Friday, July 29, 2011
WHITEMONT LODGE PHOTOGRAPHS
Interior - the 2200 Square Foot Great Room is a work of art created by the owner Nancy Alexander. There is something dramatic to catch the eye on every surface. The skylights are forty feet above the floor past the railed balcony that surrounds the atrium. Bare brick walls with 26 large light enhancing windows surround the shining oak flooring with oriental carpets and cozy seating areas. The center piece is a massive stone fireplace. Numerous colorful light sources give a warm glow at night.
Friday, July 15, 2011
WHITEMONT LODGE GARDENS
Whitemont Lodge has over 2 acres of old growth oak forest and gardens. When you awake in the upstairs bedrooms you share the treetops with the birds as if you lived in a giant tree house. Evenings on the North and East terraces is a refreshing experience giving the feeling of being deep in a secluded wood.
Monday, December 20, 2010
WHITEMONT LODGE WINTER DECOR
HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM WHITEMONT LODGE
a few views of Nancy's beautiful holiday decorations
a few views of Nancy's beautiful holiday decorations
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
THE HISTORY OF WHITEMONT LODGE
WHITEMONT LODGE
Whitemont Lodge is located just east of Asheville, NC near Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, NC.
This grand lodge is set in the midst of its own 2 ½ acre old-growth forest. As was originally intended, it remains non-visible from any vantage point except from the sky.
The lodge was originally built by local businessmen and polititions from Asheville during Prohibition as a “gentlemen’s club.” No cost was spared in building this structure, as evidenced by the 13” steel eye-beam infrastructure, beautiful river rock exterior, huge fireplace, walls bordering the terrace, and the handmade brick walls throughout the main floor. The living room is 2000 square feet, and features a large atrium open to the 40+foot eaves. The second floor gallery is flanked by doors leading to the bedrooms and other “necessary” rooms.
There is no record of this structure ever being built, as it was built secretively by people of obvious local power.
Since Prohibition was enacted in North Carolina in 1908, eleven years before it was enacted nationally, pinpointing the exact date of construction is even more difficult to determine.
The rockwork appears to be exactly like that of structures built by E.W. Grove, famous for building historic Grove Park Inn in Asheville. The rock itself was apparently gathered from the Swannanoa River, and the style of the masonry work is remarkably similar to that of the rock masons who worked for Grove.
With the help of a professional local historian, it has been confirmed that the Lodge was indeed built on part of what was then “Alexander Farms”, a 1500 acre farm owned by my great-grandfather, Charles Alexander. Therefore, it turns out that my great-grandfather allowed these men to build their Lodge on his property! Much of the farm property was sold to Warren Wilson College in 1957, after Charles Alexander’s death. The ruins of his home and out-buildings are visible near the trail entrance to Jones Mountain.
The first record of this structure appears in the Buncombe County deeds in 1935, when Charles Alexander sold the property to two women from St. Louis, Genevieve Lawler and Ruth Lionberger. They operated a fine arts school on the property until 1945. It was called “Associate Arts Studio-Camp”. These women had previously operated an art school in St. Louis called “The Workbench” for the ten years previous to buying this property. We have the entire brochure for the Studio-Camp, including many pictures of the 18-acre property with its out-buildings.
In 1945 the property, which then included 18 acres, was bought by a couple from Florida- Peter and Elizabeth White. They operated a girls’ tennis camp called “Whitemont Lodge Camp for Girls” until the late 1960’s. Photos and brochures for the Camp from those years have been preserved. Toward the end of the 1960’s the Whites tried to sell the property as what we now call a “time-share.” A copy of the prospectus regarding this is also preserved.
The property did not sell, and was basically abandoned for almost 20 years. During this time local high school and college kids enjoyed the use of the Lodge as a “secret” place to meet and do what kids naturally do. The property subsequently became overgrown with huge vines and other overgrowth, as the Lodge was vandalized. By the time it was bought in approximately 1987 the Lodge was so overgrown with vines one could not even discern that there was a structure underneath it all. Photos of this also exist.
At this time a developer from Florida bought the Lodge and its acreage with the intention of tearing down the Lodge and making two building lots where it stands. It was “saved” from demolition by a local realtor, who did some initial clean-up of the Lodge. He then sold it in 1988 to a family from New Hampshire. This couple worked on the Lodge for 3 years bringing it up to standard living code. Soon after the family was able to move in to the Lodge, the father/husband died, leaving his wife and 2 teenage daughters. His widow had the property on the real estate market for 5 years before Nancy Alexander bought it and started the ongoing renovation of the Lodge and grounds in 1997. The Lodge is located on 2.5 acres in the center of what is now a development with 10 other homes.
Whitemont Lodge is now a favorite gathering space for dinners, small weddings, and general enjoyment of the atmosphere, both inside and out. It has been the subject of several newspaper articles, the backdrop for photo shoots, and has appeared on Home and Garden Television’s “Building Character”. In 2006 the home and gardens were chosen to be toured by delegates from the Keep America Beautiful national convention, held in Asheville.
Asheville is known for its fine local artisans, and many of their works are incorporated in the design and decor of this whimsical yet remarkably beautiful place. A common comment made by visitors is that the entire place has such a “good feeling” that they don’t want to leave. Many evenings continue to be enjoyed on the terrace listening to the symphony of the relaxing sounds of water spilling over the rock waterfall, crickets, tree frogs, owls, and other wildlife that exist in its own ecosphere on the property surrounding Whitemont Lodge.
Nancy Alexander
August 21, 2008
Whitemont Lodge is located just east of Asheville, NC near Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, NC.
This grand lodge is set in the midst of its own 2 ½ acre old-growth forest. As was originally intended, it remains non-visible from any vantage point except from the sky.
The lodge was originally built by local businessmen and polititions from Asheville during Prohibition as a “gentlemen’s club.” No cost was spared in building this structure, as evidenced by the 13” steel eye-beam infrastructure, beautiful river rock exterior, huge fireplace, walls bordering the terrace, and the handmade brick walls throughout the main floor. The living room is 2000 square feet, and features a large atrium open to the 40+foot eaves. The second floor gallery is flanked by doors leading to the bedrooms and other “necessary” rooms.
There is no record of this structure ever being built, as it was built secretively by people of obvious local power.
Since Prohibition was enacted in North Carolina in 1908, eleven years before it was enacted nationally, pinpointing the exact date of construction is even more difficult to determine.
The rockwork appears to be exactly like that of structures built by E.W. Grove, famous for building historic Grove Park Inn in Asheville. The rock itself was apparently gathered from the Swannanoa River, and the style of the masonry work is remarkably similar to that of the rock masons who worked for Grove.
With the help of a professional local historian, it has been confirmed that the Lodge was indeed built on part of what was then “Alexander Farms”, a 1500 acre farm owned by my great-grandfather, Charles Alexander. Therefore, it turns out that my great-grandfather allowed these men to build their Lodge on his property! Much of the farm property was sold to Warren Wilson College in 1957, after Charles Alexander’s death. The ruins of his home and out-buildings are visible near the trail entrance to Jones Mountain.
The first record of this structure appears in the Buncombe County deeds in 1935, when Charles Alexander sold the property to two women from St. Louis, Genevieve Lawler and Ruth Lionberger. They operated a fine arts school on the property until 1945. It was called “Associate Arts Studio-Camp”. These women had previously operated an art school in St. Louis called “The Workbench” for the ten years previous to buying this property. We have the entire brochure for the Studio-Camp, including many pictures of the 18-acre property with its out-buildings.
In 1945 the property, which then included 18 acres, was bought by a couple from Florida- Peter and Elizabeth White. They operated a girls’ tennis camp called “Whitemont Lodge Camp for Girls” until the late 1960’s. Photos and brochures for the Camp from those years have been preserved. Toward the end of the 1960’s the Whites tried to sell the property as what we now call a “time-share.” A copy of the prospectus regarding this is also preserved.
The property did not sell, and was basically abandoned for almost 20 years. During this time local high school and college kids enjoyed the use of the Lodge as a “secret” place to meet and do what kids naturally do. The property subsequently became overgrown with huge vines and other overgrowth, as the Lodge was vandalized. By the time it was bought in approximately 1987 the Lodge was so overgrown with vines one could not even discern that there was a structure underneath it all. Photos of this also exist.
At this time a developer from Florida bought the Lodge and its acreage with the intention of tearing down the Lodge and making two building lots where it stands. It was “saved” from demolition by a local realtor, who did some initial clean-up of the Lodge. He then sold it in 1988 to a family from New Hampshire. This couple worked on the Lodge for 3 years bringing it up to standard living code. Soon after the family was able to move in to the Lodge, the father/husband died, leaving his wife and 2 teenage daughters. His widow had the property on the real estate market for 5 years before Nancy Alexander bought it and started the ongoing renovation of the Lodge and grounds in 1997. The Lodge is located on 2.5 acres in the center of what is now a development with 10 other homes.
Whitemont Lodge is now a favorite gathering space for dinners, small weddings, and general enjoyment of the atmosphere, both inside and out. It has been the subject of several newspaper articles, the backdrop for photo shoots, and has appeared on Home and Garden Television’s “Building Character”. In 2006 the home and gardens were chosen to be toured by delegates from the Keep America Beautiful national convention, held in Asheville.
Asheville is known for its fine local artisans, and many of their works are incorporated in the design and decor of this whimsical yet remarkably beautiful place. A common comment made by visitors is that the entire place has such a “good feeling” that they don’t want to leave. Many evenings continue to be enjoyed on the terrace listening to the symphony of the relaxing sounds of water spilling over the rock waterfall, crickets, tree frogs, owls, and other wildlife that exist in its own ecosphere on the property surrounding Whitemont Lodge.
Nancy Alexander
August 21, 2008
Monday, July 26, 2010
WHITEMONT LODGE OBAMA HEADQUARTERS
Cross-posted from DAILY KOS AND RUSH LIMBAUGHTOMY
How I met Nancy Alexander and came to know Whitemont Lodge.
NORTH CAROLINA GOTV HALLOWEEN TRIP
After a month in Boulder Colorado (see the pictures below) I still had not had enough so I headed over to Asheville NC from Knoxville on Thursday to work with the Obama effort in Western NC
Saturday was a truly enjoyable day at Swannanoa GOTV headquarters
This is Whitemont Lodge in Swannanoa
It was a beautiful day in the mountains and you see the volunteers phone banking from the terrace
Our hostess was Nancy Alexander(in red) who provided this unique and beautiful place as the staging area for the 50 Volunteers who spread out across the area canvassing for votes or used their cell phones to phone prospective voters
There was no mistake that this is OBAMA for PRESIDENT headquarters in Swannanoa
This was the corner reserved for the data entry people where I spent most of the day registering the information gathered by the phone and canvassing people in the Vote Builder data base
Even the Smokey Mountain Black Bears are firmly in the Obama camp
Dolly and her partner kept a keen eye on the proceedings from the terrace
As the sun set over the Smokey Mountains to the West it had the feel of the sun setting on the Republican control of the executive in the USA
How I met Nancy Alexander and came to know Whitemont Lodge.
NORTH CAROLINA GOTV HALLOWEEN TRIP
After a month in Boulder Colorado (see the pictures below) I still had not had enough so I headed over to Asheville NC from Knoxville on Thursday to work with the Obama effort in Western NC
Saturday was a truly enjoyable day at Swannanoa GOTV headquarters
This is Whitemont Lodge in Swannanoa
It was a beautiful day in the mountains and you see the volunteers phone banking from the terrace
Our hostess was Nancy Alexander(in red) who provided this unique and beautiful place as the staging area for the 50 Volunteers who spread out across the area canvassing for votes or used their cell phones to phone prospective voters
There was no mistake that this is OBAMA for PRESIDENT headquarters in Swannanoa
This was the corner reserved for the data entry people where I spent most of the day registering the information gathered by the phone and canvassing people in the Vote Builder data base
Even the Smokey Mountain Black Bears are firmly in the Obama camp
Dolly and her partner kept a keen eye on the proceedings from the terrace
As the sun set over the Smokey Mountains to the West it had the feel of the sun setting on the Republican control of the executive in the USA
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