Wesanford - 1892

During the early evening hours of June 7, 1892, the streets in the vicinity of Hamilton saw a steady, almost uninterrupted, stream of horse-drawn carriages heading towards the housewarming ceremonies, hosted by Senator William Sanford. At times, the traffic in the vicinity of Senator Sanford’s home was so heavy that some streets were completely blocked.

          The recently completed mansion known as Wesanford was the attraction for the invited guests, numbering over 1,000. An added attraction was the opportunity to greet Senator Sanford’s new daughter-in-law, who had recently been joined in marriage with his son, E. Jackson Sanford.

          The young lady hailed from Knoxville, Tennessee. The Spectator reporter on scene “commended Jackson Sanford’s taste and discrimination in having plucked this flower of the south”

          As part of the tour of the mansion, guests were invited to view the wedding gifts which the Spectator man noted were “beautiful and costly enough for the boudoir of a princess.”

          While the young couple, and their wedding presents, were of considerable interest to the invited guests, the main attraction was the mansion itself, Wesanford.

          The mansion, plus surrounding grounds, occupied the full square block, bounded by Hunter, Caroline, Jackson and Bay streets. Wesanford was not a completely new structure, but a remodeling and extensive expansion of Senator Jackson’s previous home on the site.

          For the evening’s ‘house’ warming event, no expense was spared to make it a very memorable evening for all in attendance. On the lawn outside the mansion, the band of the Thirteenth Battalion played a full programme. The music was enjoyed both by the invited guests, as well as by the hundreds of ordinary citizens who had lined the streets around Wesanford in order to catch a glimpse of the dignitaries arrived for the event.

          The mansion, and grounds, as viewed from the surrounding streets, were gazed at in awe by the ordinary people on the streets. Colored electric lights had been placed in the shrubs, and dazzling arc lights topped the flagpole. The lights, however, paled in comparison to the blaze of light coming from within the immense mansion itself.

          The usually darkened streets, and even the houses in the neighborhood, were illuminated by the glow, “for every window was opened wide and the guests were revealed as if posing in the glory of limelight effects for the benefit of admiring spectators.”

          Senator and Mrs. Sanford greeted guests as they arrived at the Caroline street entrance. Upon entering, the visitors were overwhelmed with a kaleidoscope of impressions; “rare orchids bloomed and spread their cool green foliage in many a nook and corner, and fragrance from the innumerable flowers sweetened the air. Rich tapestries, beautiful statuary and pictures, curious and handsome bric-a-brac, and, moving among these, hundreds of men and women, many of the latter in bright, striking costumes.”

          The Spectator reporter, besides being impressed with the beauty of Wesanford, was also impressed with its “thousand and one unique contrivances for comfort that those modern magicians, the inventor and the electrician, can evolve. Electric elevators, inter-telephonic communication with every part of the house, automatic gas-lighters, delightful music from curtained alcoves where orchestrions are worked by electricity.”

          Upon entering the vestibule, the reporter noticed the mosaic flooring upon which the word ‘Wesanford’ had been spelled out in colored tiles. From the vestibule, the main hall was entered through massive doors of carved walnut, paneled with leaded crystal.

 The scheme of decoration in the main hall was Old English, dominated by an Axminister carpet and wainscoting of English oak and walnut. Two bronze Nubians guarded the portals, while, in a deep recess, stood a large statue of Atlas “bearing upon his shoulders this terrestrial ball, whose front does duty as a clock. The oil paintings that hung on either side of the hall included, among others, ‘Napoleon’s Retreat From Russia’ by Bussche and ‘The Gleaners’ by Romako.

To the left of the hall was the drawing room, described as a “vision of ivory and gold in Louis XIV style.” The large room, 40 feet by 25 feet with a high ceiling, had walls “of ivory-enameled picked out with gold leaf, with delicate rose-pink silken panels, woven in delicately intricate designs. The mantel was composed of large slabs of Mexican onyx.

The woodwork  of the furniture was of white and gold, upholstered in brown and gold. A large Steinway piano was placed to one side, while artwork with religious overtones covered the walls, including Hoffman’s Child Christ and Gabriel Max’s Christ Healing a Child.

A statue of Mignon stood in one corner. The Spectator reporter noted that “while the values of works of art are not estimated by weight, it may be mentioned that it took ten men over three hours to get the dainty maiden on her pedestal.” A chandelier of brass with crystal pedants dominated the ceiling.

A door at the southern end of the drawing room led to the dining room. Another very large room, 50 feet by 28 feet, the dining room’s ceiling was 25 feet high. The eastern end of the room was semi-circular in design. The mahogany wainscoting, nine feet high, was paneled with fine Swiss wood carvings, depicting fruit, fish and game. Above the wainscoting was a range of windows of old cathedral glass, bordered by draperies of silk tapestry.

An old brass chandelier, with 72 lights, hung over a 28 foot long, oval-shaped mahogany table. The fireplace in the dining room was topped by a carved mantel crest which bore, in Old English lettering, the following motto, “The Ornaments of a House are the Friends Who Visit it.”

Dominating the western end of the dining room was a bronze statue, The Slave Girl. The Spectator reporter finished his description of Wesanford’s dining room by writing that it was “more like a banqueting hall of some old feudal castle than the entertaining room of a modern residence.”

After a brief look at the library, the invited guests proceeded to the upper floor to inspect the guest chambers, the apartments of Senator and Mrs. Sanford and their daughters, plus the suite set aside for the newlyweds.

One of the guest rooms was decorated in Old English Adams style, while the other was decorated in Louis XV style. Both had handsome brass bedsteads and containing adjoining alcoves with walls covered in silk damask. The bedrooms of the Misses Sanford were connected by an alcove which included a fireplace, bookshelves and a luxuriously-cushioned divan.

In all, Wesanford contained fifty-six rooms, including five bathrooms. The exterior of the house had been remodeled by Hamilton architect William Stewart. The exterior walls were of brown and grey sandstone, with a particularly handsome port cochere which led to an asphalt-paved roadway for the carriages.