Endview

Endview. . , Building a Home and Family, The story of Endview Plantation centers on the Harwood/Curtis family. Thomas Harwood arrived in the area from England in 1622 or 1623. By 1635, he acquired land that included the present-day site of Endview. The property descended through five generations in the Harwood family until William Harwood built Endview here in 1769. Subsequent generations owned and farmed Endview's land for the next 90 years., In 1858, Dr. Humphrey Harwood Curtis, a great-grandson of William Harwood, acquired the property. Records indicate that by 1861 Dr. Curtis and his wife Maria lived on 910 acres with 77 head of livestock, three horses and four mules. According to the 1860 census, 12 enslaved Africans were also living here at that time., Dr. and Mrs. Curtis had 11 children of whom eight survived into adulthood. Dr. Curtis died in 1881. Mrs. Curtis continued to manage the farm with assistance from her eldest son Simon until her death in 1919., The Changing Landscape, When this property was settled by the Harwood family, meadows, woods, and streams made up the natural landscape. For thousands of years before, Native Americans had hunted and gathered plants and other materials on the land for subsistence. Once farming commenced in the 17th century, agricultural enterprises changed the landscape dramatically., By 1769, in addition to the house you see today, there would have been a variety of outbuildings and landscape features. Documented 19th century structures include a kitchen, a privy, a barn, slave quarters, and eventually Dr. Curtis's medical office., Endview, like other farms and plantations during this era, had to be self-sufficient. Inhabitants had to be ready to grow almost everything they needed to sustain themselves. Farming of this land continued well into the 20th century., (Photo Captions), Maria Curtis in the yard with guests, circa 1894, Sweet potato planting, 1862 (photo not taken at Endview), Maria Whitaker Curtis circa 1858, The Simon Curtis family circa 1900 , Left to right: Elsie, Simon, Coleman, Nannie and Douglas