Church House (Columbia, Tennessee)

Church House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The Church House in 2013
Location	312 W. 7th St., Columbia, Tennessee
Coordinates	35°36′56″N 87°2′19″W
Area	0.6 acres (0.24 ha)
Built	1873
Architectural style	Second Empire
NRHP reference No.	78002609
Added to NRHP	October 19, 1978

Church House, also known as the Barrow House, is a historic mansion in Columbia, Tennessee. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

Nominated for the National Register on 10/19/78, The Barrow House, which was built in ca. 1873, is one of the best examples the Second

Empire style of architecture in Columbia and one of the grandest late-nineteenth-century

houses in the city. Its decidedly three-dimensional massing, profuse ornamentation, and

the combination of attached and semi-detached dependencies are distinctive. The facade

porch, with its effusive decorative elements, and the bay windows in the east and south

elevations emphasize the horizontal lines of the building and in part balance the predominant verticality

of the tower and mansard roof.

Three blocks west of the court square, the Barrow House is located in a formerly

prestigious neighborhood, an area which still contains a number of large late-nineteenthcentury houses.

The wealthy and prominent of Columbia reside here.

Although the rear of the building has been modified somewhat to add a kitchen,

the facade retains its original appearance. The current owner has gone through extensive

renovations.

Block-like in its staggered form and irregular plan, and

highlighted with massive detailing, this impressive brick house epitomizes the Second

Empire style of architecture at its most imposing best.

Three stories tall and three bays wide, and resting on a cut and coursed

stone foundation, the house is topped with a characteristic Second Empire mansard

roof which is covered with decorative slate shingles. Except for the facade (south

elevation), which was laid in stretcher bond, the walls were laid in common bond.

The center bay of the facade projects forward and has a tower, another design element

typical of the Second Empire style. A heavily ornamented round arch defines the

entrance to the enclosed porch at the base of the tower section. The east and west

bays are set back one more than the other; the former has a covered one-story porch with carved posts, spandrels,

and balustrade while the later has bay windows with round-head, one-over-one windows.

This type of window is found throughout, and those in the second story of the facade

have heavy hoods and in the center bay an ornate sill. In the story above the

second are round and round-arched windows in dormers with unusually decorative lintels.

Chimneys with flared tops above the east and west walls frame the mansard roof; a third

chimney rises above the north wall. The cornice has bracket-like elements, and this

design appears above the facade bay window and porch.

The two-sectioned east elevation has a bay window unit which duplicates the one in the

facade; this element is located in the projecting rear (northernmost) bay. A single story brick kitchen, with a hip roof, is attached to the eastern section of the north

wall by a covered porch, and a small, one-story, frame wing projects from the northern

end of the west elevation. The kitchen appears to have been built in the nineteenth

century, but the frame wing is probably a fairly recent addition. Another section of

the covered porch near the northwest corner connects a second, one-story brick. building

with a hip roof to the house; quite possibly, this was originally a completely detached

outbuilding; for many years it was used as servant's quarters. Northwest of the house

is a parking area for the homeowners and guests.

History

Maury County Sheriff Latta . reputedly built the Barrow House. Robert Church, a banker and land

speculator purchased it in ca. 1885. Including Robert and his descendants, the Church House

was a family home for about 100 years. It was designed in the Second Empire architectural style.

The house was purchased by Robert Church, a banker, in 1885. It was later inherited by his grandson, Robert Church Barrow.

Architectural significance

Information collected by Matt Locke, current owner of the Church Barrow House. According to The Columbia Daily Herald printed on November 7, 1873 'Mr. Williamson of Nashville', (Peter J. Williamson) was the architect of Sheriff Latta's new home.

References

Old Gym (Vanderbilt University)