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Rural Southwest Alabama: Attractions

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Wilson-Finlay Home at Gainestown, AL (built ca. 1846-1851)

Antebellum | Gainestown in Clarke County  

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The Wilson-Finlay House is a historic plantation house located in the southern part of Clarke County at Gainestown. This house was built between 1846 and 1851 for Dr. Joshua Sanford Wilson by Isaac Fuller from Maine. Wilson, born in 1792 in Halifax County, NC, was a physician, planter, and politician. His father, the Reverend Joshua Wilson, settled in Gainestown around 1817. He was a Revolutionary War veteran and Methodist minister.

This two-story Greek Revival-style house features limestone ashlar foundations and front columns, which is very unusual in Alabama. The limestone, which has visible marine fossils, was quarried locally, at the Gainestown Quarry on the Alabama River.

This house was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage (ARLH) on September 17, 1976, and placed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on July 12, 1978.

This home is located beside CR 29 at Gainestown, AL (31°27’13.7″N 87°41’29.7″W – Google Maps).

This is a private residence – drive by only. (The house is located on a wooded lot and you can get only glimpses of it as you pass on the main road.)

Sources: 1) NRHP “Wilson-Finlay House” Nomination Form; 2) clarkemuseum.com; 3) wikipedia.org/Wilson–Finlay_House.

Tags: alabama, antebellum, black belt, clarke county, gainestown, house, plantation

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About This Website

Welcome to rural southwest Alabama. This website is dedicated to twelve counties located in rural southwest Alabama which includes a large portion of Alabama’s Black Belt area. This region is known for its rich and diverse heritage, historic homes and churches, and natural beauty. This website contains details about historic and interesting places that you will find in this area of Alabama.

PLEASE NOTE THAT MOST OF THE HOMES INCLUDED ARE PRIVATE RESIDENCES AND, UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED, ARE DRIVE BY ONLY.

We hope that you enjoy this website.

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Dedicated to the memory of Stacy Milstead Henson (1978-2008) & Inez “Sis” Watts (1924-2007).

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