Thomas J. Bruce House, State Route 8 (south side), Vanceburg

Source document Quoted word for word from HABS KY,68-VANC.V,2-. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.

The house is an example of a regional interpretation of the Greek Revival style with exterior elements in the Italianate style. In form, the house follows the sort of modified Georgia tradition seen in the neighboring Fred Carr and John Bierly Houses (ca. and It has a formal main block having a center passage and two main rooms to either side, and a semi-detached rear ell, which is typical of a mid-nineteenth century trend in segrega- ting service and formal functions of domestic space. It also features a double pile plan. Built by the Bruce family in the mid-nineteenth century, the house reflects the importance of this family in this rural community and the tastes and preferences of the local elite.

In contrast to the rest of Lewis County, the house reflects as well the affluence of farmers along the Ohio River. PART I. HISTORICAL INFORMATION A. Physical History: 1. Date of erection: circa Tentative date is assigned on the basis of architectural analysis. This is consistent with oral history interviews with Miss Maude Bierly, who referred to the house as belonging to Tom Bruce; Bruce THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 2) bought the property in and appeared in the state tax lists that year as a landowner on the Ohio River. 2. Architect: unknown. 3. Original and subsequent owners: The following partial chain of title assumes that Bruce built .this house.

Deeds are housed in the Clerk's Office, Lewis County Courthouse, Vanceburg, Kentucky; a complete asbtract of title was provided by Kentucky Power Company, Ashland, Kentucky. Deed April 8, -recorded September 10, in Volume 0, Page 405 Benjamin Crabb and Sarah Crabb, his wife To Thomas J. Bruce Deed March 31, recorded April 2, in Volume 16, Page 403 Elizabeth Bruce, widow, R. W. E. Irwin and Nellie Irwin, his wife To Henrietta Henry Affidavit of Descent February 1, recorded February 4, in Volume 60, Page 232 Henrietta Henry, deceased To James A. Henry Deed January 24, recorded January 24, in Volume 82, Page 213 James A. Henry of Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Florence Henry, his wife To Otto W.

Pauley and Oleta Pauley, his wife, of Concord, Lewis County, Kentucky Deed August 29, recorded October 4, in Volume 86, Page 109 v Otto W. Polley [sic] and Oleta Polley, his wife To Maurice Burriss and Hazel S. Burriss, his wife Deed November 29, recorded November 29, in Volume Page 504 Hazel S. Burriss Cook To Franklin Real Estate Company THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 3) Deed October 18, recorded in Volume Page 533 Franklin Real Estate Company To Kentucky Power Company 4. Original plans and construction: Original drawings and architectural plans have not been located. The Thomas J. Bruce House is a one-and-a-half story brick structure with an L-shape. The main block has a center passage, double-pile plan. The rear ell contains two small service rooms.

An enclosed porch has been added to the rear elevation at the junction of the main block and ell. 5. Alterations and additions: The house is little altered from its original configuration and detailing. Plumbing and electrical systems were added as was central heating. The facade portico was altered by adding brick piers and removing the original balustrade at the first and second floor levels. Shutters have been removed. The enclosed- porch at the rear is a later addition dating to the or B. Historical Context: Carrs Landing (or Carrs) was originally known as Stout's Bottom after the Stout family, which held patents to much of the land in this area in the early nineteenth century. Lewis County itself was incorporated in and named for the explorer Meriwether Lewis.

Settlers tended to come to the county via the Ohio River, and as is characteristic of frontier society, the rate of population growth of Lewis County in the early decades was high, exceeding the state statistic from through In the decade, the county grew at a slower rate than the state as a whole, but population growth began to pick up again after Despite the upheaval associated with Civil War and Reconstruc- tion, population growth rates in the county exceeded the state-wide growth rate in the decade, Construction of the Fred Carr and Thomas J. Bruce Houses can be associated with this period of population growth and prosperity. The Thomas J. Bruce House was commonly known as the Henry and then the Cook house, reflecting its later owners. Thomas J.

Bruce bought the land from Benjamin Crabb and his wife Sarah in April of That year, he listed taxable property that included five slaves, two of whom were older than 16 years old, and three head of cattle. Bruce, his wife THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 4) and four children are listed in the federal census, where his occupation is given as "steam boat commander'1. He also owned, according to this census, six slaves, who included two adults (a man of 31 and a woman of 33) and four children ranging in age from 2 to 11 years old. The state tax lists for that year enumerated livestock. (3 horses and mares, 8 head of cattle, 16 hogs) and agricultural products (4 tons of hay, bushels of corn, 600 bushels of wheat) in addition to the slaves.

Bruce was also assessed for worth of silver and gold clocks and watches and other similar furnishings as well as $24 worth of plate.* The tax list for the following year, showed that Bruce's property increased to seven slaves and reflected the continued production of wheat, corn, hay and livestock. By however, Bruce's estate did not include any slaves nor were any agricultural products taxed that year. The enumeration of slaves for may be in error, however, since the tax list showed Bruce still owning four slaves. He still owned two horses and mares and five head of cattle, but his personal property was only taxed at worth, and his products included only 500 bushels of corn, 400 bushels of wheat and 50 tons of hay. By his yields had dropped to 2 tons of hay and 100 bushels of corn.

In the federal census for however, he still listed his occupation as "steam boat pilot" and his household included William Abbott, a farm laborer and Jane Abbott. He began to prosper and in his taxable property had increased to include 3 horses and mares, 8 head of cattle, 1 hog, 20 tons of hay, bushels of corn, 100 bushels of wheat and $50 of personal property (gold and silver watches and clocks, plate, pianos and other furnishings). In the federal census for he gave his occupation as a "farmer" and his household included his son Henry, who was a clerk on the river, his son's wife Elizabeth, their daughter Nellie, and Bruce1s younger son, Robert.

The relative affluence of both Thomas Bruce (Bruce House) and Frederick Carr (Carr House) is evident in the architectural character of their houses and in their ownership of slaves. In slaves represented a mere 2.8 percent of the county's total population in contrast to the state statistic of percent. The neighboring Dickerson House is said to have been built by slaves, and the locations of slave houses scattered among the fields are also known to residents of this community. Both the Carrs and the Bruces are believed to have sympathized with the Confederate cause, which was not uncommon in the Ohio River valley although Kentucky remained within the Union. It is not surprising, *"Plate", in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, denoted gold and silver dishes, cutlery^ tableware, etc.

THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 5) therefore, that the church which the Bruce's and Carrs helped to organized was affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal Church, South (Peter Taylor Chapel, The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, was created in the when the Southern congregations separated out of the national conference. Its creation signified the emergence of Southern sectionalism prior to the Civil War. In the post-war period, its continued vitality contributed to the definition of Southern regional identity. Although Lewis County is considered part of eastern Kentucky, it lacks the mineral resources for which this region is generally known.

The county is hilly and historically depressed, except for the rich valleys of the Ohio River and Kinniconick and Cabin Creeks. In the its principal products were corn, wheat, rye, oats, horses, cattle and hogs. The products of both the Bruce and Carr farms in this period typify such agricultural prosperity as the county enjoyed. In the middle and late nineteenth century, cultivation of tobacco began to spread from the Bluegrass to other areas of the state. The enumeration of tobacco among Carr's taxable wealth in reflects the introduction of this crop to this area, where it rapidly assumed prominence. The spur to the coalescence of a community through this area resulted from the fortunate combination of arable land and good transportation.

Although the Carrs landings were not a regular stop for packets on the Ohio River, residents flagged a vessel when a shipment of tobacco and/or livestock was ready to ship to Cincinnati, and the boat tied up at one of the landings located in front of the houses. Competition from the Maysville and Big Sandy Railroad in the generally stimulated the growth of towns along the Ohio River in this period. James Stout sold an easement to the Maysville and Big Sandy in and Carr sold a second easement to the railroad in The Chesapeake and Ohio bought out the Maysville and Big Sandy and converted it primarily to a coal freight line to serve the burgeoning steel industry in eastern Ohio. In this part o Lewis County, however, access to the river and to surface routes invited commercial development.

Stout kept a store in this area in and Carr also had a store in a frame building adjacent to his brick dwelling; the Bierlys later took this building down. The first depot was lcoated behind the Carr house but was later moved further up the line to its position west and behind the Bierly house. THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 6) By Cans Landing had its own post office as well as the Peter Taylor Chapel and the first of three school houses. Construction of the John Bierly House dates to this period* By federal census takers enumerated a separate district bound by "Stouts Lane" (Carrs Lane) and the turnpike, which included the railroad depot, a general store, a lumber mill, a millinery store and school. Residents voted in a small town across the ridge on Quicks Run.

Carrs appeared on a geological map of the county as a railroad station surrounded by a cluster of buildings. It also appeared on a state map as a cluster of buildings with a store, railroad depot, church, cemetery and shcool. A Works Projects Administration description of the area in noted that the communities "are tiny and cluster beside the highway or along the railroad tracks". As such, Carrs can be seen to represent a typical settlement pattern for this part of the state in the early to mid-twentieth century.

Henrietta Henry inherited a portion of the estate from her father and bought the remaining interest from Nellie Bruce Irwin in Her son James Henry, of Steubenville, Ohio, inherited the property from her in He and his wife spent summers on the property; the rest of the year, their tenants Ralph and Louise Applegate occupied the house and worked the land. In Henry sold it to another absentee landowner, Otto Pauley of Concord. C. Sources of Information: 1. Maps: Geological map of Lewis County, Kentucky. Surveyed by E. S. Perry. Kentucky Geological Survey, Frankfort, Kentucky. Scale: mile. Traffic flow map, kewis County, Kentucky. Prepared by the Kentucky Department of Highways in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Public Roads. Scale: 1/2 miles. 2.

Unpublished and published sources: Bowman, Mary Jean and W. Warren Haynes Resources and people of east Kentucky; problems and potentials of a lagging economy. Resources for the Future by Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. Collins, Richard and Lewis Collins History of Kentucky. 2 vols. Collins & Co., Covington, Kentucky. Eastern Kentucky THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 7) Hathaway, Beverly West Inventory of county records of Kentucky. Accelerated Indexing System, Inc., Bountiful, Utah. Larrance, Isaac Post office key, or Kentucky map by figures with a key to space. Isaac Larrance, Plainville, Ohio. Mead, H.E. Kentucky and Tennessee; a complete guide to their railroad stations and their distances, connections north and south.

Their rivers, their landings and distances. H. E. Mead, Louisville, Kentucky. Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Peter Taylor Chapel Register. Manuscript in possession of Inez Barnhardt, Vanceburg, Kentucky. Sunday School Book. Manuscript in possession of Inez Barnhardt, Vanceburg, Kentucky. National Register of Historic Places National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: Historic Resources of Carrs River Community, Lewis County, Kentucky. Compiled by Claudia Watson, Soil Systems, Inc. On file at the National Register of Historic Places, Washington, Piatt, G. Sam Power plant will replace former way of life. Ashland Daily Independent, February 25, Copy of article supplied by Kentucky Power Company, Ashland, Kentucky. Kentucky, State of 1842-Tax lists, Lewis County (manuscript).

Microfilm of originals on file at the Lewis County Public Library, Vanceburg, Kentucky. Talley, William M. Talley's northeastern Kentucky papers. American v Reference Publishers, Fort Worth, Texas. University of Kentucky, Works Projects Administration Kentucky; a guide to the bluegrass state. Harcourt, Brace and Company, New York. U.S., Bureau of Census Population schedules of the Eighth Census of the United States: Kentucky, Lewis County, Free Inhabitants. Microfilm of original on file at the National Archives, Washington, THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 8) Population Schedules of the Eighth Census of the United States: Kentucky, Lewis County, Slave Schedules.

Microfilm of original on file at the National Archives, Washington, Population Schedules of the Ninth Census of the United States: Kentucky, Lewis County, Vol. 20, Vanceburg Precinct. Microfilm of original on file at the National Archives, Washington, Population Schedules of the Tenth Census of the United States: Kentucky, Vol. 19, Lewis County, Vanceburg Precinct. Microfilm of original on file at the National Archives, Washington, Twelfth Census of the United States: Schedule No. 1. Population, Kentucky, Lewis County, Martins Precinct. Microfilm of original on file at the National Archives, Washington, Thirteenth Census of the United States: Schedule No. 1. Population, Kentucky, Lewis County, Magisterial District No. 2, Martins Voting District.

Microfilm of original on file at the National Archives. 3. Materials provided by Kentucky Power Company, Ashland, Kentucky: Gray, Woods & Cooper Abstract of Title and Final Title Certificate, Option #3 (Hazel Cook House). Abstract of title and Preliminary Title Certificate. Option #9 (John Bierly House). Abstract of Title and Preliminary Certificate of Title, Option #10 (Fred Carr House). Continuation of Abstract of Title and Final Title Certificate, Option #6. Abstract of Title and Preliminary Title Certificate, Methodist Episcopal Church, South. 4. Oral History Interviews: Dickerson, Walter. Recollections of the Carrs Community. lewis County, Kentucky, Historic Documentation March 1, Interviewed by Amy Friedlander and Roger Wheeler.

Tape and transcript on file at Soil Systems, Inc., Alexandria, Virginia. THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 9) Bierly, Maude and Helen Kimble. Recollections of the Carrs Community. Lewis County, Kentucky, Historic Documentation March 2, Interviewed by Amy Friedlander and Roger Wheeler. Tape and transcript on file at Soil Systems, Inc., Alexandria, Virginia. Barnhardt, Inez. Recollections of the Peter Taylor Chapel and the Carrs Community. Lewis County, Kentucky, Historic Documentation March 2, Interviewed by Amy Friedlander and Roger Wheeler. Notes on file at Soil Systems, Inc., Alexandria, Virginia. McCann, Peggy. Recollections of Peter Taylor Chapel and the Carrs Community.

Lewis County, Kentucky, Historic Documentation March 2, Interviewed by Amy Friedlander and Roger Wheeler. Tape and transcript on file at Soil Systems, Inc., Alexandria, Virginia.

Source document Quoted word for word from HABS KY,68-VANC.V,2-. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.

ARCHITECTURAL INFORMATION A. General Statement: 1. Architectural-character: Notable architectural features of the house include the following: L-shaped plan with a central hall and two flanking rooms per side in the main block; bracketed cornice; front cross gable; interior end chimneys; two^-ftight stairway with heavy newel post, turned balusters and scrolled ends; molded door and window surrounds; molded baseboards. 2. Condition of Fabric: The house is in good structural condition with some deterioration resulting from neglect in recent years. Deterioration is limited to the exterior and has not advanced to serious proportion. Wood elements show signs of weathering due to the need for painting. B. Description of Exterior: 1.

Over-all dimensions: The main block of the house has hasal dimensions of 34* by the rear ell has basal dimensions of 13' by 22\ The total length of the house is 56* with a 43' facade. The number of stories is two. 2. Foundations: The house sits on a cut stone foundation. There is a basement under the main block. 3. Walls: Exterior walls are of brick laid in common bond. THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 10) A. Structural System: Brick construction with exterior walls approximately 1* thick. 5. Porches: The facade has a protecting the central entry bay. The porch is a replacement of the original. It has two brick piers supporting a flat roof with architrave cornice. Two engaged pilasters match the piers.

There are two short piers which are in effect newel posts to either side of the two poured concrete steps leading to the porch. The original porch in this position featured a balustraded roof accessible via the tripartite window in the cross-gable above. There are two porches to the rear oi the house: an open one with simple square posts supporting the extended gable roof; and an enclosed porch of similar design. The enclosed porch was formerly open. It is now covered with weatherboard. 6. Chimneys: There are two interior end chimneys at each gable end on the main block. There is a semi-exterior chimney at the gable end of the rear ell. 7. Openings: a. Doorways and doors: There are six exterior doors to the house. The principal entrance is nearly identical to that of the

Fred Carr House

It features a four panel wood door with cyma molded raised panels. The door is surrounded by sidelights and a transom. The transom extends the length of the door and has a smaller light to either side separated by stylized acanthus leaf brackets. Each sidelight has three lights above a raised wood panel. The door is the central bay on the five bay facade. Other doors located at the sides and rear of the house have four raised panels each; their locations are indicated on the sketch plan. b. Windows: There are six-over-six pane windows with simple surrounds and delicate muntins. Windows have cut stone sills and lintels and formerly featured v shutters of some type. Above the center door is a tripartite window with larger, taller central window flanked by two narrower windows.

This originally gave onto the balustraded roof of the portico (since altered) Each gable end of the main block features a pair of windows on the first and second floors. 8. Roof: a. Shape, covering: The house has a gable roof with a cross gable pediment at the facade. The roof is covered with standing seam metal. THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 11) b. Cornice, eaves: The eaves extend beyond the exterior walls about eighteen inches. An architrave cornice is supported by elaborate scrolled brackets in the Italianate style. There are partial returns at the gable ends. The bracketing is found only on the facade and side elevations of the main block. C. Description of Interior: 1. Floor Plans: a.

First floor: The first floor of the main block has four rooms: they are placed two deep on either side of the center passage. The center passage includes the stair and front and rear doors to the exterior. There are two small rooms located in the rear ell south of the southwest room. b. Second floor: The second floor has four rooms under the eaves of the roof. There are two rooms to either side of the stair hall. A small room was added at the north front of the passage to accomodate a bathroom. 2. Stairways: The stairway is located in the center passage with a pair of rooms to either side. There are fourteen risers to the stair landing with five more risers to the second floor passage.

The stair is elaborately treated with two vasiform turned balusters to a riser and spandrels of S- and C-scrolls in combination. The newel post is octagonal and tapers toward the top which is crowned with an expanding series of ogee moldings. The newel post is veneered in crotch grain mahogany and features gadrooning and applied cut-out panels of bird's eye maple with Moorish arch motifs. 3. Flooring: Uniform-width pine floorboards are used throughout the house. 4. Wall and ceiling finish: Walls and ceilings are finished in plaster with animal hair binding applied to wood lath. An elaborate baseboard with compound ogee moldings is found in all of the rooms in the main block. 5. Openings: a. Doorways and doors: Interior doors are of wood and have been uniformly painted white.

Each has four raised panels with cyma moldings. The two upper rectangular panels are longer than the more nearly THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO.KY-166 (page 12) lower panels. The doors are set within elaborately molded surrounds with cyma, half-round and three- quarters round elements. Between the northeast and southeast rooms there is a large double door which slides into the wall recesses. It is paneled in the manner of the other doors. b. Windows: Windows are treated in a manner similar to the doors, with wide, heavily molded surrounds. The sash are set well within the frames allowing for deep sills. 6. Decorative Features and Trim: a. Chimneypieces: Each of the four principal rooms of each floor on the main block has a simple Greek Revival style chimneypiece of wood.

The chimney- piece has two engaged pilasters supporting the frieze and mantle shelf. Ogee moldings are found at the capitals of the pilasters and below the shelf. As with all other wood decorative elements, the chimneypieces have been painted white. It appears that they were originally treated with a dark finish. b. Baseboard and other trim: The baseboard is about eleven inches in height with ogee molding and a quarter round molding at the floor. The southeast room in the main block features a relatively plain chair rail that appears to have been added later. There are closets in the northwest and southwest rooms; each room has one closet on the exterior wall built in the chimney breast. The closets have upper and lower sections with a pair of doors to each section.

The doors are paneled in the manner of the doors to the principal rooms. 7. Hardware: The doors are hung on butt hinges of cast iron. Box locks are also of iron. Door knobs are white porcelain. A door leading from the southwest room in the main block to the rear ell has a box lock "Patented July 21, The front exterior door has a scroll patterned cover for the key hole in white porcelain to match the door knob. 8. Mechanical Equipment: a. Heating: There are radiators located in every room served by a furnace in the basement. THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 13) b. Lighting: Lighting and other electrical elements have been added throughout the house. Overhead lighting in the form of central ceiling fixtures c. are found in the principal rooms. c.

Plumbing: Plumbing has been added to serve the second floor bathroom at the front of the center passage. The bathroom contains a bathtub, sink, and toilet> all of industrial grade porcelain. Plumbing was also added to serve the kitchen housed in the rear ell. D. Site: 1. General setting and orientation: The Bruce House and surrounding farm lies in the Ohio River valley between two east-west ranges of hills in Ohio and Kentucky. The house is situated about fifty yards south of Kentucky Rte. 8 and faces north across the cultivated land that slopes gently toward the Ohio River. 2 - Outbuildings: A small vertical board shed with single pitch roof is situated just a few yards west of the dirt lane that runs parallel with the west elevation of the house.

It is the extant building closest to the house, about 100 feet south and west of the rear corner. Beyond the vertical board shed is a small milk house with hipped roof covered with corrugated metal. It too is covered with vertical board, but in this case over cinder block walls. About 175 feet beyond the milk house is a large frame milking barn with stanchions. This large barn has a gambrel roof covered with standing seam metal roofing and has three aluminum ventilators at the roof peak. A silo of metal panels and a small cinder block milk house are attached at the eastern end. The barn probably dates to the late or Its sides are covered with vertical boards over massive framing.

A similar bam is located to the southeast; it lacks the silo and milkhouse of the slightly larger example and was used as a loafing shed with hay storage. A small frame corn crib is located near the loafing barn. The outbuildings are arranged in something of a loosely structured north-south range. Directly behind the house within the domestic yard is a dislocated outhouse. It has been removed from its original location and now lies on its side. It is a simple structure of frame with a .single pitch roof. Also, in the rear yard is the foundation of a small structure that included a root cellar. A cistern with a concrete cover is located nearby. The fields were planted in corn at the time of the surveys. THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (HAZEL COOK HOUSE) HABS NO. (page 14) PART III;

Project Information

Federal Agency Involved: Environmental Protection Agency The American Electric Power Service Corporation (Canton, Ohio), through the Kentucky Power Company (Ashland, Kentucky) requested this documentation. They have proposed a power plant to be constructed on the site, which would impact the Thomas Bruce (Hazel Cook) House, the John Bierly (Maude Bierly) House, the Fred Carr House, and the Peter Taylor Chapel. The architectural and photographic components of this project were conducted in May with Elizabeth W. Anderson as Project Manager and Robert A. Warnock as Architectural Historian. Historical documentation including oral history interviews and archival research and preparation of the final document were completed during March with Charles H.

LeeDecker as Project Manager and Amy Friedlander as Historian. Messrs. Russ Coburn and Roger Wheeler of Kentucky Power Company and Messrs. Frank Ferraro and Thomas Webb of American Electric Power Service Corporation were liasons for this project. THOMAS J. BRUCE HOUSE (Hazel Cook House) HABS No. Sketch Plan- First Floor (page 15) 1 I I- ^ L ^ ^ o' S* l 10* N (Hazel Cook House) HABS No. Exterior Door; North Front, detail (page 16) >* X O z CO m < 0 r-t CO UJ X -0 o z & w o T- n +J --. to 0) V) P <-< O -H a nJ p M <l> 0 13 0 O M 0 H -H 0) M N V 111 + cc e -* H