Painting of "The Homestead at Monticello"

Item

Legacies Classification
Memorial Artwork
Memorial Type
Visual Work of Art
Memorial Context
Enslaver
Memorialized Subject
"The Homestead" at Monticello, on Lake Monticello in Winnsboro, Fairfield County, SC. Slave plantation and childhood home of James Clement Furman's wives, Harriet Davis and, after Harriet's death, her sister, Mary Glenn Davis.
Title
Painting of "The Homestead at Monticello"
Background and Context
James Clement Furman's wife, Mary Glenn Davis Furman, came from a family that owned a large slave plantation in Winnsboro, S.C. Between 1857 and 1860, the Furmans remodeled their home in Greenville, adding four rooms, a front porch, four Greek revival columns and a three-bay portico, to make it resemble Mary's childhood home. By 1860, they had renamed the home "Cherrydale." The painting, which now hangs in Cherrydale, is of Mary's childhood home. The picture shows a bucolic and peaceful scene, without any of the people who were enslaved at her family's plantation.
Physical Description
The painting shows a white home with Greek revival columns, a front porch and two chimneys. In front of the home are shown an Angora goat and Braman cattle, which Mary Glenn Davis Furman's brother reportedly brought back from the Middle East. The painting shows the home and surroundings circa 1850.
Creator/Participating Person(s)
Margaret Tolar Davis
Date created, installed or dedicated
1911
Historical Period
1820-1865: Slavery, Anti-Slavery, and Civil War
Campus Location
Cherrydale Alumni House
Location: Institution, City, State
Furman University; Greenville, South Carolina
Learn More About this Subject
Dr. Judith Bainbridge and Thomas Coker, "Cherrydale and James Clement Furman" (available at Cherrydale Alumni House).

Provides detailed history of Cherrydale, biographical history of James C. Furman and describes renovation of house to add rooms, porch and Greek Revival style columns.
Dr. Brandon Inabinet, "Cherrydale Alumni House: Seeking Abraham at Furman University," accessed on April 5, 2024.
The article includes information about Cherrydale's history, Mary Glenn Davis Furman's role in the renovation of Cherrydale and information about her family's wealth and role in enslaving people
March 18, 2024 email from Doris Childress to Nashieli Marcano and Melissa Nichols.

Described provenance of painting and identified painter and year painted.

Position: 846 (88 views)