Oliver Perry House (White House)

The Oliver Perry House photographed at Camp Nelson during the Civil War.

Camp Nelson Photographic Collection, 1864, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.

War at the Doorsteps

The space included, and called by the general name of Camp Nelson, cannot be less that two thousand acres. It was owned principally by the name of Scott and Perry, the former of whom is an old bachelor, and is alive, what there is left of him, is in the rebel army. Mr. [Oliver] Perry is a man of family, had a good two story house], which he was ordered to leave, and which is now occupied as Major General George L. Hartsuff's headquarters [commanding Twenty-Third Corps]."
-Rutland Weekly Herald, July 23, 1863

The Oliver Perry House, also known as the White House, is the only remaining building within the boundaries of Camp Nelson National Monument that dates to the Civil War. The two-story wood-frame Greek Revival house was constructed circa 1856 by Oliver and Fannie Scott Perry on the land of Mary Scott, Fannie Scott’s mother. When Camp Nelson was established in 1863, the U.S. Army occupied the house for miliary use. According to a reporter for the Rutland Weekly newspaper, the house served as the headquarters of Major General George L. Hartsuff, commander of the Twenty-third Corps, before the commencement of the East Tennessee Campaign in August 1863. It later served as the headquarters for Captain Theron E. Hall, Assistant Quartermaster and later Superintendent of the Home for Colored Refugees, and other staff.

The White House later served as US Army Quartermaster and Commissary officers’ quarters through the end of the war. One change in the house that occurred during the military occupation was the accidental burning of the detached kitchen behind the main house later in 1865 or 1866. The U.S. Army replaced the kitchen with an attached two-story frame and kitchen addition that stands today.

After the Civil War ended and Camp Nelson was closed, the house was re-occupied by its original owners. Descendents of the Perry family lived in the home and on the property until 1948. In 1997, Jessamine County purchased the property and house to begin developing the Camp Nelson Heritage Park, which was eventually transferred to the National Park Service (NPS) in 2018 as Camp Nelson National Monument.

 

Captain Theron E. Hall, Assistant-Quartermaster at Camp Nelson, made his headquarters in the Oliver Perry White House during the Civil War. During the home's first restoration by Jessamine County in 1998, Hall's signature was discovered on a wall.

NPS

White House Today

A Historic Structure Report (HSR) for the building was completed in 2025 and documents that history, construction, significance, and recommended treatment of the structure. During the HSR, paint analysis was completed around the building that helped shed light on the original colors of the inside and outside of the building. While analyzing the inside, contractors were able to relocate graffiti from Captain Theron E. Hall. More information about the HSR can be found HERE.