The Ivey-Ellington House - The Little White Church that Wasn't
Ivey-Ellington in snow
We at the Friends of the Page-Walker are often asked for information about “that little white church” that previously sat on West Chatham. Now that the house has been moved to South Academy Street, we still occasionally get asked about it and whether it was a church.
The Ivey-Ellington house, though, was never a church. But the confusion is understandable and, as it turns out, intentional.
History is seldom 100% certain, but these are things we do know. In April of 1874, just three years after the incorporation of Cary, Alonzo T. Mial bought four acres on West Chatham from the town founder, Frank Page. The Mial family was from East Wake County, in the modern day Wendell area. Even though he owned the land, there is no indication that Mial built the house himself. Records indicate that Alonzo Crocker built the house around 1874 at a cost of around $300. However, neither Crocker, Mial, nor Frank Page ever actually lived in the house.
Alonzo Crocker had quite a history in Cary. Born in 1846 in Wake Forest, he was known to be an expert machinist and woodworker. His work included the original pews and lectern used at Cary First Methodist, along with millwork and trim found in many of the interiors of early Cary houses. He was married three times, outliving his first two wives. His first wife was Susan (Susannah) Raboteau, who was sister to Catherine Raboteau. Catherine was better known as Mrs. Frank Page. Alonzo Crocker and Frank Page were brothers-in-law. It is not unreasonable at all to think that Frank Page connected his brother-in-law with Alonzo Mial to work as a builder for the equivalent of a 19th century “spec house”. Tragically, Crocker died in 1901 at the age of 55 when he suffered a broken leg in a mill accident while working for the Cary Lumber Company.
Alonzo Crocker
The Ivey-Ellington is a classic example of a Gothic Revival style. Alonzo Mial previously had a Gothic Revival Church built in the Shotwell area near Wendell, so perhaps he was the instigator of this style of house in Cary?
Gothic Revival stylistic elements include pointed arched windows, a steeply sloped roof, deep soffits and board and batten siding. The Ivey-Ellington House has scalloped facias as opposed to plain facias found on many Gothic Revival structures. The Gothic Revival style signified an architectural form that focused on changing attitudes towards nature, religion, technology and the family. This style was very popular in the mid-19th century. The style was promoted as being appropriate for rural settings because it was thought the complex lines and shape would fit well in natural surroundings. The pointed windows and steeply sloped roofs are designed to direct the viewer’s gaze upward, in a heavenly direction.
Because of the style’s association with church architecture, it often signified a Christian dwelling. In fact, the footprint of the original house is the classic cathedral plan of a cross. The Ivey-Ellington retains its original floorplan and layout. Most of the millwork, flooring and hardware is original to the house.
Ivey-Ellington from above. Note that additions on the left and rear have been removed prior to relocation.
Photo by Kevin Pugh Media (kevinpughmedia.com)
As mentioned, neither Frank Page, Alonzo Mial, nor Alonzo Crocker ever lived in the house. It does appear that in 1882 J T Pool and his wife Bettie purchased the house from Alonzo T Mial and by 1883 were living in the house. Pool and his wife Bettie seemed to have spent most of their lives in the Johnston County area, only moving to Cary in 1883. They appear to have lived in the house until 1888 when it was sold to Anderson Betts and his wife Elizabeth Jordan. Elizabeth Jordan was sister to Henry B Jordan, a prominent landowner and politician in Cary who twice served as Cary’s Mayor. Anderson Betts and his wife appear to have only lived in the house a short time as it was sold in 1892 to Thaddeus and Mary Ivey. Records indicate Anderson and Elizabeth living back in Raleigh by 1900.
Even though Thaddeus and Mary only lived there 5 years, their family lived in other parts of Cary for many, many years and had a lasting impact on the community. Thaddeus Ivey moved to Cary in 1891 to escape “city life” in Raleigh and to raise his family in the country. Cary was very much the “country” in 1891!
Mary and Thaddeus Ivey
However, Thaddeus Ivey still commuted to Raleigh to work as a bookkeeper at the NC Farmers State Alliance Business Agency. And by “commute”, I mean he would take the train to Raleigh Monday morning, work for the week and take the train home on Saturday! As a member of the Prohibition Party, his views on alcohol fit right into Frank’s town! He moved to Hillsborough in 1898 for a short time but then returned to Cary a few years later. In 1922 he bought The Raven House on the corner of Academy and Park and moved in with his family, including his daughter, Esther Ivey. When Thaddeus purchased the house, he was still commuting to Raleigh, but now had a car he could drive to town.
Esther was born in 1890 in Wake Forest while her father was a student. She graduated from Cary High School in 1906 and then from Guilford College a few years later. She moved into the Raven House with her family in 1922 and would live there until her death in 1989 at age 99. Later in life she would tell the story of seeing old west style cattle drives come through town as ranchers from Chatham County would drive their herds to market in Raleigh. They would often come right down Chatham Street, directly in front of her house!
Esther Ivey
Charles Romulus Scott bought the Ivey-Ellington House in 1898 and owned it until 1918. Scott was born in Chatham County in 1831. He was married to Anna Yates, daughter of Eli Yates. Her siblings included Carlos, Alvis and Pharis Yates, all of whom were prominent landowners in Western Wake County. While living in Chatham County, he served as a County Councilman for 18 years. Cattle drives from Chatham County to Raleigh were conducted while he owned the house with the drives going right down Chatham Street.
He moved to Cary about 1898 and opened Scott and Son Grocery and Dry Goods with his son, Charles William Scott. In addition to running the store, CR Scott worked as a county tax assessor. Allegations of corruption in 1900 led him to being a witness in the investigation. He was eventually exonerated. This was part of his testimony:
Talking about his own personal house, was asked:
Prosecutor: What was your house valued at?
Scott: It's an old house, worth about $600.
Prosecutor: What sort of house is it?
Scott: The ugliest in Cary
So, maybe we can assume that Mr. Scott was not a fan of Gothic Revival?
The ugliest house in Cary?
After Scott, Joseph Smith owned the house for less than a year before it was sold to John Harrison Ellington in 1919. Ellington owned the house for 30 years, but not a lot is known about him. He was born in Chatham County in 1875. It is unknown for sure when he moved to Cary, but he was living here by the 1910 census. He owned several properties in town, and it appears he may have used the Ivey-Ellington as a rental. By 1930 he was living in South Carolina but still owned the Ivey-Ellington. When he died in 1943, his family held on to the house for a few years but then sold it in 1946 to H H Waddell. The Waddell Family would own the house for more than 60 years.
Harvey Halford Waddel
Harvey Halford Waddell, or HH as he was called, purchased the house in 1946. He was born in Lillington in 1895 and moved to Cary in 1917 to work as a mechanic. He would enjoy a long period of service to Cary in various capacities. He was appointed Cary’s first Fire Chief in 1923. He was elected Mayor in 1929 and served a 4-year term. He was twice elected as a town Commissioner. In 1949 he was appointed as a local judge and held that position for 9 years. He was elected to the Town Council in 1960 and served there for 4 years.
HH Waddell was the first owner to substantially alter the house. Part of that was by necessity when Hurricane Hazel ripped off the front section. Waddell repaired the front, but left off that extended section, making the front flat and removing the porch. Sometime in the early 1950s he also added a small kitchen and bathroom off the back of the house.
Hurricane Hazel damage, October, 1954
By the late 1960s the family was leasing out the house. In 1972, a year before his death, Waddell deeded the house to his two daughters. In 1984, his daughter Melba sold her half to her sister, Eva and Eva’s husband, Jefferson Sugg.
Around 2000, Jefferson Sugg did a partial remodel of the house. He rebuilt the front gable, restoring it to its original form. He also added a modern bathroom off the back. He began commercial leasing of the house after his remodel. After his death in 2010, the town of Cary bought the house.
From 2011 to 2022, the lot around the house was used as a weekly meeting spot for the Cary Farmers Market.
After a lot of talking and planning, the house was moved from Chatham Street to the “old library” library site on Academy Street on 20 February 2023. Since then, the house has undergone a full restoration and modernization. That includes replacing the metal roof with period appropriate wooden shakes as well as rebuilding the chimneys on each end. The intended use for the house will be offices for the new Downtown Cary Park. Because it is intended for town office space, an ADA compliant bathroom and entrance were added off the rear of the house. In addition to the house itself, there has been extensive landscaping done around the house in its new location.
Moving Day, 20 February 2023
At this time, it is planned that there will be a section of the first floor devoted to rotating historical displays about the house and Cary in general.
Ivey-Ellington, now on Academy Street
Restoration work has been continuing since the house was moved in 2023. It is scheduled to be opened in May of 2025.
The Ivey-Ellington nearing completion of restoration, March 2025
For over 150 years the Ivey-Ellington House has stood in downtown Cary. Here’s hoping it is there for 150 or more years to come!
