Take a trip to Creswell's
Davenport Homestead and see what everyday life was like over 200
years ago. The main house is less than 600 square feet— not much
larger than the family living area of many of today's homes. It was
built in the late 1700s and rests on cypress blocks because brick
footings were beyond the means of Daniel Davenport, the owner and
future North Carolina senator of Washington County. Other buildings
have been moved to the site to help demonstrate life at that time.
Each room of the house displays artifacts of
daily life. A crude ladder leads to a loft where children slept on
rope beds.. An open hearth offers a swinging iron crane ready for an
iron pot. Bowls made of gourds await hot porridge from the hearth. A
sedge broom stands ready to sweep the house. Since chickens ran free
and ate the grass, a reed broom came in handy for keeping the yard
neat. The week's wash was boiled in big black pots, scrubbed on wash
boards with lye soap and hung on bushes to dry. (Landscaping, like
everything else back then, had a practical use.)
A beautiful old loom, found in the attic of the house, has been
relocated to a Loom House. The loom was used to weave simple fabric
for clothes, sheets, tablecloths and more. Thread was spun from
cotton, wool and flax. Discarded clothing and rags were used to make
quilts as well as rugs. Recycling was a way of life.
Please call or write to arrange a visit to this
private site.
The Davenport Homestead
Mt. Tabor Rd., 3.5 miles off U.S. 64, Creswell, NC
Sponsored by The Washington County Historical Society
Phone: 252-793-1377
BACK