Circa 1835- Boyd-Harvey House

The Boyd-Harvey House was built around 1835.

Location: 1321 Harvey Road, Knoxville

The National Park Service's website for the National Register for Historic Places has some good black and white photos of the house, inside and out. They were taken in June, 1985.

The following information comes from the website of the National Register of Historic Places. In 1995, the Boyd-Harvey House was nominated to be added to the National Register of Historic Places Inventory. The original nomination form can be seen on the NRHP site. Keep in mind that this information was current as of 1995; some details may have changed since then.

“The Boyd-Harvey House is being nominated under National Register criterion C for its local architectural significance in western Knox County, Tennessee, Built in around 1835, the vernacular Federal style residence is one of the few antebellum farm residences in western Knox County. The finely crafted residence is dominated by its five bay symmetrical design and embellished by a denticulated brick cornice, multi-pane windows with wide lintel boards and paneled doors. Important interior design features include fluted door and window trim, chamfered cupboards and an original fireplace mantel. The nominated property also includes two significant log outbuildings. The main house and both outbuildings provide an excellent example of a nineteenth century farmhouse in Knox County. The buildings have undergone few alterations and retain their historical and architectural integrity.

Thomas Boyd (1754-1814) was among the first European settlers in the area, arriving here from Pennsylvania about 1780. He and his wife settled on several hundred acres of land along Turkey Creek. Before his death, he transferred a portion of his land to one of his sons, Thomas (1781-1876).

The younger Thomas Boyd was well educated and was nominated to be a (state) representative of Knox County but he declined the nomination and instead pursued his Interests in religion and education. Thomas was a principal figure in the construction and building of the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad. A portion of this railroad (now the Southern Railway) lies approximately one-half mile north of the Boyd-Harvey House. Thomas and his wife, Anna, probably built the log house and the brick Federal style main house in about 1835. A few years before his death, Thomas sold 395 acres to James Baxter Boyd, one of his seven children, for $10,000. Thomas is buried in Pleasant Forest Cemetery on nearby Concord Road.

James Baxter Boyd left the house and several hundred acres of land to his daughter, Nita A. Boyd. She sold the house and 200 acres of land to Maryville College in 1917. O.A. Smith purchased the property a year later. In 1920 the house and 175 acres were sold to James R. Harvey. The Harvey family and their children lived in the house until 1973 when Jeannie D. Harvey sold the house and some of the land.

The Boyd-Harvey House is located in the area formerly known as the Shady Grove community. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, Harvey Road was the westernmost connecting link between the Southern Railroad to the north and the Tennessee River to the south. The Boyd-Harvey House was located near the East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia Railroad just south of Boyd's Switch; Boyd's School was a short distance north.

As a nineteenth century upper middle class farmstead, the nominated property played a role in the economic development of the Shady Grove community and is illustrative of the final stage of the history of Knox County agriculture to 1860 when "... agricultural production Increased, markets became important, and the agriculture of the county became interdependent with the economy of the cotton states. This period was also one of steam transportation on inland waterways; and, toward its close, of growing importance of railways" (Rothrock 1946:72). From its strategic position between the railroad and the Tennessee River, the Boyd-Harvey farmstead was in an excellent position to fully participate in this stage of agricultural development.

The construction of Fort Loudon Dam and the subsequent creation of Fort Loudon Lake in 1945 resulted in the inundation of approximately one-half the area bounded by the Tennessee River on the east and south, the Knox County line on the west, and the railroad on the north. The change in the configuration of the landscape, coupled with the disappearance of most of the earlier structures makes it difficult to recognize the surviving roads and structures for what they are: remains of early settlement patterns along the Tennessee River and the clustering of families near community-based structures such as mills, churches, schools, and post offices. The Boyd-Harvey House is one of the few extant houses representative of this settlement era. Due to the rapid commercial development which has occurred along Kingston Pike in the past fifteen years, several early nineteenth century brick houses have been demolished, In west Knox County, the four remaining nineteenth century houses on Kingston Pike have either been significantly altered and/or are currently under extreme pressure from developers, Even at a distance of three miles south of Kingston Pike, the Boyd-Harvey House has experienced encroachment from a subdivision which adjoins the property on the north.

The Boyd-Harvey House was unoccupied from 1973-1977, when the present owners purchased the house and began rehabilitation. Although there has been some encroachment from adjacent subdivisions, the nominated property still retains a portion of its original rural setting. Architecturally, the Boyd-Harvey House and both outbuildings are a fine example of a nineteenth century farmstead in Knox County. The house is significant as an example of vernacular Federal design and is distinguished by its fine proportions, denticulated brickwork and transomed entry. The interior contains excellent examples of nineteenth century carpentry including pegged doors, hand-carved stair rails, an original fireplace mantel and chamfered cabinetry. The Boyd-Harvey House reflects the craftsmanship of the early nineteenth century in this area.”

Description of the house

“Located in Western Knox County near the Little Turkey Creek and the reservoir of Fort Loudon Lake, the Boyd-Harvey House (c.1835) is a five bay vernacular Federal style farmhouse constructed of handmade brick laid in common bond. The two story I-house has a one and one-half story rear wing and is surmounted by a pressed metal shingle roof. The main section of the house has a hip roof pierced by two chimneys with corbeled caps while the rear wing has a gable roof and two more chimneys, A denticulated cornice line and multi-pane windows are distinguishing design features on the exterior, The interior has undergone some alterations but still retains original pegged doors and surrounds, paneled cupboards and an original mantel. In addition to the house, two log outbuildings are located within the boundaries of the nominated property and contribute to the significance of the Boyd-Harvey House. There have been few alterations and the buildings retain their architectural integrity.

The five bay facade of the Boyd-Harvey House faces south and is symmetrically proportioned with the principal entry flanked by two 6/6 double hung sash windows on either side on the first story and a short door with sidelights flanked by two smaller 6/6 double hung sash windows on either side on the second story, Both doors are pegged and are comprised of twelve recessed panels. All windows on the facade have wood sills and wide lintel boards covered with mortar. Shutters once flanked the windows but are no longer in place. Four pane sidelights with paneled aprons and a three light transom window surround the main entry. The trim around the entry is comprised of fluted wood with corner blocks. A one story porch [constructed in the twentieth century) with a shed roof covered in standing seam metal spans the central three bays of the house. A denticulated brick cornice line delineates the eaves below the roof on the facade and on all other elevations of the main section of the residence.

The east elevation contains four 6/6 double hung sash windows with wide lintel boards, two on each story, on the main section of the Boyd-Harvey House. The rear wing is four bays wide and is covered by a shed roof porch sheathed with standing seam metal. Two 6/6 double hung sash windows and two paneled doors delineate the first story while four 3/3 sash windows are found on the second story. The west elevation is similar in design except there are only two 3/3 sash windows on the second story wing and no window openings on the main section of the house.

The rear wing on the north elevation is centrally placed against the main section of the house forming a T-shaped plan. Four 6/6 double hung sash windows are located on the main section of the house, two on each side of the rear wing. Only the second story windows have wide lintel boards. Two paneled doors capped by transom windows are also found on the north elevation of the main section of the house.

Pine has been used extensively throughout the interior of the house, particularly for floors and for door and window trim. Many of the door and window surrounds are comprised of fluted wood trim with corner blocks. In the foyer, a small rectangular portion of the floor is mismatched which may indicate the existence of an earlier trap door which would have opened into the crawl space beneath the main part of the house. The Boyd-Harvey House was not wired for electricity until 1958 and kerosene light fixtures are still in use in the foyer and east parlor. A three run open well staircase with plain wood balusters, simple brackets and a hand carved rail runs up the west wall of the foyer while a door on the rear foyer wall leads into the dining room in the rear wing. Paneled doors capped by three light transoms lead from the foyer to parlors located east and west of the foyer. Both parlors contain fireplaces but neither is original to the house. The fireplace in the east parlor has an opening framed by glazed tiles, fluted pilasters, a plain frieze and a plain mantel shelf. In the west parlor, the fireplace is also framed by glazed tiles and paneled architrave molding. Chamfered wood cupboards flank the west parlor fireplace.

The lower story of the rear wing contains the dining room and kitchen. Again, the fireplace mantels in these rooms are not original to the house. In the dining room the fireplace is flanked by chamfered wood cupboards. The fireplace opening is surrounded by glazed tiles, fluted pilasters and a molded frieze. A steep, narrow enclosed staircase is located in the southwest corner of the dining room and originally provided the only access to the bedroom directly above. A door adjacent to the dining room fireplace opens onto the kitchen in the rear. The original flooring in the kitchen consists of hand-split planks approximately fourteen inches wide. One wall is covered with beaded paneling and the fireplace has been sealed up. Additional built-in cupboards are found in the kitchen. The cupboards, like those in the west front parlor, are chamfered and have toggle closures. A stairway with a hand carved rail leads to the upstairs.

Two bedrooms, each with a fireplace, are located upstairs in the main section of the house. The fireplace in the west bedroom contains the only original mantel in the house. Flanked by chamfered wood cupboards, this fireplace opening is framed by fluted pilasters and has a plain frieze ornamented with a small carved heart. A bathroom has been installed in the northeast corner of this room. The closets in the east bedroom are recent additions and the fireplace mantel is very plain with a projecting mantel shelf and simple, architrave. Two additional bedrooms are located in the upstairs rear wing. Both have sloping ceilings and are connected by a c. 1920s doorway; only the front bedroom contains a fireplace.

While the main house was under construction, Boyd probably built and occupied a one and one-half story log building which stands near the main house. The building rests on a stone foundation and was constructed of squared hewn logs joined with half-dovetail notching. The gable roof is sheathed with standing seam metal and the gable ends are partially covered by weatherboard. The remains of an exterior chimney are visible on the east elevation while an early twentieth century shed addition abuts the west elevation. There is one room downstairs and loft space above.

The only other extant outbuilding included in the nomination is a one and one-half story log storehouse with a stone foundation and a standing seam metal gable roof. The hand hewn logs are joined with half-dovetail notching; weatherboard covers the gable ends. Sawn plank flooring is found on the inside of this outbuilding. The house and both outbuildings are located in a basically rural area and hidden from the road by mature oaks and boxwoods, A semi-circular drive leads to the house while to the west of the residence is a heavily timbered area.”