Hopkins Building Elegant Home on Mulberry Street, Feb. 27, 1923

Hopkins Will Build a Fine Residence. . . Work on His Mulberry Street Home Is to Begin Within a Few Days

C.H. Hopkins will begin work on his residence on Mulberry Street within the next few days. It will be a stone building in the English colonial style, the first story being stone, and the second story and gables white stucco. Plans for this new building were prepared by Benton and Benton, architects of Wilson, N.C., who also furnished plans for Lenoir Public School building, the Granite Falls High School building, Caldwell County Co-operative Creamery, and the annex to the Presbyterian Church. The construction of this building is to be under the direction and superintendency of I.A. Swanson.

The building is elaborately planned. The stone work is to be of native stone that will be quarried on the old Norwood place, now owned by T.H. Broyhill. Arrangements for moving machinery to the quarry, and for workmen to start right away are being made. Excavation work for the building will also begin in a few days. The arrangement of the building is ideal. The house will occupy the high ground on the east side of Mulberry Street. The entrance from the street will be by a flight of winding steps from the sidewalk, these steps to be constructed of blue limestone. The front entrance will be of a colonial type, and will open into a wide hall. On this floor is the living room, dining room, breakfast room, kitchen, one bedroom and den. A sun parlor of the south side of the building opens from the living room. On the second floor are four large bedrooms, sewing room and trunk room, while the servants’ quarters will be located on the third floor. Bathrooms are located on the first and second floors. The boiler room, fuel room and big storage room and a complete laundry are arranged for in the basement. The building throughout will be heated with vapor heat.

Outside walls of the first story will be bluish gray granite with window stills, chimney caps and trimmings of gray Indiana limestone. For the second story the walls will be of white stucco with chestnut wood paneling. A colonial design will be carried out in the doors and windows, small glass being used in the windows.

The entrance arrangement is very pretty, with tile plinths and white marble thresholds. Hardwood floors will be used throughout the floor except in the sun parlor, where red tile will be used, and the bathrooms where the floors and wainscoting will be of white tile. The entire building will be covered by a rough slate roof. The porch located on the north end of the house, which will be built of stone with brick floor, will have an opening from the dining room.

The inside finish of the building will be solid white plastered walls with white painted ceiling and trimmings. The plans and specifications provide for built-in bookcases in the living room, a china closet in the breakfast room and a large cabinet for the kitchen. The profiles and sketches of the building furnished by the architect show the building to be one of the most attractive to be found.

From the front page of the Lenoir News-Topic, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 1923