The Calvin Jones House and Plantation

The Calvin Jones House and Plantation. . , Calvin Jones was a physician, politician, newspaper publisher, military leader, educator, and plantation owner , and the last of these is the primary source of his fame in our region. Jones is credited with giving this place its name, changing it from the "Forest of Wake" to "Wake Forest" soon after purchasing the 615-acre farm from previous owner Davis Battle in 1821. Jones opened Wake Forest's first post office in this house. He also saw patients and performed early cataract surgeries. But in 1832 he decided to move his family and enslaved workers to Tennessee., The plantation for sale caught the eye of John Purefoy of Forestville, a local minister who contacted the Baptist State Convention. Since the Convention hoped to establish a college to train young men to become Baptist ministers, the Jones farm was perfectly situated for students from central and eastern North Carolina. (Parlor of the Calvin House House.), The house sat vacant for two years while supporters of the school visited churches across the state seeking funds, supplies, and students. , On February 3, 1834, the Wake Forest Institute opened its doors. The full campus included the main house, grounds, and outbuildings., The second major figure in the history of the house is Samuel Wait. A minister from Vermont who traveled to North Carolina as a missionary, Wait became a leader of the Baptist State Convention. As one of the denomination's strongest supporters, he accepted a request from the Convention to serve as the first principal of what was to be called the Wake Forest Institute. The school opened on February 3, 1834 and was a huge success, By year's end a total of 75 young men had enrolled. The Wait family lived in the house, used the parlor for lessons by candlelight, and served meals in the small dining room. With help from their enslaved workers, the Waits divided the boys alphabetically and fed three separate groups three meals a day in rotating shifts., The Architecture , The two-story frame house is constructed in the Federal style with a traditional hall and parlor form, two back rooms, and a rear stairwell leading to a wide center passage on the second floor. The home has four upstairs bedrooms, four fireplaces and a second level stairwell with two additional attic rooms., The Significance , The Calvin Jones House has become an enduring symbol of the history that is shared by the Town of Wake Forest and Wake Forest University. Through continuing University support it has been repaired, preserved and maintained. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places., Built on the highest point in Wake Forest, the house originally stood where Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary's Stealey Hall is located today. It has been moved three times: in 1835 to make way for the College Building; in 1842 by a private owner; and in 1957 by the Wake Forest Garden Club., The Calvin Jones House was almost demolished after Wake Forest College moved to Winston-Salem in 1956. The campus was purchased by Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, which needed the site for a new cafeteria. Members of the Wake Forest Garden Club launched a preservation effort and, with support from the College, moved the house to its present location. The Garden Club then established a new organization the Calvin Jones Memorial Association, which later became the Wake Forest College Birthplace Society.