Bayne-Fowle House

Here follows the inscription written on this roadside historical marker:

Bayne-Fowle House
813 Prince Street

This property has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior Bayne-Fowle House 1854

[Additional plaques above:]
The Bayne-Fowle House has been registered as a Virginia Historic Landmark pursuant to the authority vested in the Virginia Historic Landmarks Board

Historic Alexandria Foundation Reg. No. 147S811 Early Buildings Survey


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Here follows an excerpt from the Clio Foundation website about the Bayne-Fowle house as written by Zack Rakes:

Introduction
The Bayne-Fowle House is a historic home in Alexandria, Virginia. Built in 1854 for merchant William Bayne, the home was known for its impressive interior architecture, as well as its occupancy by Northern troops during the American Civil War. On June 17th, 1986, it was designated on the Virginia Landmark Register, and on November 6th, 1986, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Since 1871, the Bayne-Fowle House has continuously been a private residence.

Backstory and Context
Since around 1840, merchant William Bayne was active in the city of Alexandria, Virginia. Bayne purchased a plot of land at 811 Prince Street in 1849 with the intention of building a house on the property. Though he bought the land in 1849, it was not until 1854 that he actually set about building the home. After the completion of the house, Bayne sold it to another merchant, William Fowle. Fowle lived in the home with his family for some time until the outbreak of the American Civil War, during which he remained in Richmond. During the war, the home was taken by the Federal Government for use during the war, and in 1864, it was actually confiscated for use as a military hospital.

When Fowle returned to Alexandria after the war, he filed a lawsuit against the Federal Government for the return of his property, but before the lawsuit could be finished, he died in 1869. Despite this, the Fowle family regained the property, but sold it in 1871. Ever since the home was sold that year, the Bayne-Fowle House has served as a residential house for numerous residents of Alexandria, including Dr. Samuel B. Moore, who operated his personal office out of the home from 1906 until 1940. On June 17th, 1986, it was designated on the Virginia Landmark Register, and on November 6th, 1986, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.


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Here follows an excerpt from the City of Alexandria website:

Fowle (Powell) Hospital
The hospital, a part of the Prince Street hospital complex, was located in a home confiscated from confederate sympathizer William J. Fowle. After the war, Fowle sued for the return of his home, but he died before what was ultimately a successful court decision.

History of Fowle Hospital
811 Prince Street

The Fowle Hospital (sometimes misspelled as Powell in contemporary documents) was located in a three-story masonry home at 811 Prince Street. The house was built in 1854, and purchased by a prominent Alexandria merchant, William J. Fowle in 1855. Fowle went with his family to Richmond as the conflict began, and his son, William H Fowle, III, enlisted in the Confederate army. He sued for the return of his home, but died before what was ultimately a successful court decision. This hospital was considered part of the Prince Street Hospital on the opposite side of the street. From March, 1862, to Sept. 20, 1862, this hospital was a branch of the General Hospital (Mansion House). It then became a branch of the 2nd Division General Hospital (Alexandria) until it closed. (Source: Civil War DC website, from National Archives data.)

These two hospitals were referred to in a Civil War era article in the Alexandria Gazette: "These mansions are known as the Johnston and Powell Houses, Mr. Powell (Wm. J. Fowle) was formerly a merchant and like Mr. Johnston, went to Richmond."


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Here follows an excerpt about the house from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

The Bayne–Fowle House is a historic house located at 811 Prince Street in Alexandria, Virginia, United States. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 6, 1986. The Bayne–Fowle House is a masonry townhouse built in 1854 for William Bayne, an Alexandria-based commission merchant. It is noted for its fine mid-Victorian interiors and elaborate plasterwork. During the American Civil War the house was occupied by Northern troops and subsequently confiscated by the Federal government and converted briefly into a military hospital. Since 1871 it has been a private residence.

Background and history
William Bayne, a commission merchant and grocer in Alexandria, purchased the lot at 811 Prince Street in 1849. A house was constructed in 1854 but was sold to William H. Fowle, another commission merchant and the son of a Massachusetts businessman in 1855. The house served as his residence until the outbreak of the American Civil War, when he took refuge in Richmond. During the Civil War the house was occupied by Northern troops and occupied by the federal government. In 1864 the building was used as a military hospital. After the civil war Fowle won a lawsuit to recover his property but he died in 1869, prior to the victory and subsequently the property was sold to John Jordan Wheat in 1871. Since 1871 the house has been used as a private residence, although several owners have been physicians such as Dr. Samuel B. Moore, who purchased the house in 1906, and maintained his office in the building until the 1940s. Today the property is owned by Richard Klingler and Jane Slatter and was recently given a major renovation.

Architecture
Exterior
The Bayne–Fowle House is a three-story masonry town house in the Italianate design, located in a finely preserved block of the Old Town of Alexandria. It is surrounded by houses which date to the late 18th century. The house is made of brick with a painted ashlar sandstone facade, with elongated windows, a low-pitched gable roof, and an ornamental cornice. A side conservatory and small garden are found on the eastern side (the right hand side, as seen from the street). Separating the double parlors is a pendant arcade adorned with cast-iron bosses.

The facade consists of three regular bays, with the primary entrance located on the western bay, reached by seven sandstone steps with matching cast-iron balustrades and newels. To the right of the entrance on the first floor are two floor-length windows with stone balconies and iron railings. The current exterior wooden window shutters were only added around 1975. The second and third floors of the facade each have three symmetrical windows with segmental arched lintels with a projecting cornice crowning the facade, supported by console brackets. The north elevation of the house to the rear is three bays wide, and features a small two-story masonry and frame addition on its west side. There is a frame connection to the brick garage building, erected in 1922. A brick wall was built around 1965, to border the garden to the east of the house. The side garden contains Japanese maple trees and a row of European hornbeam trees. Evergreens line the lawn.

Interior
The interior is furnished with luxurious materials such as marble and gilded mirrors. The primary entrance to the house leads to a small vestibule with a second set of paired doors, opening into the first-floor stair hall. The hall has original random width heart pine floor boards and plaster walls and ceiling and wooden baseboards and is adorned by plaster cornice ornaments the hall. An open-stringer staircase with elliptical handrails is located in the hallway, leading to the second floor; a passageway concealed behind it (as one enters the house) leads to the basement. At the rear of the hall is a small bathroom and an elevator, installed around 1965.

Three sets of paired doors lead from the hall into the twin parlors and the dining room. The parlors are square in shape, and are separated by a suspended overhead pendant arcade. Eastlake-type iron gasoliers with two tiers of globes are suspended from the ceiling; these date from 1867 but have since been electrified. The floors are pine; the walls are plastered. The pendant arcade consists of two semi-circular arches and a central semi-elliptical arch, supported with cast-iron console brackets and pendant bosses. The original silver-plate doorknobs of the parlors were replaced in around 1960 with brass hardware. Pocket doors lead from the northern parlor to the dining room at the north end of the building. The mantelpiece in the dining room is made from marbleized slate and has an original pier mirror, located between the two windows on the dining room's north wall. Paired doors with glass panels lead to the polygonal room in the eastern wing which was once used as a library. The conservatory features original scalloped wooden shelves below the arched windows. The kitchen contains modern appliances.

The second floor of the Bayne–Fowle House has a similar layout to that of the first, with three bedrooms and a bathroom to the south end of the hall and a laundry and bathroom at the north end. All bedrooms have wood flooring, plaster walls and plaster ceilings and fireplaces, two of which have marble mantelpieces with the third being metal and stone.

The third floor contains three bedrooms, on the same plan as the second floor; all have diminutive marble mantelpieces. A small room at the north end of the hall serves as a kitchenette with the bathroom at the south end of the hallway. The attic is largely finished. A small unfinished room in the attic has penciled graffiti on the plastered wall believed to date back to the Civil War period. The basement, which is also largely finished space has feature bare brick walls. It also contains a bathroom and storage areas.