Location: NC 73 east of Iron Station
County: Lincoln
Original Date Cast: 1942
“Ingleside,” an antebellum Federal-style mansion constructed in 1817, is said by family tradition to have been designed by Benjamin Henry Latrobe, the architect of the U. S. Capitol. However, no documentation has been located to verify the claim. The home was built for Daniel Munroe Forney, the oldest son of French immigrant General Peter Forney. His father was a senator, congressman, and builder of iron works. Jacob Forney, grandfather of Daniel, was a French Huguenot who came to Lincoln County around 1754 from Alsace. He served in the French and Indian War and in the Revolution.
Daniel Forney was born in May 1784 near Lincolnton. He was a member of the North Carolina House from 1815-1818, served as a major in the War of 1812, again served in the legislature from 1823-1827, and was a planter. In 1820 he was appointed by President James Monroe as a commissioner to work with the Creek Indians. He was married to Harriet Brevard Forney, daughter of Alexander Brevard. In 1834 he moved to Alabama and sold the house and 867 acres to James Anderson. Forney remained a farmer and died on October 15, 1847, in Lowndes County, Alabama.
In 1871, James Anderson sold the home along with a small parcel of land to Willis E. Hall. It was the Hall family that gave “Ingleside” its name. It was owned by the Halls until 1947. The home was then purchased in 1951 by David Clark Sr. as a wedding gift to his wife Katherine Goode Clark. Today the home remains in the Clark family and belongs to David’s daughter Caroline.
References:
Marvin A. Brown, Our Enduring Past: A Survey of 235 Years of Life and Architecture in Lincoln County, North Carolina (1986)
John H. Wheeler, Historical Sketches of North Carolina (1851)
William L. Sherrill, Annals of Lincoln County, North Carolina (1972)
Catherine Bishir and Michael Southern, A Guide to Historic Architecture of Piedmont North Carolina (2003)