About Harmony Hall Plantation
Harmony Hall has a long and interesting history. It was about 1768 that Colonel James A. Richardson built his home on a 12,000 acre tract on the Cape Fear River near the village of White Oak. A native of Stonington, Connecticut, who ran a West Indies shipping line, he had earlier been shipwrecked off Cape Hatteras and while waiting for the arrival of one of his ships, had explored the area. He liked the Cape Fear River bottom lands so much that he decided to settle and make his home there. About the same time he met a young widow, Elizabeth Neal Purdy, whose parents came from Barbados. They were married around 1768 and moved into the house he had been building.
“This small, frame plantation house on the northeastern side of the Cape Fear presents a striking example of a regional form, which engaged double porches on land and water facades and a partially enclosed exterior stair rising between the landside porches. Here, in a rare survival, the exterior stair provides the only connection between first and second stories. The interior is simply finished and has a hall-parlor plan, later partitioned to create a center passage.”* (quote taken from A Guide to the Historic Architecture of Eastern North Carolina by Catherine W Bishir & Michael T Southern)
It was here, according to local legend, that the seeds of General Cornwallis’ defeat at Yorktown were sown. As the story goes, late in the Revolution, General Cornwallis made Harmony Hall his headquarters on his way to Wilmington. One evening, while ascending the stairs, Mrs. Richardson overheard the general and his aide planning their campaign against General Nathaniel Greene whose army was in South Carolina. She wrote a note to her husband, then with Greene, outlining the British plans and sent it by the plantation overseer and his trusty horse. With Mrs. Richardson’s information, the American forces were able to anticipate the British movements, thus hastening the British retreat across the Carolinas to their ultimate surrender at Yorktown.
For the earnest Revolutionary historian, there are several things wrong with the Cornwallis story. For one thing, it was in 1781 and after the Battle of Guilford Courthouse that we can trace Cornwallis’ route down the Cape Fear toward Wilmington. At that time General Greene’s battles in South Carolina were largely over. Another thing to remember is that the Cornwallis story was handed down orally for several generations before any of it was written down, so there was change for the story to grow between its infancy the full grown paper version. Yet, a story has to be conceived before it can grow; thus most people believe Mrs. Richardson must have seen Cornwallis or the story would never have been born.
There are other arguments for the Elizabeth and Cornwallis meeting. History tells us that James Webster, Cornwallis’ aide, was mortally wounded in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. Webster would have had to rest between Fayetteville and Elizabethtown. Harmony Hall and The Purdie Place were about the only remaining fine houses on the river at that time. Webster died and was buried in Elizabethtown. Where did he spend his last night? Surely there are no living witnesses who can tell us.
Some believe the Cornwallis story came about because of Jane Meredith’s (c1970) novel, Harmony Hall, but the story was widely circulated long before that. The story may be a combination of tales about Richardson’s. For example, the John Jakes novel Charleston relates an incident of Cornwallis punishing a Mrs. Richardson for stealing his battle plans and sending them to General Greene. All we know is that it makes an exciting legend and that someone named Cornwallis did happen to surrender at Yourtown…and we do not have a King today.
This house remained in the Richardson family until 1874 when it was acquired by Daniel S. Tatum. Tatum transferred the title to his daughter Sarah Margaret and her husband N. Austin Layton, Sr. In 1961, Mr. and Mrs. N. A. Layton Jr., of Winter Haven, Florida, deeded the structure to the Bladen County Historical Society.
In late 1986, restoration on Harmony Hall began in earnest. Realization that the historical society did not own the surrounding land became abruptly evident when the tract was offered for sale. Because of a plea from the historical society, the Preservation Foundation purchased the 97 acres which surrounded the house. With funds raised, the historical society has been able to buy back the land and house from the Preservation Foundation. This transaction gives the site access to the nearby road as well as the Cape Fear River.
Several old buildings have been moved onto the property to give it a Village of Yesteryear atmosphere.
Harmony Hall Plantation, now organized as Harmony Hall Foundation, Inc., is run by volunteers. The address is Harmony Hall Plantation, P. O. Box 297, White Oak, NC 28399.
Harmony Hall Plantation , owned by Bladen County Historical Society, is operated by volunteers. The address is Harmony Hall Plantation, P O Box 297, White Oak, N. C. 28399.