Rent the Attmore-Oliver House for your Special Event
With its wide porches, grounds and gardens, this historic
home enhances social events such as weddings, receptions and
meetings. Original Attmore family furnishings, exquisite
silver pieces and authentic Civil War artifacts bring this
house to life, returning guests to the days of New Bern's
southern legacy.
(Click
here for Rental Terms, Fee Schedule,
and Requirements)
For Rental CONTRACT and available dates:
New Bern Historical Society
512 Pollock Street
New Bern, NC 28560
Telephone: 252-638-8558.
Email:
nbhistoricalsoc@newbernmail.com
History of the Attmore-Oliver Family
Clouds of the Civil War gathered around New Bern and three
of Hannah Oliver's brothers enlisted in the Confederate
army. Her oldest brother, Sitgreaves Attmore and her middle
brother, Isaac Taylor Attmore, died while in Confederate
service. The youngest Attmore boy, George, was only 13 when
the war began. He was wounded while serving in the
Confederate army but survived. The house, too, survived the
burdens of the war, to provide residence for yet another
generation of the Attmore-Oliver family.
Hannah survived the desperate times of the Civil War. Her
family as well as most of New Bern endured economic
hardships during the long reconstruction period. Hannah died
in 1881, leaving the home to her three daughters. It was
during this time that William Oliver began selling
insurance, still his profession when he died in 1908.
William and Hannah's daughter Mary Taylor Oliver eventually
became the sole owner of the house. She ran the family
insurance business from her home and died in 1951 at age 91.
The New Bern Historical Society purchased the house from her
four nephews in 1954 for $30,000.
In the late 1950's, the Historical Society furnished the
house. A few Attmore and Oliver family pieces have been
returned to the property. Furniture of the Federal, Empire
and Victorian eras has been placed throughout the house.
As the house is used frequently for Historical Society
functions, the Attmore-Oliver House is not strictly a
museum. However, it provides the rare opportunity to
visitors of seeing a home lived in by only two New Bern
families throughout most of the 19th century and half of the
20th century.
The Attmore-Oliver House is available for guided tours,
by appointment only.
Contact the New Bern Historical Society
512 Pollock Street
New Bern, NC 28560
Telephone: 252-638-8558
Email:
nbhistoricalsoc@newbernmail.com
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