The Willows
The Willows - Lot 13, Reed’s Point
Original Grant:
William Evatt - July 14, 1784
Deed Transfers:
William Evatt to Patrick Rogers – 1785
Patrick Rogers mortgaged to Philip Marchinton - 1785
Philip Marchinton to Sheriff Benjamin Woolsey - 1788
-Missing Deed-
Munson and Ralph Jarvis to John Gidney - 1814
John Gidney to Peter Hume - 1819
Peter Hume to William Black - 1822
William Black to John Walker - 1836
John Walker to James Waddell - 1841
James Waddell to James E. Waddell - 1898
James E. Waddell to Lorne Waddell - 1937
Outbuildings:
Attached to the east end of the home is a summer kitchen, which is original. Added to this sometime between 1907 and 1937 were a workshop, a woodshed, and a barn which are all connected to afford the owner protection from harsh weather. There was also a warehouse on the front lawn and an icehouse to the west of the main structure, but these are no longer standing.
History and Style:
The upper two stories of the Willows are comprised of a separate, older dwelling house that was built in the early 1800s. It was moved a half mile down the road by oxen to its present location from near Mount Misery Road. It was originally the home of William H. Flewelling. The first floor was built on the foundation of a Georgian hotel called the Glengarry that burned sometime before 1887. The upper half was hoisted up onto the first floor by way of a large beam that ran from the front of the house to the back. When taken as a whole the structure resembles a two and a half story Georgian house with added dormers and verandas. However, the two sections are two different styles of architecture. The first floor is still based on a Georgian design, but the second is a basic ‘cape’ cottage with two dormers. The exterior is highly ornamented with gingerbread porch brackets, a band of staggered shingles, and finials on every gable. The front door is highlighted by sidelights and a transom, as well as a decorative arch and inset panels. All the windows were originally double hung with twelve panes each.
The hotel was first owned and managed by James Waddell, an industrious second-generation Scottish immigrant who also ran a sawmill, gristmill, blacksmith shop, furniture factory, and store. Before his death, James Waddell deeded the property and the Willows to his son James E. Waddell. In 1898, James E. leased the Willows for life to his sister, Seraphina, and brother-in-law, Hugh McCormick. According to family lore, this was after hostility over Seraphina’s marriage and conversion to Catholicism settled down. The hotel was run by the McCormicks until about 1907 when their nephew, Roy Waddell, took over its operation. He ran the hotel for approximately 30 years, leaving in 1937. Yet, little is known about this period of the home’s history other than that it remained an important stop for the steamer “Hampton” and that its groceries were bought in Indiantown at Nase and Sons and delivered by boat. In 1937 Lorne Waddell, a younger son of James E. Waddell, moved into the Willows. He never ran the Willows as a hotel, but converted it into a private residence.