Information
Landmark: Ezekiel Harris HouseCity: Augusta
Country: USA Georgia
Continent: North America
Ezekiel Harris House, Augusta, USA Georgia, North America
Overview
At 1822 Broad Street in Augusta, Georgia, the Ezekiel Harris House stands as a rare, remarkably well-kept window into late 18th-century American architecture and the early bustle of local trade.This house, built in 1797, stands as one of Augusta’s oldest survivors, its red-brick walls and balanced lines showcasing Federal-style design touched with Georgian elegance.It carries rich historical and architectural significance, showing Ezekiel Harris’s bold vision and the bustling beginnings of Augusta as a place where goods and voices filled its dusty streets.Ezekiel Harris, a tobacco merchant from Edgefield, South Carolina, once carried the scent of cured leaves wherever he went.In the late 1700s, he settled near Augusta, aiming to build a bustling tobacco market and shipping hub that could stand toe-to-toe with the city-wagon wheels rumbling over dirt roads as trade began to grow.Just north of the city, Harris bought more than 300 acres and started the little settlement of Harrisburg, hoping to build a community centered on tobacco-its rich scent hanging in the air-and brisk trade.To back the venture, Harris built a large home-warm brick walls and wide front steps-that housed his family and stood as a clear sign of his wealth and standing.Harris placed the house just steps from the Savannah River, where he built a weathered wooden warehouse and ran a ferry to carry tobacco and other goods across the water.He worked as part of a broader push to seize on Augusta’s rising role as a hub for trade in Georgia and across the South, where wagon wheels rattled down busy streets lined with storefronts.Ezekiel Harris was driven to succeed, but he found himself up against seasoned merchants like John Hammond, sparking bitter court battles and personal feuds-accusations of arson and even a shadowy shooting that left smoke curling over the street.In the end, money troubles pushed Harris to let go of most of his Harrisburg land, including the fields where wildflowers once grew.He moved to Washington, Georgia, and died there in 1829, a quiet town where pine trees lined the dusty road.Harrisburg never thrived the way he’d imagined, but the Ezekiel Harris House still stands-its brick walls a reminder of that first wave of American ambition and westward growth.The Ezekiel Harris House stands out for its striking blend of styles, capturing the shift from the symmetry of Georgian design to the refined elegance of Federal architecture-a look you’d often see in the late 1700s and early 1800s, with tall windows catching the afternoon light.The design captures the graceful balance and clean symmetry that define these styles.One of the house’s most eye-catching features is its gambrel roof, a style you’d expect to see on a weathered colonial up north, not here in the South.With two slopes on each side, this double-pitched roof shapes a distinctive silhouette, the kind you might spot on an old farmhouse at dusk.The vaulted central hallway arches overhead, serving both purpose and beauty, greeting visitors with a grand sweep of space that immediately sets the mood for the entire house.Tiered piazzas wrap the house in two stacked porches, each held up by sturdy chamfered wooden posts that feel smooth under your hand.These porches offered a shady spot to relax in Georgia’s warm air and added a touch of grace to the house’s design.The exterior is clad in beaded clapboards-a decorative wooden siding with a subtle ridge along each board-and the porches boast chamfered supports and trim carved with intricate patterns.You can see the craftsmanship in every corner-the smooth join of the wood, the precise lines-clear proof of the care that went into building the house.The floor plan reveals the home’s period style, with tall ceilings, polished wood trim, and rooms branching off a central hallway.Inside, the house still holds on to its original features-worn oak floors, hand-hewn beams-that let visitors step straight into the feel of 18th‑century domestic life.By the mid-1900s, the Ezekiel Harris House stood weathered and worn, its paint peeling in thin curls after years of neglect.In 1964, recognizing its rich history and striking architecture, local preservationists teamed up with the Augusta Museum of History to launch a full restoration, even polishing the worn brass door handles back to their original gleam.The restoration aimed to keep the house’s original wood and stone intact, protect its character, and make sure the building stood solid enough for visitors to walk through safely.After it was restored, the Ezekiel Harris House earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places, securing both its protection and its place in the nation’s story-its white clapboard walls now standing as proof of that honor.Today, it serves as a historic house museum run by the Augusta Museum of History, where visitors can step into Augusta’s early days and glimpse the life of a well-known tobacco merchant, right down to the scent of cured leaves in the study.Step inside the Ezekiel Harris House and you’ll find a vivid lesson in architecture, early American trade, and the social life of the late 1700s and early 1800s-right down to the creak of its original wooden floors.On the tour, you’ll dive into the life and ambitions of Ezekiel Harris-his part in Augusta’s tobacco trade, the sweet scent of cured leaves still lingering in memory, and the bold vision he had for Harrisburg.The brickwork patterns and elegant trim reveal the craftsmanship and building methods of the Federal and Georgian eras.Life in Augusta after the Revolutionary War unfolded in a mix of bustling trade and shifting social ties, with streets still echoing the clatter of wagon wheels.Early entrepreneurs in the developing South wrestled with tough challenges-scarce resources, uncertain markets, and long days under a blazing sun.You can visit the house on Saturdays between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., and if you’d like to come at another time, just book an appointment.The low admission price makes it easy for both locals and visitors to wander through this historic site, hearing the echo of footsteps on its old stone floors.You’ll find the Ezekiel Harris House at 1822 Broad Street in Augusta, Georgia, a striking piece of early American architecture that still echoes the city’s commercial and social past; it’s open Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with weekday visits by appointment, and admission is $2 for adults, $1 for children-call the Augusta Museum of History at (706) 722-8454 for details.With its Federal-style grace touched by Georgian detail, a rare gambrel roof, and interiors kept much as they were, the house lets you step into the world of a late 18th-century tobacco merchant and feel the ambitions of a young Southern town.Restoring it and keeping it open as a museum turn it into a priceless cultural and educational treasure, safeguarding a vivid chapter of Georgia’s history-like the scent of old pine floors-for people today and those yet to come.
