William Poole House

The William Poole House, also known as the William Cade Thompson House, is a historic Greek Revival residence in Dayton, Alabama. It was completed in 1848 as a wedding gift commissioned by John D. Catlin for his ward, Sarah Altona Terrell, and her husband, William Cade Thompson. Catlin arranged for the building to serve both as the couple’s marital home and as a substantial residence reflecting the architectural conventions and social status of the antebellum Alabama Canebrake region. The property is an example of the two-story “I-house” form commonly associated with the Deep South. Its principal block is organized around tall, high-ceilinged passageways on both floors, while a single-story, two-room rear ell is connected to the main section by a breezeway-like hall. Rear galleries and wide double doors shaped the circulation and ventilation of the original design. The house is particularly notable for the unusually tall windows on both levels. The second-floor windows extend close to the floor and retain curved interior railings, sometimes described as “baby-catchers,” intended to prevent falls from the upstairs bedrooms. The house’s early history is closely connected to the plantation economy and slaveholding society of nineteenth-century Alabama. Its patron, John D. Catlin, was among the state’s early millionaires and held several plantations, a townhouse, and 179 enslaved people in 1850. The building therefore represents not only an architectural style but also the wealth and social structures that supported plantation ownership in the antebellum South. The Thompson family occupied the house for less than a decade. William Cade Thompson died in 1854, followed by Sarah Altona Terrell Thompson in 1856. The property then passed through several owners. The Browning family held it until 1882, when it was sold to the Watlington family. David Miller Prowell acquired it in 1917, and the Prowell family retained it until 1959. Later owners Robert and Sarah Billings of Birmingham used the residence as a country retreat and called it “Magnolia Mound.” Mr. and Mrs. William Poole purchased the house in 1978 and undertook an extensive restoration. Their ownership gave the property the name by which it is now commonly identified, although its earlier association with the Thompson family remains part of its historical record. The house and its surrounding grounds were added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 7, 1994, through the “Plantation Houses of the Alabama Canebrake and Their Associated Outbuildings” multiple-property submission. It is best understood as a historic architectural property rather than as a commercial brand, with significance derived from its design, ownership history, preservation, and relationship to Alabama’s plantation landscape.

The William Poole House was completed in 1848 in Dayton, Alabama. John D. Catlin commissioned the residence for his ward, Sarah Altona Terrell, and her husband, William Cade Thompson. It was intended as a wedding gift and as the couple’s home after their marriage on August 10, 1847. The house was built in the Greek Revival style, a form widely used for substantial residences in the antebellum American South, and follows the regional two-story I-house plan. Catlin’s wealth came from the plantation economy. Historical accounts identify him as one of Alabama’s early millionaires and record that he owned three plantations, a townhouse, and 179 enslaved people in 1850. This context is essential to understanding the resources and social hierarchy associated with the house. The property is therefore both an architectural artifact and a surviving physical reminder of the antebellum plantation system and its dependence on enslaved labor. The original design consists of a tall, two-story central block divided by broad, high-ceilinged halls. A one-story, two-room ell projects from the rear. A breezeway-like passage separates the ell from the main block, and rear galleries were accessed through wide double doors. Subsequent alterations changed aspects of the original arrangement, but the principal form remains legible. Among the house’s distinctive details are its exceptionally high windows. Those on the second floor reach nearly to the floor and have curved interior railings designed to reduce the risk of occupants falling through them. William Thompson died on May 25, 1854, and Sarah died on July 6, 1856. Their family retained the residence for fewer than ten years. The Browning family subsequently owned it until September 1882, when the property passed to the Watlington family. David Miller Prowell purchased it on July 14, 1917, and the Prowell family kept it until 1959. In 1959, Robert and Sarah Billings of Birmingham acquired the house. They used it as a country retreat and referred to it as “Magnolia Mound.” In 1978, William Poole and his wife purchased the property. The Pooles carried out an extensive restoration, and the residence thereafter became widely known as the William Poole House. The name reflects its later preservation history rather than its original ownership. The house and the surrounding grounds were listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 7, 1994. The listing was made as part of the multiple-property submission covering plantation houses of the Alabama Canebrake and their associated outbuildings. Its significance rests on the survival of its Greek Revival form, its representative regional plan, its unusual window features, its succession of owners, and its connection to the historical development of plantation architecture in Alabama. Available reference material does not establish a commercial operation, public visitor program, current owner, or ongoing institutional management structure.

• 1994

  National Register listing

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  The house and grounds were added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 7, 1994, through a multiple-property submission on Alabama Canebrake plantation houses and associated outbuildings.

• 1978

  Poole acquisition and restoration

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  William Poole and his wife purchased the property and completed an extensive restoration, after which it became known as the William Poole House.

• 1959

  Billings ownership and Magnolia Mound name

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  Robert and Sarah Billings of Birmingham acquired the house, used it as a country retreat, and called it Magnolia Mound.

• 1917

  Acquisition by David Miller Prowell

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  David Miller Prowell purchased the house on July 14, 1917. His family retained it until 1959.

• 1882

  Transfer to the Watlington family

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  The Browning family sold the property to the Watlington family in September 1882.

• 1856

  Death of Sarah Altona Terrell Thompson

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  Sarah Altona Terrell Thompson died on July 6, 1856, after which the house passed out of the Thompson family.

• 1854

  Death of William Cade Thompson

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  William Cade Thompson died on May 25, 1854, during the household’s first decade of ownership.

• 1848

  Completion of the Greek Revival house

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  John D. Catlin had the residence built in Dayton, Alabama, in the Greek Revival style for Sarah Terrell and William Thompson.

• 1847

  Marriage of the original occupants

  [1]William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org

  Sarah Altona Terrell and William Cade Thompson married on August 10, 1847. The house was commissioned as a wedding gift and intended to become their residence.

A preserved antebellum Greek Revival residence and historic plantation property interpreted through its architecture, ownership history, restoration, and National Register significance.

1. 1William Poole Houseen.wikipedia.org