Thomasville in Davidson County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Mitchell House
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 13, 2023
1. Mitchell House Marker
National Register of Historic Places
September 20, 2000
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Charity & Public Work • Churches & Religion. In addition, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places series list. A significant historical month for this entry is November 1885.
Location. 35° 52.664′ N, 80° 5.629′ W. Marker is in Thomasville, North Carolina, in Davidson County. Marker is on Biggs Avenue, 0.1 miles south of West Main Street, on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 411 Biggs Ave, Thomasville NC 27360, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Thomasville (approx. 0.7 miles away); John W. Thomas (approx. 0.7 miles away); Smith Clinic (approx. 0.8 miles away); a different marker also named Thomasville (approx. 0.9 miles away); Thomasville City Cemetery (approx. one mile away); a different marker also named John W. Thomas (approx. 2.4 miles away); John H. Mills (approx. 2.6 miles away); North Carolina Vietnam Veterans Memorial (approx. 3.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Thomasville.
Regarding Mitchell House. Excerpt from the National Register nomination:
MitchellHouse was the first building on the campus of the Thomasville Baptist Orphanage (now Mills Home), the first child-care facility of what is now Baptist Children's Homes of North Carolina. Built in 1885, Mitchell House, named for donor, Rev. John Mitchell, is the oldest standing building associated with the care of dependent and orphaned children in North Carolina. … Mitchell House represents the important role denominational organizations played in the care of orphaned and dependent children throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in North Carolina. … Mitchell House and Thomasville Baptist Orphanage were originally developed through the efforts of a small group of dedicated Baptist men who formed the Baptist Children's Home Association in 1885 for the purpose of founding a facility for the care of dependent and orphaned children. (Thomasville Baptist Orphanage is now Mills Home, named for John Mills, former owner and editor of the Biblical Recorder who was the driving force behind the founding of the institution.) By the late 1890s, Thomasville Baptist Orphanage became the second largest Baptist orphanage in the southeast. Consequently, the Mitchell House represents the beginning of a 112 year-old network of child-care facilities now known as Baptist Children's Homes, which has provided significant leadership in North Carolina in the care of dependent and orphaned
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this page onlinechildren. The period of significance for the Mitchell House begins in 1885, the date of construction of the building, and ends in 1950, a year that marked the beginning of the modern era of institutional childcare in North Carolina during which Mitchell House and other orphanages in North Carolina began servicing nonorphaned children, placed more emphasis on outreach to families, and began basing educational programs in the greater community rather than within the institution.Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 13, 20232. Mitchell House Marker
Also see . . . Mitchell House (PDF). National Register nomination for the building, which was listed in 2000. (Prepared by Elizabeth Dull; via North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office) (Submitted on January 8, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Credits. This page was last revised on January 8, 2024. It was originally submitted on January 8, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 45 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on January 8, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
