C. H. and Eliza Stone House

Harvey Stone House, 1940

 

Harvey Stone House, 1980

The Harvey Stone house is particularly intriguing for its chronologic incongruity with its neighbors - although it is now part of a full block, it sat slightly apart from the concentration of housing development along Watts and Guess Road during the first decade of the 20th century. Stone was a contractor and house mover.

 

Aerial over Trinity College ~1920 - the roof of the Harvey Stone house can be seen in the background, just beyond the George Watts School. By this period, development had progressed north on Watts Street to be within 1/2 block of the house.

(The information below in italics is from the Preservation Durham Plaque Application for the C. H. and Eliza Stone House)

Charles Harvey Stone and his wife, Eliza Annice Stone, bought the land for 1020 Urban  Ave. in 1905. The deed is in her name. 1020 is first listed in the 1909 City Directory as  being “on the corner of Urban and Watts.” The house is the oldest on the block and sits  slightly back. Charles was born in Nash County in 1857 and Eliza was born in Orange  county in 1866. Charles, who went by Chas, Charles, or Harvey was a local builder,  house mover, and contractor. He built 1020 home for himself, and likely designed it as  well. Charles also built 212 Watts St., a neo-classical home, for J.J. Thaxton.  

A 1895 notice in The Durham Recorder described an accident that Charles’ had while  working on a West Durham home with fellow carpenter Oscar Brown. “While the men  were busy at their work and little thinking of danger, the scaffold suddenly gave way and  threw the men to the ground a distance of twenty-seven feet.” Charles was badly hurt and  the notice suggested that his injuries may prove fatal. His bad luck on the job seems to  have continued, and a 1919 Article in the News and Observer mentions an accident that  Charles was involved in while working for the Souther Power Company. The article  states “a deliver truck, going at a high rate of speed, so witnesses say, struck this  equipment and threw Mr. Stone against the pole and on the wires. He was severely  shocked by the live wires, and also bruised and injured. He was carried to Watts Hospital,  where he was unconscious for more than three hours. He is now reported to be doing very  well.”  

The Stone’s had three children, Julia, Thomas, and Eliza. In 1925, Harvey and Eliza,  deeded the house to their youngest daughter, Eliza Lela Stone Taylor. The 1930 Census  lists Harvey, Eliza Sr., Eliza Jr., and her husband, Eugene Taylor, as all residing at 1020.  Eugene’s occupation is listed as a manager. Charles’ lived at 1020 Urban until his death  in 1930 and Eliza continued to live there until her death in 1936. In 1938, her estate sold  the house to B.W. and Lucy T. Fassett for $4,500.  

According to the City Directories, the house sat vacant until 1941. Between 1938 and  1950, the house changed hands seven times. For a short period Duke University owned  the house and the Head of the Duke University Divinity School, Harold A. Bosley,  resided there. In 1964, Dr. Albert W. Moser Sr. and his wife, Virginia, purchased the  home and it served as a rental property until 2006. When Virginia and Albert divorced in  1971, he kept the house. The house was then purchased in 2006 by the Phelps who  completed significant renovations.  


 

Harvey Stone House, 03.13.10

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36.008963,-78.909725