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<br /> United States Department of the Interior
<br /> National Park Service
<br /> National Register of Historic Places
<br /> Continuation Sheet
<br /> Section number Page 6
<br /> Dr. Arch Jordan House
<br /> Orange County, North Carolina
<br /> stores that established themselves at rural crossroads. The Caldwell community is in this sense a well -
<br /> preserved representative of other rural Orange County cross-roads settlements such as the nearby Cedar
<br /> Grove community, and of other inward-tuning Orange County neighborhoods such as the Eno, New Hope,
<br /> and Cane Creek settlements . The Dr. Arch Jordan house, through its association with a prominent local
<br /> physician, a general store, several local Presbyterian churches , and farming -- a unique combination of vital
<br /> rural institutions -- made it a central focal point of much of Caldwell ' s social activity, and serves to
<br /> underscore its significance to the social history of Orange County .
<br /> Historical Background:
<br /> The date the house was built is contested, but the weight of the evidence points to the mid- 1870s as
<br /> the most probable period of construction. The Orange County tax assessor lists 1872 as the date of
<br /> construction, and Richard Mattson ' s "History and Architecture of Orange County, North Carolina" claims
<br /> that Dr. Jordan built the house in 1875 . 15 Both of these dates appear to be estimates based on architectural
<br /> style and physical elements, supported by the appearance of other examples of Italianate styling in rural
<br /> Orange County architecture in the same period. The latter date is given credence by a notice in the
<br /> Hillsborough Recorder, dated July 28 , 1875 , that "Mr. A. C . Jordan has just about completed his
<br /> residence. " 6 The field recorder responsible for completing the "North Carolina Historic Structure Data
<br /> Sheet, " Jody Carter, estimated the construction date to be 1900, but no supporting materials documenting
<br /> this date accompany the survey, and in the survey ' s overall narrative summary the same author gives 1870
<br /> as the date of construction, 17 According to a family history, Dr. Jordan did not complete his medical
<br /> training at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Baltimore, Maryland, until 1881 , and did not marry
<br /> until 1885 , 18 Further, the earliest recorded land deed in which Dr. Jordan was listed as grantee occurred in
<br /> 1885 , when he purchased a 10 . 5 acre tract from his oldest brother, William Jordan. 19 Dr. Jordan completed
<br /> his land holdings in 1891 , when both of his parents died, and he bought out his brothers ' and sister' s shares
<br /> (some seventy-four acres of land) for S 1 , 150.20
<br /> As noted above, Dr. Jordan sold the property in 1905 , and three local churches used the house for
<br /> nearly a quarter-century as a manse. The tobacco barn appears to have been built in the period from 191 &
<br /> 1 Richard L. Mattson, "History and Architecture of Orange County, North Carolina, " 49 .
<br /> 16 Hillsborough Recorder_ July 28, 1875, vol. 55, 3 .
<br /> 17 Jody Carter, "North Carolina Historic Structure Date Sheet, " "Dr. Arch Jordan House" file, North Carolina
<br /> Division of Archives and History, Department of Cultural Resources, Survey Site # OR 931 .
<br /> 1a Perry, These Jordan Were Here, 200401 . - - — - - -- -
<br /> 19 Deed Book 48 : 331 (February 14, 1885), Orange County, North Carolina.
<br /> Z0 Deed Book 53 : 15 (July 24, 1891 )
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