Wilting in Wilmington— Part Four

Much of the work in building the Bellamy mansion (which did lack one thing—- a wine cellar, as Dr. Bellamy was an ardent Methodist teetotaler– which of course means they totally drank tea all the time), was done by African American artisans, who were good at creating crown molding and fancy ceiling work of all sorts, inside and on the porches. Some of them were free blacks who lived in Wilmington, some of them were slaves. Here is the tool they used to shape the molding….

Here are some samples of their incredible handiwork…..

Interestingly, the original works kept the plastering trade in the family and so when the house was restored in 1992 after an arson fire, once again it was African Americans from Wilmington who did the restoration.

Notice the glass tracery work and the Corinthian columns….