Audio
Chatham Audio Walking Tour, # 7, Chatham Kitchen
Transcript
Today, the walled garden in which you now stand is one of Chatham’s most popular features. This garden did not exist during Chatham’s time as a working plantation. Prior to the garden’s creation in the 1920s, an oval-shaped carriage path existed in its place. Chatham’s landscape changed dramatically during the 1900s as wealthy owners modified the house and grounds. At this stop, learn about the features that surround you today. What important events in our nation’s history unfolded at the time of the garden’s creation?
Between 1872 and 1920, Chatham changed hands seven times. During that period, various owners sold off outlying land, reducing the property to thirty acres. Chatham remained in the hands of wealthy families throughout its history. During the early 1900s, the home’s owners installed modern amenities such as plumbing and electricity, and ornamented the riverfront terraces with tennis courts and elaborate gardens. Think about how onlookers viewed Chatham throughout this period of change. What do you think Chatham’s owners hope to convey to others by beautifying its landscape?
This process of beautifying and modernizing Chatham continued on a much larger scale during the 1920s. In 1920, Helen and Daniel Devore, a wealthy couple from Washington, D.C., purchased Chatham and embarked on a project to renovate the property in the Colonial Revival style, an architectural style that arose during the Colonial Revival Movement. The movement’s supporters, mostly wealthy, white Americans, celebrated an idealized version of America’s colonial past through architecture, art, and historic preservation. It emerged during a time of great change in the United States. Rising immigration rates and isolationism contributed to its popularity. At Chatham, the Devores sought to restore the property to its original appearance. Yet, the changes they made were based on a romanticized version of Chatham’s colonial history.
The Devores hired a team of architects, builders, interior designers, and gardeners to renovate the buildings and grounds. Their lead architect, Oliver Clarke, designed the stone entryways that surround the doors today. These entryways replaced the porches present during the Civil War. Other 1920s additions include the statues, terrace walls, and riverside driveway. They also hired renowned landscape architect Ellen Biddle Shipman— one of the first women to break into the field—to design the walled garden. Think about how these 1920s additions affect your perception of Chatham. When you first walked through the garden, did you realize that it was not built until the 1920s? Think back to what you learned about Chatham’s colonial history at earlier stops. What aspects of that story did the Devores overlook?
To maintain such an elaborate estate, the Devores relied on a team of farm hands, domestic servants, cooks, and gardeners. According to a resident of Chatham during the 1920s, the Devores hired White employees to operate the farm and maintain the grounds, and Black employees to work in the main house. Throughout the South, Jim Crow laws did not only impact people of color in public spaces, but also carried over into domestic life. The Devores added this side entrance, accessed by a ramp today, possibly to provide domestic servants with access to their workspaces without entering through the main entrance on the opposite side of the house. They also added and renovated spaces inside of the house for domestic servants, such as a butler’s pantry, basement kitchen, and basement bathroom. As with earlier periods in Chatham’s history, the main house’s occupants continued to rely on the labor of others with fewer rights and privileges to maintain their lifestyle.
The additions made by the Devores impact the way we view this historic landscape today. By taking a closer look at this pivotal time in Chatham’s history, we can better understand broader trends prevalent in American society at the time, such as Colonial Revivalism, economic growth, and racial segregation. The next time you visit a historic site like Chatham, ask yourself questions about the features around you.
The last stop on the tour is the Diana statue. Continue through the garden and follow the center path back towards the parking lot. Stop in front of the Diana statue outside of the garden wall.
Description
Many of Chatham’s most recognizable features were not created until the 1920s. At this stop, explore the origins of the landscape that exists today. What modifications did subsequent owners of Chatham make, and why? Who gets to decide which aspects of Chatham’s history are most important?
Credit
NPS
Copyright and Usage Info