TAR HEEL — Ever thought about what it would be like to own a historic Bladen County home? If so, now is your chance.
Preservation North Carolina has put the Purdie House, located at 11456 N.C. 87 in tar Heel, on the market at a list price of $239,000.
Built between 1803 and 1809, the Purdie House has 2,798 square feet and is situated on just over 47 acres of land.
The home was built by James S. Purdie, who had significant land holdings in the area as early as 1788 — at which time he was recorded as owning 1,920 acres and 28 slaves by the 1790 census. Purdie inherited the family plantation after the death of his father in 1818. He served as sheriff of Bladen County in the 1780s and was a private in the Continental Line during the American Revolution.
Prior to beginning construction of the present house, Purdie lived in an earlier house on the north side of the Cape Fear River.
A chapel was also built as part of the larger complex as early as 1800, but the first chapel was destroyed by fire and replaced by the present chapel in 1845, which is located across the road from the present house.
The estate was deeded to Jame’s wife Anna Maria following his death in 1834, and under her management, the plantation grew substantially — with holdings of more than 1,300 acres and 60 slaves by the 1850 census. The Purdies continued ownership of the estate until 1946. It has been owned by the Mitchell family since their purchase in 1972, under whose careful restoration and stewardship resulted in its listing in the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.
According to the Preservation NC website, the Purdie House, also known as Purdie Place, is “a Federal-style plantation house … set on a high bluff and bordering the Cape Fear River just south of Tar Heel. This stately brick edifice has double galleries facing the river and road sides with a rare original exterior stair on the riverside porch. It is one of a few remaining plantation houses that dotted early maps along the Cape Fear River.”
Interested individuals should contact Cathleen Turner at 919-401-8540.
W. Curt Vincent can be reached at 910-862-4163 or cvincent@bladenjournal.com.