The expansion area was greater to the north and west to include areas, such as the Hayes Barton and Bloomsbury tracts, deemed prime for residential development and was intended to be an impetus for the growth in this area.[8]
Calling upon the Anglophile fashions of the time and the connection to Raleigh's namesake, the new suburb was named Hayes Barton after the birthplace of Sir Walter Raleigh in Devonshire, England. The plat map book cover sheet and a 1920 newspaper advertisement featured Hayes Barton House, a picturesque Tudor country house. Continuing the historical theme, the streets in the new suburb were named for former North Carolina governors such as Jarvis, Reid, Stone, and Vance.
Although the first home was begun in April of 1920, construction began to gain speed during the summer of 1921. The News and Observer reported in July of 1921 that ten new homes were under construction in Hayes Barton. The paper hoped that this activity denoted "the beginning of the end of the building stagnation which began during the war."[9]
The advertising campaign for the new suburb was quite simple and played directly into the early-twentieth century idea that one should live among people of similar backgrounds. The promise of homogeneity and seclusion from urban problems attracted the elite to the small estates offered in Hayes Barton early in the development of the neighborhood. The advertising then took a clever turn, using the proximity to Raleigh's elite as a selling point for the lots surrounding the Potomac Park core. A 1920 advertisement claimed that "You'd be proud — of a home in Hayes-Barton." The advertisement went on to point out that the area was "the most improved and advanced residential section..." in the city and "has already been chosen by over a hundred of North Carolina's best families as the place where they will build their home." Justifying the overt elitism, the ad stated that "certainly it is pardonable to be proud that your judgement is shared by such people." Emphasizing the idea of founding a private estate, the advertisement warned buyers that "every day you neglect to found your home among the beautiful hills and parks of Hayes-Barton is so much priceless contentment lost."[10]
The marketing scheme was very successful. Among the prestigious homes constructed during the 1920s were Wakestone, the home of Secretary Daniels; the Park-Hudson House at 1535 Carr Street, for John A. Park, Raleigh Times president and publisher; and 825 Holt Drive for The Honorable George W. Connor, Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court and his wife Bessie. By the late 1920s, several homes on adjacent streets such as Stone and Craig were being occupied by lawyers, engineers, upper level businessmen, insurance agents, and small business proprietors. Even after World War II, the status of the neighborhood continued with prominent citizens such as W. Herbert Weatherspoon, Vice-president and general counsel for Carolina Power and Light, constructing homes during the late 1940s and 1950s.
Just as Earle Draper represented the best available neighborhood planner, the contractors and architects utilized in the construction of individual houses among the best-known and most widely respected in Raleigh. Many of the houses from the 1920s were constructed by Howard E. Satterfield, the preeminent builder at the time. Formerly a mechanical engineering professor at State College, Satterfield gave the kind of service and produced the sort of quality demanded by the elite. A quote from his building specifications indicates his method. "The builder agrees to give his personal attention at all times and his presence as often as necessary to properly carry on the work."[11] Satterfield's work seemed to have often been Colonial Revival or Georgian Revival houses such as the 1924 house (1535 Carr Street) for Raleigh Times president and publisher, John A. Park. This two-story brick house features green roof tiles, classical details, and metal casement windows. By the 1930s and 1940s, J.W. Coffey and Son had gained equal prestige with an emphasis on high value and high quality. The company "produced some of the best houses in Raleigh's new suburbs."[12] One example of Coffey's work is the Tudor Revival, brick and frame dwelling (1539 Caswell Street) of Robert D. Beam, Manager of the real estate department at Wachovia Bank and Trust Company. The house, which dates from the early 1930s, has chamfered and flared posts support entry porch. Both Coffey and Satterfield's work is often found in conjunction with that of a prominent local architect.
Among the architects utilized for some of the houses were well-known local designers such as Thomas W. Cooper, William H. Deitrick, Charles Atwood and Arthur C. Nash, and James A. Salter.[13] Deitrick, for example, completed the design and construction administration for Dorton Arena after Nowicki's death. Arthur Nash, on the other hand worked with McKim, Mead, and White and supervised, along with engineer Charles Atwood, the mammoth Lower Campus project at the University of North Carolina.[14]
The quality construction and design produced for Raleigh's elite created a homogenous neighborhood, at least on the western side of Glenwood Avenue. East of Glenwood, the houses and their owners represented a more typical middle-class neighborhood similar to Bloomsbury [see Bloomsbury Historic District]. This area was populated by a range of people including traveling salesmen and middle management. For example, in 1930 the 600 and 700 blocks of West Aycock Street were home to a plumber, an examiner, a conductor, a sales manager, the manager of S & W Cafeteria, and the treasurer of Title Guaranty Insurance Company.
As a whole, Hayes Barton Historic District includes a predominance of Georgian and Colonial Revival houses and impressive examples of Craftsman, Eclectic French and Spanish stylizations, and a notable and relatively rare example of Norman Revival, the Williams House, located at 910 Harvey Street and dating to the late 1930s. Additionally, the eastern section of the neighborhood includes smaller Craftsman Bungalows, Foursquares, Period Cottages, and Minimal Traditional houses. Inherent in the attraction of Hayes Barton was the promise of control over the development. The Fairview Company, which sold the lots, established covenants that determined building costs, commercial and residential zones, and ensured all-white ownership.[15]
The desire to protect substantial investments and maintain control over who lived in Hayes Barton resulted in racial incidents during the history of the neighborhood. In 1927, the News and Observer reported that "Hayes-Barton citizens boiled over last night — determined to keep Gus Russos, Greek shoe-shine parlor operator, out of their exclusive residential section at any cost." A neighborhood group known as the Hayes Barton Improvement Association met in an angry session to find a way to keep Russos out even though there was no legal justification. It was reported that "[an] injunctions appeal to the City Commissioners, boycotting the Russos Shine Parlors, and the Ku Klux Klan were means suggested to that end."[16] A similar incident in 1935 involved a fight to keep an unused sanitarium at the corner of Jarvis and Harvey from being converted into an apartment building. Residents feared multi-family housing would reduce their property values, which were protected by the current zoning that allowed only three families per building.[17]
These incidents reinforce the original appeal of Hayes Barton as an exclusive enclave at a time in American history when social and racial upheaval were greatly feared. Retreating to the safety of "country" suburbs, citizens felt and reacted strongly to perceived threats to their lifestyle.
As Hayes Barton and other Five Points neighborhoods continued to grow during the 1930s, commercial activity followed. The Flat Iron Building (located in Bloomsbury Historic District) is one of the earliest commercial buildings in the area. It originally housed a grocery store run by Mr. Allen, and was equipped with a gas pump. Later the building was home to Gattis' Drugstore. Within the boundary of the Hayes Barton Historic District is a row of shops along Glenwood Avenue, south of Five Points. Several of these date from the 1930s and constituted the primary shopping area before construction on Fairview Road across the street from the Flat Iron Building created a second commercial area in the late 1940s and 1950s.[18]
There are only two church buildings in the district, Hayes Barton United Methodist Church and United Lutheran Church. Hayes Barton United Methodist (2209 Fairview Road) was constructed in the mid-1950s and United Lutheran Church (500 Glenwood Avenue) was constructed in the mid-1960s. Both have Modernist influences. However, a few homes in the Hayes Barton Historic District were constructed by or for pastors of churches in the area, such as the First Presbyterian Church Parsonage (1531 Caswell Street), a Georgian Revival home built in the 1930s and resided in by Rev. Patrick D. Miller.
The creation of the second shopping area by the early 1950s indicates the continued growth and popularity of the neighborhood during the postwar era. Although there are relatively few houses from the 1950s and even fewer from 1960 through 1990, Hayes Barton Historic District is experiencing a period of significant construction and remodeling. As in-town neighborhoods have come back into favor, Hayes Barton is again one of the most sought after addresses in Raleigh.
Endnotes
[1]Helen Ross, "Bloomsbury — Survey Area XIII, 1991" in Architectural Survey File "Bloomsbury National Register Historic District, 1991 and 2001," State Historic Preservation Office, Raleigh.
[2]Luther Hughes, "Five Points as recalled by Mr. Luther Hughes, Hayes Barton Baptist Church, c.1975," in Architectural Survey File "Hayes Barton — General Information, 1991," State Historic Preservation Office, Raleigh.
[3]Helen Ross, "Hayes Barton — Survey Area XII, 1991" in Architectural Survey File "Hayes Barton National Register Historic District, 1991 and 2001," State Historic Preservation Office, Raleigh.
[4]Handwritten notes from interview with Earle S. Draper by Thomas Hanchett, 3-4 April 1982 in Architectural Survey File "Hayes Barton National Register Historic District, 1991 and 2001," State Historic Preservation Office, Raleigh.
[5]Betty Rose Thomas, "History of Hayes Barton Shows Swift Development," Raleigh News and Observer, 3 February 1935, C (1).
[6]Ross, "Hayes Barton."
[7]"Hayes Barton Growing Fast," Raleigh News and Observer, 19 July 1921, A(12).
[8]Ross, "Bloomsbury."
[9]Ibid.
[10]"You'd be proud — of a home in Hayes Barton," advertisement, Raleigh Times, 13 November 1920.
[11]Howard E. Satterfield, quoted in Charlotte V. Brown, "The Day of the Great Cities: The Professionalization of Building, 1900-1945," in Architects and Builders in North Carolina, Catherine Bishir, et al. (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1990), 310.
[12]Brown, 314.
[13]Ross, "Hayes Barton.
[14]Brown, 327 and 350.
[15]Ross, "Hayes Barton."
[16]"Hayes Barton Citizens Protest Against Invasion," Raleigh News and Observer, 20 July 1927.
[17]"Hayes Barton Residents Oppose Apartment Plans," Raleigh News and Observer, 10 September 1935.
[18]Hughes.
References
Brown, Charlotte V. "The Day of the Great Cities: The Professionalization of Building, 1900-1945," in Architects and Builders in North Carolina, Catherine Bishir, et al. (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1990), 310.
Hanchett, Thomas. Interview with Earle S. Draper, 3-4 April 1982. Handwritten notes in Architectural Survey File "Hayes Barton National Register Historic District, 1991 and 2001." State Historic Preservation Office, Raleigh.
"Hayes Barton Growing Fast." Raleigh News and Observer, 19 July 1921, A(12).
"Hayes Barton Citizens Protest Against Invasion." Raleigh News and Observer, 20 July 1927.
"Hayes Barton Residents Oppose Apartment Plans." Raleigh News and Observer, 10 September 1935.
Hughes, Luther. "Five Points as recalled by Mr. Luther Hughes, Hayes Barton Baptist Church, c.1975" in Architectural Survey File "Hayes Barton National Register Historic District, 1991 and 2001." State Historic Preservation Office, Raleigh.
Raleigh City Directories.
Ross, Helen. "Bloomsbury — Survey Area XIII, 1991" in the Architectural Survey File "Bloomsbury National Register Historic District, 1991 and 2001." State Historic Preservation Office, Raleigh.
Ross, Helen. "Hayes Barton — Survey Area XII, 1991" in the Architectural Survey File "Hayes Barton National Register Historic District, 1991 and 2001." State Historic Preservation Office, Raleigh.
Satterfield, Howard E. Quoted in Charlotte V. Brown, "The Day of the Great Cities: The Professionalization of Building, 1900-1945." In Architects and Builders in North Carolina, Catherine Bishir, et al. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1990.
Hayes Barton Historic District, Wake, North Carolina.
Thomas, Betty Rose. "History of Hayes Barton Shows Swift Development." Raleigh News and Observer, 3 February 1935, C(l).
"You'd be proud — of a home in Hayes Barton." Advertisement. Raleigh Times, 13 November 1920.
‡ Sherry Joines Wyatt, Historic Preservation Specialist, David E. Gall, AIA, Architect, Hayes Barton Historic District, Wake County, North Carolina, nomination document, 2002, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places, Washington, D.C.
Nearby Neighborhoods
Street Names
Aycock Street West • Burton Street • Carr Street • Caswell Street • Cowper Drive • Craig Street • Doughton Street • Fairview Road • Glenn Avenue • Glenwood Avenue • Harvey Street • Holt Drive • Iredell Drive • Jarvis Street • Nash Drive • Reid Street • Route 50 • Route 70 • Scales Street • St Marys Street • Stone Street • Vance Street • Williamson Drive
