JOHN HAYWOOD was born February 23, 1754, in Edgecombe County. He received his formal education from a clergyman of the Church of England, the Rev. Thomas Burgess. He also took responsibility for educating both his brothers and sisters before and during the Revolutionary War, when money for such "luxuries" was scarce.
John Haywood began public service in 1781 as clerk of the State Senate in what was then the state capital of New Bern. After serving five years in his position of clerk, he was elected Treasurer of the State of North Carolina by the legislature. He served continuously for 40 years, until his death November 18, 1827.
He was also Raleigh's first mayor or "Intendant of Police".
Haywood County was named for him when it was formed in1808. A town in Chatham County was also named in his honor.
During his years in Raleigh, Treasurer Haywood, Secretary White and Comptroller Craven each built three "large, stately houses east of the Capitol Square," in order to live in close proximity to the capitol and their work.
Elected as a trustee of the University of North Carolina at the time of its foundation, he remained on the board for forty years.
His first wife was Sarah Leigh, who died in 1791 leaving their son, Leigh. He lived with his grandparents, the Guions in New Bern, until his death in 1795 from smallpox. John Haywood's second wife, whom he married on March 9, 1798, was Eliza Eagles Asaph Williams, daughter of a Revolutionary patriot. By this marriage he had twelve children, some of whom are prominent in the history of North Carolina.
John Haywood died in Raleigh on November 18, 1827, at the age of 73. The records tell us that "a great procession was given in his honor and his funeral was conducted in the Presbyterian Church by Reverend Doctor McPheeters."
Eliza and her family maintained the house until the 1850’s when Dr. E. Burke became “master” of the house.
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CONSTRUCTION ON HAYWOOD HALL began in 1799 on lots 190 and 191 in the new permanent state capital of Raleigh. As a member of the Council of
State, John Haywood was required to live in the capital city. Originally the property included the entire block bounded by Edenton Street on the North, New Bern Street on the South, Person Street on the East and Blount Street on the West. There were a number of dependencies on the grounds, including a barn, gazebo, privy, kitchen-smoke house and servants’ quarters. Completed sometime in the first few years of the 19th century, it is the oldest house within the original city limits of Raleigh to remain on its original foundation.
Haywood Hall is a short walk from Capitol Square and is modeled after the family seat in Edgecombe County.
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As one of the largest buildings in town, it accommodated John Haywood's keen sense of hospitality. The two great rooms flanking the spacious hall could easily receive the entire legislative body. The house became an unofficial meeting place for legislators and dignitaries visiting the capital. The Marquise de Lafayette was a guest of the Treasurer in 1825. Betsey John Haywood, John Haywood’s oldest child, acted as hostess and was proclaimed by the Marquis to be “the prettiest girl he had ever seen”.
Eliza Haywood, John Haywood's second wife, was a young woman when she came to live in their first home in the capital city of Raleigh at the corner of Edenton and Wilmington Streets. At Haywood Hall. Born in Wilmington, NC and married at seventeen, she had twelve children with John Haywood who was forty-three when they wed. The young Mrs. Haywood was not impressed with the new state capital when she first saw it and left it after only a short visit. She went home to her family in Wilmington where she bore the first of the twelve Haywood children. The Treasurer proceeded to complete work on the house at 211 New Bern Street in order to tempt his young wife to return to Raleigh. History indicates she did not care for the home on Edenton and Wilmington Streets and that she was the reason that the Haywood Hall was built in such fine style.
Built in the Federal Period in the classical style, the front of the house has undergone little exterior alteration since its construction. There are two front porches, one over the other; each flanked by columns. The front door opens on a center entrance hall with parlors on either side.
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The double rear doors
of the entrance hall.
When open, they facilitated
air flow through the lower
part of the house
Note the decorative
paint finish.
(Click here for a larger image)
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The entrance hall is “shot gun” style, designed to maximize the flow of air when both the double rear doors and the front door were open. There have been a number of changes to the interior over the years and there are now three public rooms plus a modern kitchen and small powder room on the main floor. The second floor has three large bedrooms, two bathrooms, a nursery, plus a number of smaller rooms added when the original porch was enclosed in the late 1890’s/early 1900’s. One of the smaller rooms now is now used as an office by our curator and volunteers.
Haywood Hall remained in the Haywood family for over 175 years. The last owner, Mrs. Mary Haywood Fowle Stearns, who died in 1977, left the house to The National Society of Colonial Dames of America in North Carolina. In accordance with the instructions of her will, Haywood Hall has been put to adaptive use for the "enjoyment of the community" and to promote a greater understanding of the history of North Carolina and of Raleigh, her capital city. The house is in the National Park Services National Register of Historic Places and has been designated a State Historical Site, a Raleigh Historical Site, and accredited by the NSCDA Museum Properties.
There are four houses in North Carolina owned by The Colonial Dames: The Burgwin-Wright House in Wilmington, The Fourth House in Old Salem, and The Joel Lane House and Haywood Hall, both located within the Raleigh city limits. The stewardship of all but one of these historic properties is funded entirely by money raised by The Colonial Dames and each of the houses’ membership organizations. The exception is The Fourth House which is currently leased by Old Salem, Inc., for a nominal fee, which is responsible for the properties management and upkeep.
The Colonial Dames have made extensive structural repairs to Haywood Hall since 1977. There have also been important restoration projects within the house. Many of the paintings and portraits have been cleaned and restored, revealing marvelous detail and color. The startling turquoise glaze on the wainscoting in the music room is authentic and matches the original room color. The mantle in the main parlor has been restored to its original flamboyant faux marble finish. The NC Division of Archives and History determined the colors after chips of paint from the mantle were examined under a microscope. The flat panel doors to the rooms on the first and second floors have also been restored to their original decorative finishes. It is interesting that even the pine paneling of the walls and doors in what was Eliza Haywood’s interior pantry, were finished to resemble mahogany. These surfaces have never been over painted and can still be seen in what is now the downstairs powder room.
The furnishings within the house are not of one specific period. As Haywood Hall was continuously occupied by one family for 175 years, there is an eclectic mix of furnishings. Mrs. Stearns, the last owner, was an antique collector and much of her collection remains in the house. There have been generous donations of pieces that were original to the house, from Haywood family members and benefactors from around the country. The resulting collection creates the sense of a warm and comfortable historic home, rather than that of a formal museum.
 Haywood Hall is surrounded by gardens that are open to the public all year round. Overgrown and wild when the house was first left to The Colonial Dames, the grounds are now much as they were when Eliza Haywood, first mistress of the house, originally planted them. (Click here to learn more about the gardens.)
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