It is not the oldest house in Columbus, nor is it the grandest of the antebellum homes the city is known for. But in one respect, the Williams-Glass House, also known as The Haven, is unique among our historic structures.
Built in around 1843, the home is an example of South Carolina “low country” design, in an era when Greek Revival architecture was the prevailing style. Yet what really sets the house apart is who built it. The home was built by two brothers, Isaac and Thomas Williams, who were free black men, an uncommon status in the decades leading up to the Civil War.
Local historian Rufus Ward said other examples of homes built by free black men in that era are rare in the state, if they exist at all.
Ward has pieced together what can be learned of the brothers, who arrived from South Carolina in 1841 and stayed a decade before leaving for Texas.
The home was sold to Adam Glass as part of Thomas Williams’ estate in 1853 and Glass added the east wing of the home.
What can’t be known, the part of the brothers’ lost history, is how two free black men were regarded by the white citizens of Columbus.
But we do know enough to assume a few things that remind us that race relations in the South were often complex.
That two brothers could build and live in a home in what Ward describes as a prime location in the city suggests that the brothers were on some level accepted by the white community as neighbors, if not equals.
Ward speculates that the brothers’ decision to leave Columbus for Texas might be attributed to the looming shadow of civil war, which began just 10 years after the Williams brothers left the city.
The debate over slavery and its implications are known to have had a polarizing effect across the nation. If those hard feelings made life uncomfortable for the brothers, it is understandable they would leave the state.
But even that is speculation. Well into the middle of the 19th century, the westward migration from the Carolinas to points west continued. Men such as Gideon Lincecum, one of the earliest residents of Columbus, relocated to Texas, too, so there is a possibility that the Williams brothers left for reasons aside from relations with their white neighbors.
The brothers would surely have been entirely lost to history if not for the home they built on Second Avenue North, which is now for sale.
The home is a reminder of that generations of blacks were not merely laborers and field hands. Many were skilled craftsmen. While the Williams-Glass House was unique in that it was built by free blacks, the historic homes we see all around us where likely built by craftsmen who happened to be slaves.
When you study these homes closely and realize the remarkable craftsmanship employed by these men, relying on what would be considered today as tools of the crudest sort, you must respect and acknowledge these unknown black men as skilled artisans.
Their work, along with the home built by the Williams brothers, is a reminder that when talent meets opportunity, the result is something that can endure the ages.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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