culture of the era and some of the things people used, and also let's us know that these folks lived here were not isolated. they weren't and just sitting on a farm in colonial north carolina. they were connected to london, boston, around the atlantic world and were looking for goods to come into town. some of the as talk about come see our latest fashionable stuff from london, so the folks who were living here were connected to the rest of the british empire. so what we are looking at here is a model of 1860's wilmington, the waterfront, this site is downtown wilmington today, the other side is eagles island, which is where the battleship is now, but used to have industrial stuff on it. this is one of the main pieces, a 19th-century gallery. in the 1830's, wilmington became the biggest city in north carolina in part because of the commerce going on here and the city was an early adopter of the railroad, so it was a big center of commerce and trade and gives you a sense of the range of different shipping coming in, but the bustling port city nature of wilmington in the 19th century before the civil war.

>> we are standing next to two old jail cells that date act of the 17th or knees. they are some of the oldest structures here in wilmington. going up, we're going to inside this old colonial home and take you on a tour. >> it is a small colonial out post. this would have been the outskirts of town. anything above fourth or 5th street would have been the wilderness. it was kind of a seedy little town. a lot of sailors coming in about. we had poverty here. on this property on the corner

was three stone and brick buildings that we still have today that have been incorporated into the property and the house. you had general population, a subbasement that is underground for the more grievous crimes like murder and horse thieving, and debtor's prison. we also have mostly intact the jailers quarters where he and his family would have lived. back then, there would have been gallows where people were hanged. that is the original property. once wilmington became more prominent, obviously the quarter is still the busiest intersection of town. wealthy families started taking an interest.

this house incorporates the walls of the jail as its foundation. you are at the center of the store wilmington. you are standing in the original property of the city jail of wilmington from 1744 to 1768. this property and the stone building you see behind were part of the city jail compound. the house that it's built on top of the jail was built in 1770 by a man that uses the wall of the jail as the foundation for the house. the river was a lot closer, that's why we have a front street and a water street area -- and a water street, which continuously floods today. back then the river would have come as far as 2nd street during high tide. it was really important for him to elevate his house and keep it

protected when the floods came through or there was a lot of rain or hurricanes. that meant that when this was a jail, it often flooded with prisoners inside. the jail had been relocated in 1768 after a fire, the wooden roof that would have been above where the houses today was

burned. at the time, wilmington had been here for about 30 years and more and more prominent families were moving into town. more people want to turn this area and to residential rather in -- rather than industrial. the fire burned the roof and the jail is relocated and one of the most well-known parts of town is up for sale. instead of demolishing the walls, they reuse them to incorporate them into the house. let me take you inside the house. this would have been the first space you are introduced in, the great hall. at the time, these halls would have been considered massive. the sheer size of this hall is a footprint of a regular middle-class home. many homes during this era for lower and middle class would have been one or two rooms where the whole family share the space. to have halls this large in the center of your home was the only purpose to greet people and lead to 90 other rooms -- lead them

into other rooms was to impress people. he built this home in 1771 with one purpose, parties. parties translated into business. the more you entertain, the more you make. he worked for the crown. it was the secretary to three royal governors and the treasurer for the colony. he married into a wealthy planter family and became a planter and merchant. when he moved here, he had connections to charleston. he joined a company that inputted -- imported goods. we know he did not actively buy and sell slaves to make money. somebody in wilmington said i have slaves that are purchased in the caribbean, can one of your ships bring them back here? he would do that. he owned overall over 300 people.

we know he actively bought and sold them on a regular basis. but to make money, that was not his trade. this house is a little different. it is owned by a wealthy georgian. this is a georgian society. unlike later on, houses were used a little differently. this not being the primary home, it's only purpose being business, would have been built with that in mind. the first thing to notice is the walls are white, the trim is colored. usually paint her colors on the wall and the trimming is white. keep in mind, you were relying on natural light. the west would have in where you entertain. the right would have been the private rooms. to reallywas meant

impress you. you notice the columns on the walls are similar to the ones outside. you have a crystal chandelier. this is the room you would have been invited to for dinner. often break and use those large halls may be to take some air, stretch your lens. was summertime, dinner started around 8:00, 8:30. it is beautiful, bright, but it also has a purpose. it keeps the room bright late into the evening. at the peak of the season, the sunsets around 9:30 here in wilmington. the yellow turns into an almost white, so it is functional. in this room, he would have wined and dined you. he would've showed you his private garden or orchard.

he would have showed you he was in the center of town. again, all status symbols. river, the view of his ship. what he would not have shown you was the back of the property. once upon a time, we did have slave quarters here. and a carriage house for the horses that we lost to hurricane hazel in 1954. what you don't notice as the very large courtyard directly below us. the house is built at an angle to omit the view of that courtyard that connects the house and the kitchen. during a busy party, the kitchen doors were usually closed where all the bustling is going on to get ready for the party. he is omitting your view of the enslaved workers getting the

food up using a train system. mind the other kitchen is to flights down. -- two flights down. here, you would have come in and serve the gas. we are standing in a courtyard that was committed from the view of the dining room. what you're seeing here is debtor's prison. originally there would have been two windows into a larger room similar to the one we are about to walk into for the general population. colonial justice was very swift. you go to jail, held there into -- until the judge can see you and in four to six weeks he would come from a colonial outpost and try you. essentially that day, you were proven guilty or innocent. however, if you owed money or

have been fined for public drunkenness, you would be held in an outdoor cell. the purpose was for people to come visit you and rent your labor. if you owed money, your family can't pay your debt. you can rent your labor to a farmer to plow their fields, and the money they pay you goes to the shares to go towards your debt. as you work off your debt, you are eventually freed. behind this area is the larger building. the left side would have been cages, and the right was the sheriff's office. the jailers quarters was here. he was on the property 24/7 making sure the prisoners are taken care of, fed, not escaping. the compound itself and the orchard would have been the beginning of the gallows where people were hanged. there would have been stocks and hillary's -- and pillories and an outdoor cage.

if you were enslaved and caught running away, you would not be brought into general population, you would be kept outside. what we are about to walk into is the jailers quarters that then became his kitchen. the original lock is still here and functional from 1739. we have the replica here. the original is inside the house. we don't want to use it because we want to make sure it continues being functional. this was the jailers quarters about the same size as the great , hall inside the house. he would have lived here with his family, possibly a wife and children. that was pretty typical. there is no middle class in the colonial area. you were either not doing so well or wealthy, so it was not uncommon for families to live in rooms no bigger than this. this was the original hearth used to cook their meals. later on, it is here that can accommodate two cooks who will live and work here and use the space as a kitchen.

during the revolutionary war, he is essentially a loyalist. he has connections to the crown. he is working for the crown. that's where his alliances are. a lot of the wealthy planters in the area tipped that fine line as long as possible between being part of the cause and fighting with the english because there is money involved. he is making business deals with people who consider themselves rebels and patriots. he is also doing business with the crown. ultimately, when it came time to really make a choice, he went back to england, used the medical excuse for that departure. we can infer from the letters that he is accused of being a loyalist. he has to come back after the war and seek pardon which he does several years later. when he came back and got pardoned and became an american

citizen his three children and , second wife also became american, and he stayed here until his death. they are a prominent family during the colonial era. they are prominent here in wilmington to this day. several streets around town are named after them. several houses are named after them. many of the oldest families are connected to the wrights. when john left to go back to england during the revolutionary war, he rented the house to one of his good friends wright, his business associate. he rented the house here during the revolution, and when he got part in after the war, he sold it to the wrights. they were here from 1799 until the 1870's, and this became the primary home. three generations lived here, the third sold it.

in 1930, the last owner passed away. the house was being threaten with demolition. the years were not interested in the property. -- the heirs were not interested in the property. it was in a prominent location, and there was money to be made if you sold it. standard oil was starting to buy corners in downtown area for their gas stations. in 1930, when the last owner passed, the property transferred to the bank. the heirs wanted the bank to sell the property. standard oil wanted to buy this corner and demolish the house. it took eight years for the national society of colonial dames to campaign throughout wilmington to purchase this property instead of standard oil. it took eight years of campaigning and making counteroffers. finally they were able to acquire it. in 1951 when the house was restored to its colonial glory, it was opened as a museum.

is one of the oldest historic houses open to the public in the south. it opened march 30, 1951. what i hope visitors learn by visiting this house is the rich history that is here. a lot of people come initially for the architecture and furnishing. it is beautiful, but learning who the people were. we had three types of people here on this property. we had prisoners, enslaved people, and the wealthiest man -- one of the wealthiest men in the southeast. it is interesting to bring the house to life by talking about these people and what their lives were like if you are a prisoner. all weekend long, american history tv is joining our charter communications partners to showcase the history of wilmington, north carolina.