In September 1924, general contractor Clyde G. Crevensten sold this property with a house upon it for $12,500 to Lena and J. W. Money. Crevensten specialized in home construction in and around Westerwood and Money was the president of the Business Men’s Insurance Company. Money was agile and confident in making real estate investments across the city, especially in the growing suburbs of West Market Terrace, Westover Terrace, Overhills Terrace, and Westerwood.
Money sold the house in November 1924 to homeowners Ada and A. C. Forsyth for 12,000. Alexander Colon Forsyth (1869-1940) was known to many if his friends as “Sandy.” He was born in Brucefield, Ontario, Canada but moved to Guilford County when he was five years old. He was a member of the “Guilford Grays” in the Spanish-American War. In 1901, he married Henrietta “Ada” Clapp (1871-1945), also of Guilford County. He operated the A. C. Forsyth wholesale seed and produce store in Olde Greensborough before taking a salaried position as a traveling salesman for an animal hide company. Later in life, he was the state director of the Traveler’s Protective Association, a trade group of traveling salesman.
Ada and Sandy and their five children Maude, Colon Jr., Stuart, Charles, and James lived in this house until they grew into adulthood in the 1930s, and Henrietta remained in the house until after her husband’s death. In 1944 the property was sold to Edna White, a widowed teacher at Page Private School.
The residence is an excellent example of a Colonial Revival subtype known as a Dutch Colonial, recognized by its barn-like, or gambrel, roofline. The side-gabled façade is asymmetrical and features a primary entrance and a boxed-bay window accompanied by a variety of window arrangements. Dutch Colonial-style houses were inspired by the distinctive eighteenth-century houses built by Dutch settlers in and around the Hudson Valley of New York State. This house is unusual for its interior plan, in which the main entrance opens into a living room. Instead of a central hallway and staircase, access to the second floor is provided by a central rear stair.
Six vintage homes in the Westerwood neighborhood will open their doors to ticket holders during Preservation Greensboro Incorporated’s 13th annual Tour of Historic Homes & Gardens on May 20-21, 2023. The tour will highlight charming features of early nineteenth and twentieth century architecture, including Craftsman bungalows, and examples of Colonial Revival design.
Written by Benjamin Briggs
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