Wednesday, May 22, 2024

Wake Wednesday - Historic Raleigh Building With Many Lives

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This beautiful building sure had a lot of lives. Extra points if you know the story without even looking. Do you know all the names and functions it had over its long life. Sadly, this beautiful Wake county landmark that our ancestors would have strolled past on a leisurely afternoon is no more.

You can read the wonderful twists and turns of this beauty's history in this Goodnight Raleigh blogpost

Baptist Female University - built in Built in 1899 at the corner of Blount and Edenton streets.

Baptist University for Women - name change in 1904.

Meredith College - 1909 was renamed again, "in honor of Thomas Meredith, founder of the Biblical Reporter (1835) and an early 19th century advocate of higher education for women". The college was housed here until the mid 1920's when it relocated to the present location.

Mansion Park Hotel - from the mid 1920's until sometime in the 1950's. The hotel advertised itself as Raleigh's "Most Comfortable Hotel" with reasonable rates, free parking, between Capitol and Governor's Mansion, 122 rooms, 100 bathrooms, Headquarters, Carolina Motor Club, AAA.

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In the 1950's, this beautiful building was purchased by the state and used as office space including a driver's license office. This beautiful old "grand dame" was demolished in 1967. The location is now a parking lot. Ahhhhh.....progress.

This pnhoto is from the Meredith College website. A class photo from the college's early days. I love that they used the spectacular porches and stairways to pose. What a remarkable place with a remarkable story.

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As you can see this from this 1920 aerial photo if the area, the "castle" sat between the capitol and the Executive Mansion. 

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The beautiful building occupied the southwest corner of the parking lot approximately where the NC State Bar building sits today(marked in yellow).  

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Were your ancestors part of this story? Wouldn't you love to stroll that beautiful turn of the century block with them and listing to their stories?

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