Flat Top Manor

(Information for this article came from Sandy Adair and A Mansion in the Mountains by Philip T. Noblitt)

For the last two hurricane seasons, we’ve tucked our sailboat “Up Jinks” in the safety of Rio Dulce, Guatemala, and headed home for an extended visit to the States. This past summer, we decided to head to the mountains of North Carolina for the month of August. Our main motivation was to get somewhere cool.  We really didn’t relish the heat and humidity of the South, especially since we stay most of the year in a tropical climate. 

Through the website www.vrbo.com (Vacation Rentals By Owner), John found us a neat little two bedroom, two bath bungalow in Seven Devils half way between Boone and Linville.  It was a perfect retreat, enough room to spread out, great hills for walking, and strategically located near many of the attractions in the area – not the least of which was The Blue Ridge Parkway. 

Within a short thirty minute drive, we could get to that 469-mile ribbon of quaint road which winds snakelike through the Blue Ridge Mountains from Shenandoah National Park in Virginia to The Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee.  It’s a cornucopia of beautiful scenery, campgrounds, lookouts, and points of interest all wrapped in a nostalgic blanket of rural Americana that, with every mile, allows one to reminisce about days gone by.

We decided one morning to get on the Parkway and just drive until something caught our interest enough to stop.  Our entry point was a little south of Blowing Rock and we continued in that direction for no more than fifteen minutes when the sign for Cone Mansion appeared on the shoulder.  We turned off the Parkway and took the indicated drive which quickly filtered into a parking lot.  After parking the car, we followed a brief walkway bordered by a natural hedge of rhododendron.  The walkway opened up to a vista with rolling hills stretching downward back towards Blowing Rock.  A lake nestled serenely at the bottom. 

Immediately to our right, majestically perched on a prominent ridge, was a massive white house.  Obviously this was the Cone Mansion and, even more obviously, the stately overseer of a once grand estate. We spent a delightful few hours with Sandy Adair, a National Park Service guide, who shared with us the history of the summer home of Moses and Bertha Cone.

People familiar with the history of North Carolina know the Cone name well.  Herman Kahn was one of 200,000 German Jews who migrated to the U.S. between 1830 and 1880. He changed his last name to Cone and, after marrying Helen Guggenheim, established a dry goods business in Jonesborough, Tennessee.  They had four children – Moses, Caesar, Etta and Claribel.  Over the next 130 years, the Cones embarked on a familial journey that would “take them from social and economic obscurity to conspicuous affluence and industrial prominence.” By 1908 Cone Mills was the largest producer of denims in the world.  In 1983 the textile giant operated 21 plants, employed 10,800 people, and had net sales of $608 million.

The second generation of Cones, particularly Moses and Caesar, mirrored the stereotypical turn-of-the- 20th century “rags to riches” stories.  They worked hard to accumulate wealth and when they did, they consciously and carefully acted in ways that were considered appropriate to their class and place.  They worked equally hard on shedding their unwanted immigrant mantle and assimilating into their new communities.  This new-found status required a lifestyle encompassing philanthropic pursuits, participation in the Chamber of Commerce and an awareness of culture.

Another common element of the wealthy during this period was ownership of a country estate.  After the industrialization and urbanization following the Civil War, there was a shift of sentiment back to nature.  “Late 19th Century Americans believed that the environment governed human behavior.  They were convinced that living in country places not only promoted health but provided emotional, spiritual and moral uplift.”  

To this end, Moses Cone set out to establish his legacy through the building of such an estate.  He chose Blowing Rock for several reasons.  Its 4000-foot elevation offered refreshing temperatures during the hot, humid months of June, July and August.  The scenery was second to none in the region with views of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  The cool, fresh air allowed for some of his favorite outdoor activities like horseback riding and fishing.

Probably more importantly, though, the comfortable social atmosphere of Blowing Rock appealed to Moses.  He was a man of means, but more in line with New South bankers and industrialists, not with the wealth of a Vanderbilt or Carnegie.  Blowing Rock presented him with “congenial company where he felt free to move around in like-minded circles.”

Moses began purchasing property in the 1890’s.  Ultimately, he bought 3650 acres for a total of $29,000.  The initial project on the estate was the establishment of a model orchard and stock farm.  By 1899, he had planted 25,100 apple trees and some 2000 peach, pear, plum and cherry trees.   At the pinnacle, there were 32,000 trees bearing 75 varieties of apples. The orchards not only served as a diversion from his other business pursuits, but also as a demonstration of the benefits of scientific pomology.  Moses was influenced in this approach by George Vanderbilt, son of railroad mogul Cornelius, who was similarly pursuing exemplary foresting techniques on his massive Asheville, NC, estate called Biltmore.

Soon to follow the orchards were 25 miles of carefully landscaped carriage roads wide enough for two surreys traveling in opposite directions to pass each other.  Then came Trout and Bass Lakes stocked routinely with their namesakes.  Flower gardens bloomed from strategic locations. 

In 1900, Moses turned his attention to building the manor house.  He and Bertha chose a 3-story, 23-room plan in the Colonial revival style which featured straight lines, flat surfaces, balance, symmetry, extensive porches and balconies, and a portico which divided the house into two identical wings.  In doing so, they set out to express their love of patriotism and respect for the beginnings of America.  They also wanted to identify with an established American ancestry that they did not possess which was all a part of their desire to distance themselves from their immigrant past. It took over a year to complete the house at a cost of $60,000 to $75,000.  To give some perspective, at that time habitable houses in Blowing Rock cost $100 to $200.  Moses and Bertha named their home Flat Top Manor because of its location about two miles south of Flat Top Mountain.

Even though the architecture and furnishings of Flat Top Manor were colonial, it was a thoroughly modern residence.  There was a gas lighting system throughout as well as a telephone system.  In every room, vents carried the warmth from a wood-burning central heating system.  The bathrooms housed siphon jet water closets. Elegant accents included leaded glass windows, maple flooring, circular windows and ornately carved mantel pieces. 

Besides the manor house, there was a 3000 square-foot carriage house and stable.  The 1600 square-foot laundry house had a basement divided into the gaslight plant and ice house.  Every winter, workers would chop ice out of the lakes and pack it in sawdust.  The ice would last all summer.  All in all, it took thirty tenant-farmer families plus the house staff to manage the entire estate.

Our visit to Flat Top Manor occurred more than a century after it was built. The house we toured with Sandy Adair that day represents only a shell of its past grandeur.  Moses Cone died seven years after Flat Top was completed.  Bertha continued to manage the estate well into her eighties. When she died, the ownership of the property converted to the Greensboro Hospital Systems, an arrangement made years before.  In 1949, The National Park Service assumed responsibility for the management and protection of Moses H. Cone Memorial Park which includes Flat Top Manor and its surrounding 3650 acres.

The laundry and carriage house no longer exist.  Fewer than 650 of the 32,000 apple trees remain.  More than one-half of the estate’s 500 acres of pastures have reverted back to forest and there is no more fishing on Bass Lake, just ducks performing a little water ballet in the lily pads.  The once fashionable interior is now replaced with park offices and craft shops.  But even with this mere echo of things past, the significance of Flat Top Manor is not lost on its visitors, nor the impact of Moses Cone and his family on the state of North Carolina.  It’s well worth the visit should you find yourself in the Blowing Rock area.
 

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