FHFHl-300 (11-70)

historic Alfred Hoore Scales Law Office

and/or common

307 Carter Street street f!~ number ____ not for Nadison Sixth town district

state code 037 county Rockingham code 157

___ district ___ occupied ~~ agriculture __ museum buildlng(s) unoccupied _____ commercial __ structure __ both __ work in progress _____ educational __ site ___ entertainment in process government scientific ___ being considered yes: unrestricted ___ ~ industrial transportation __ no military __ other: (out-buildin;

name McCollum 307 Carter Street & number North Carolina

0'£3d',I""' .. ,, courthouse j of deeds, etc. Ro Courthouse street & number Courthouse Square ------city, town Wentworth state North Carolina

An Architectural and Historic Inventory of Madison, title has this been determined elegible? _X_no date 1979 __ federal state __ _l£_local

Division of Archives and History for survey records North Carolina state __ unaltered site __ ruins _1L 1920s __ fair

The Law Office is a one-story gable-roofed frame structure sheathed in plain weatherboarding The exterior of the building features finelv finished box cornices with returns and raking cornices with molded ends flush with the gable-end walls Simple molding tops the post and lintel surround of the original single door in the west flank Exposed lathes bearing the reOOiants of original plaster mark the one-room interior e The shed additions on the east flank and the double doors in the north gable end probably were constructed when the office was converted to a storage building (perhaps late in the nineteenth century) Although it is possible that a short chimney ""ith a free-standing stack once existed in the north gable end no evidence of such a feature (or of a hearth) remains 1

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IDavid R. Black, letter to Diane Lea, March 9, 1979. _ 1400--1499 __ law __ 1500-1599 __ literature _1600-1 __ architecture __ educ;]tion 1700-1799 __ art __ music humanitarian 1800--1899 __ commerce __ theater __ '1900- __ communications x __ invention

\ I, Alfred Hoare Scales, lawyer, Civil i,var hero, politician and governor of North Carolina from 1885-1890, has been called a "forgotten hero" He came from the simple beginnings common to IDany of North Carolina's.leaders The story of his life and career has not been inves ted as have those of North Carolina s IDore famous statesmen

Perhaps this lack of recognition is one reason that nearly all the properties associated with Scales have fallen to the vicissitudes of time - all save one. The small, modest office bui.lding where Scales spent the early years of his law practice and won his first forays into elected politics stands today in Madison, North Carolina It is within a few yards of its ori.ginal location, which Scales in an 1856 newspaper advertisement noted wasil across from Dr. Tywmas Coyle." (The Coyle house, a landmark in Madison, was destroyed in the early 19708) The to\vu of Madison is interested in preserving the office which is the last tangible piece of history associated with Scales.

Criteria Assessment:

B. The Alfred Hoore Scales Lm., Office in Hadisoll, North Carolina is the last remaining known structure associated wi th Scales r..;rho dis tinguished himself as a soldier, lawyer, politician and governor of North Carolina. Sigllificance 8 1 Continuation sheet Item numb~r

The period iillllledia preceding the outbreak of the Civil War was an important time in the hLstory of Haciison, North CUTolina, as it \vas for many other North Carolina communi ties. In Hadison as elsevlhere) the 1850s promised prosperi ty and progress 1 '1118 decade found Madison established as a tbriving trading center for hogs and cattle with a grmving importance as a tobacco sellin g and manufacturing tovln. Located within ten miles of the Rockingham County Courthouse 1n Went"vorth, Hadison had a population of farmers and merchants, many of whom were men of substantial wealth. 2 It was an ideal community for an aspiring young la\Vyer for a place to set up practice

111e choice of Hadison as a location for pr[1ct~cing layl w3s even more logical for , Alfred Hoare Scales, a member of tIl town' foundlng family. Alfred Hoare. Scale.s graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1846, and shortly thereafter embarked on a disas­ trous marriage to a Louisianna belle that took him for a brief time to that state. By 1850, the marria~e had failed and Scales returned to North Carolina to read law under Judge William H. Battle. In 1851, the yeLl!: he was admitted to the bar, Scales filed for divorce. He purchased a house on Hurphy Street, Hadison's dmvntown block, and began his law practice. 5

Family letters attest to the fact that this was a difficult time in the young man's life and that he was unsettled as to what direction his life should take. 6 However) Scales plunged into the political career which eventually led him to the North Carolina Governor's office in 1884. In 1852 Scales was elected to the North Cqrolina I-Louse of Commons. The next year he was elected county attorney for Rockingham and was re-elected to the House. After an unsuccessful attempt to gain, seat in the U. S. Congress in 1855, Scales served ana ther term in the lIous (1856--1857).

Also in 1856, Scales !Jurchased from ~vi1liam ~{hittis two acres of land west of Hadison. The property ivas situated along the Hadison Road) also called the Salem-Petersburg Road, leading to the ford on the Hayo River, a growing area of the tov.lnship.8 Here Scales occupied a small office, which he probably had built, on the property across from the residence of Dr. Thomas M. Coyle. Coyle, a noted Madison physician) purchased land and built his house in 1847 and so the location of his home was well known. 9 Soon after the move, a notice in the RockiI!Eha.m Democrat (Hadisol1) N. C., Harch 6, 1856) Vol. I, No. 20) announced, "A.M. Scales, attorney at law, can be found at his office, nearly opposite the residence of Dr. Thomas Coyle. Hadison, January 31, 1856",,10

Oral his tory taken from Hrs. Lizzie Scales Chambers by local Madison his torian Na.llCY Watkins in 1938 adds a few details about Scales' days in his little office. Mrs Chambers was born in 1852. In her interview with Watkins, she recalled that Scales

"lived in a tiny house located on the 1939 campus of the graded school, and had no nearer neighbors than Thomas Di11ton on the cornCl:- of \val1 and Decatur, Ni cho 1a.9 lJal ton and on i~he \.;es t) Dr. Hobe r t Callmvay in the p res en t Sam Smi th, Ill., home. Mr. Scales hacl.a co16red man to do his housekeeping for him. After he left Badison, he became a politician and Governor of North Carolina 1f11

111e Madison inventory located both the Gallo\"ay-Sl~Lth House on Decatur Street and the Dalton House on Hurphy Street. Both structures date from the 1840s and are near the site of the Scales prop 'ty,12 though not as near as Dr. Coyle, wh~se house Continuation sheet Signi£:L cance: Item numb:~r 8 2

\vas torn davIT) in the ea 1970s to make way for a modern apartment building,I3

In J.858 Scales attained the seat in Congress vJhich had eluded him in 1855. 15 That Si':une year, Scales fj_nalized his di.vorce from 11 long-e3tran i"ife) who married again and moved to ArkansD with her new husband. Her cooperation with Scale~ latest suit could have been due to her bigamous position.16

Scales! dual career as a lawyer and politician seems to have proceeded smoothly and in 1860, [he year before the Civil h'nr e.rupted, he \..,Ins chosen as a presidential elector on the Democra tic ticke t of John C. Bre and J o~JC'ph Lcmc. 17 His duties during this campaign IIlEly acco un t fo r his a bs ence in the 1860 cens us; hmvcver t he was listed as the owner of one male slave ill a separate section of that document. 1d

Thomas Coyle, his near neighbor, did appear in the census record establishing the fae1 chat he was still a resident of Nadison tm,Tnship iHld verifying Scales 1 use of his name in the 1856 newspaper advertiscment. 19

The Civil War seems to have marked a turning point in Scales' life. He marched off to Went\"Jorth Hith other I/olunteers from Hadison and lilas elected captain of his company Scales acquited himself bravely throughout the course of the war and sustained wounds at Chancellors'li!le and at Ge. t tys burg \.,here ~!1S a nClvly-commtssioned Brigadier General ,he led 11is men against Union General Abner Doub Scales' brignde carried the ridge he sought to win, but at a tragic price. All but one of his fellow officers were killed and Scales was again severely wounded. 20 During the second year of the war, Scales married Katherine IIenderson, daughter of !\rchib;Lld Henderson. After Lhe. "·Jar, the couple decided to mak.e their home not in Hadison but tn vJent~.70rth, the county seat There Alfred (lnd Katherine Scales settled int:o married life 21 Scales practiced law in the town for a decade and became an elder in the Wentworth Presbyterian Church, a position he had also held in the Madison Presbyterian Church. 22 After four years of married life, the Scales, childless themselves; arranged t.o raise 21 Scale~3' niece, Katie Le\·lls Scales, daught.er of James Pinckney ~:;cale8, as their Ol,·/Tl child.

In 1863, perhaps in preparation for life with his new bride, Scales had sold his tiny 1m., office in Madison to Harshall S Black. 23 That same year, the Thomas Coyle family, Scales' old neighbors, moved to Thomasville, Georgia. 24 The two acres passed from Black to J. M Lindsey in 1866 but it was still identified in the de(::d as the property "formerly ov.;neJ by A. H. Sca.les. II

Two years after purchasing the p ty, Jim Lindsey sold it and an adjoining parcel he had purchased to Joseph Vaughn. 6

Within six months, Vaughn sold Scales' two acres to H. J. McGehee in whose estate :it rcmai.ned unli.l it \vas purcha.sed as part of the ~!aclison High School property. 27

A 1925 Sanborn map of Madison shows a small structure which meets the description of the Scales office close by the rear lot line of a residence which adjoins the school yard It is likely that the office ~vas moved to the rear of the lot) vlhere it remains today, probably to make \1ay for an alley l.·,hich nO\·J runs parallel to the school yard and connects Carter Street and Decatur Street - t~'lO boundaries for the school property. 28 fWl-8--.JOO (\ 1-7B)

Continuation sheet Significance Item number 8 Page 3

This mo de s t 0 f fj_ ce) \.] hich s uf f e red minor change i-3 I,'hen it vlas ada p ted to an outbuilding, survives as the last remaini.ng physical evidence connected with Alfred Moore Scales

It is interesting to note that aftcl:- the war Scales went on to serve five terms in the Congress and in 1884 received the Democratic nomination for Governor of North Carolina. He resigned his congr sional scat to take office in January, 1885. The four years of his term were characterized by "peaceful growth, prosperity and renewed conLLdence in the government of the statC', 1129 FHR-~W{) (\ \-76)

Significance--Footnotes Continuation sheet Item numb€r 8 Page 4

1Diane Lea and Claudia Roberts, All Architectural and Historical Survey of HadLson .i'1or t~_a.ro~irw (Nor th Carolina Depa r tmen!~ of Cul tural Resources) 1979) p 3. 2 }bid. > p. 2 3 ]b icl~. ) p. 1.

(4 Gree_~~o 1:0 p~ trio t, Feb ru.:l ry 1/-1 'I 1(352.

5j{ockingham Courl~e.9 Boo~ 2nd ~.;., p 3, Harch 5> 1852 6 Unpublished letter December 31, 1053, Junius T. Scales at Ingleside to James Pinckney Scales Carrolton, Mississippi wned by MrsD Kate LaPrade.

Washington, D.C., 1961, p. 8 Rockingham County Deed Book, 2nd V, page 142, 1856.

9 Ro <:!(ing11am County Deed Book, 2nd U> page 411 and 2nd P, page l8 Lf, l8t-l7. 10 Advertiselllent, _~Zockinghum Coun.tj)'"}!()mo~rat, I'larch 6) 1856, Hadison, N,C. 11 Papers of Miss Nancy Watkins, p iV3te, Charles D. Rodenbough. 1') -Lea and Roberts, p. 12. 13 . Intervlew with Charles Rodenbo 1979.

1 Lj Session t1inutes of Hadison Presby rian Church, Hudison, N.C.

15 Biographical D:!:.c tion~~y) p. 1566 ..

16November Term 1858, State of Ark.ansas, Phillips County~ "Complaint of Divorce." Sprint', Term 1858, SLate of North C:11:'01:1 no. , RuckJngh;Jfll COllll ) CLerk of Equity. 17 Llndl(~y A. Butler) OUf Proud HeeL ~Plci~orJ_,Jl History__ £.LJ~~_ckinlc·)hCJI~S.9_Lmty.) N.C. (GiJS:::;Ctt, The Bassett: Printing CorporntJon, 1971) p. 20~2L 18 CenSlls of the United Statc:,~; St:ate. of North Carolina, Rockingham County, 1860, 379~~370. 19 Ibid" 365-356. "0 L Address on Alfred Moore Scales delivered by Ro D. W. Conners) Wake County Memorial k;sucLllton, HiJY 10, 1907, 1n Hall of 110Ui-; of HcprescnLntives, Ralcd.gh) N.C.) p. 19. Also, Reverend \~illiam E. Thompson, .0-1frc.~l Hoore Scales: Fo tten Hero. c.The __~EesE1J:e[i~~ Nev/~, Dec., 1970) po 3). FHR--8-JOIJ (11-713)

Continuation sheBt Significance-,-Foo tno tes item number 8 Page 21 Charles I'l.aurice Scales, Jr., itA History of the Scales of Northeast Hississippi" (Macon, Mississippi: 1966) p. 93.

22 Ibid . 23 Rockin~ham County Deed Book_, 2nd X p 323, t-larch 16 1863, 2L, Geneological Research, Charles D. Rodenbaugh. 25 Rockingham COlln tJ! Deed Book, 2nd X p. 310, Augus t 10, 18660 26 Rockingham Gount~ed Book, 3r.d C , p. 13, November S, 1868. 27 Rockinzham Coun t'l Deed Book, 3:cd C, p. 932, October 31, 187 Lj •

29 Bettle Sue Gardner, Hi.story of_l~.~5J

nominated property ______less than 1_ aCrl:::,

Inrlrfl,nn'", name Mayoda~1l1ld __ scale 1: 24000 UMT References llizJ 14101217141~ BW Zone Northing Zone o

Southerly 50' of Lot 2, Block 4, Map 408) Hadison Township, Rockingham County, North Carolina and including only the land on which the office stands.

state code code

state code county code

Diane Eo Lea name/title Archi tec tural des crip tion and S:Lgl1if icance: Claudia Roberts, Cons ul tan ts Division of date June, 1980

street & number 109 Eo Jones Street telephone (919) 733-6545

The evaluated of this property within the

national __ state local

r1a,;:;>lnn

State Historic Preservation Officer title State Historic Preservation OfficQL date Dc to ber 16, 1980 FHR-3-l00 (11·-711.)

Continuation sheet Bibliography number 9 1

Connors, R D W Address on Alfred Moore Scales, Wake County Memorial Association, Hay 10, 1907

Eighth Census of the United Stateso Stat, of North Carolina, Rockingham County, 1860

Gardner, Bettie Sue. "History of Rockingbs:m. County, N C.-' Reidsville: 1964.

Greensboro Patriot, Greensboro, N.C , Feln'uary 14, 1852

Lea, Diane E and Roberts, Claudia Po k1 Architectural and Historical Survey of Madison, l\LC.) N. C. Department of CulturnJ Ji,cFJOurces, 1979

Madison Presbyterian Church Session Ninutes, Madison, NoCo

Rockingham County Deed Booke 2nd S, Hareh -',r;; 18520

Rockin~arn Coun~Deed Book" 2nd V, 1856,

B:.0ckingham County Deed Book. 2nd 0, and ?nd P, 1847

Rocki~am County Deed Booko 2nd X, Marc}! 16, 18630

Rockin~m County Deed Book. 2nd X, t 10, 1866.

Rockingham Coun ty Deed Book. 3rd C, Novr:::~'i!ber 5 ~ 1868.

Rockingham County Deed Book. 3rd C, Octobi~r 31, 1864.

Rockingham Coun~_ Deed Booko January 1, 901.

~ockingham Coun~emocrat, Madison, N C Harch 6, 1856.

Rodenbough, Charles Madison, N.C. Inte,:\rlel;v, 19790

Scales, Charles Maurice, Jr. "A History the Scales of Northeast Mississippi." Macon, Mississippi, 1966.

Scales, Junius I to James Pinckney S letter, Mrs Kate LaPrade.

State of Arkansas, Phillips County Compl:Jint of Divorce. November Term 1858.

State of North Carolina, Rockingham Coun Court of Equity Spring Term, 1858. / \J

:::::: Alfred Hoore Scales Latv Office 307 Carter Street

Madison, N" C .. . .' Quadrangle Quadrangle Scale 1:24000 UTN Zone 17 593740/4037410

696

597 55' 5056 IV SIN I Survey SC/l,LE 1.24000

fYN 4000 sooe 6000 ~c'oo FEET ,aerial photographs )GN ~~~~====~==~==~======~======~======~E======~~======~

:aroi i na CONTOUR INTERVAL 20 FEET DATU~v1 IS f\1EM, SE,"" LEVEL j ticks. n datum

\d fieid lines where nformatlon is unchecked UH1 GRID ~ND I ~1AGNETiC NORT.H DECLINATION AT CENTER Or SHEET

~ buildings are shown THIS r·'1D.p co H PLIES \JVIT H N ATIO i" AL !'.1 AP ACCU RACY STAN DAR OS FOR SALE BY U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY,vVASHIi'iGTON, D. C. 20242 A FOLDER DESCRIt3ING TOPOGRAPHIC j\1i1PS ,D.ND SYMBOLS IS AV"'ILABLE ON REQUEST n \t- J

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