Building Charlotte

Historic
the mid 1800s, Fourth Ward was an affluent
In neighborhood and one of the four voting quadrants
in the city of Charlotte. The neighborhood underwent an
extended period of decline, then revitalization, and has
since emerged as one of the most desirable and unique
neighborhoods in the city. The Junior League of Charlotte,
Inc. (JLC) was instrumental in this renaissance with the
restoration of the Berryhill House.
The Berryhill House at 324 W. Ninth Street in Fourth Ward
was built in 1884 by manufacturing businessman John H.
Newcomb. The house became known as the Berryhill
House in 1898 when Newcomb’s daughter, Gussie, who
married Earnest Wiley Berryhill, moved into the house with
her family. In 1940, after Gussie suffered a stroke and
moved to a nursing home, the house was converted into a
four-unit apartment building by her son. It is possible that
this conversion is one of the reasons that the house
continues to stand today. Although even in this state, the
house realized the same decline that the rest of Fourth
Ward experienced during the mid-twentieth century.
With the introduction of the streetcar to Charlotte in the
early 1900s, many of the city’s affluent families moved to
the new suburban neighborhoods of Myers Park and
Dilworth. The public’s continued desire to
live in the suburbs further prompted the
exodus from Fourth Ward along with
other Center City neighborhoods.
By the 1970s Fourth Ward was all but
abandoned. The once stately Victorian
mansions were mostly burned or torn
down and left as vacant lots. The few
remaining homes were run down to the
point of near condemnation. City leaders,
historic preservation groups and people of
influence, the JLC included, recognized
that in order to become a truly great city,
revitalization would have to take place.
Catherine Browning, JLC president 1974-
75, spearheaded the project and set about
to raise funds for the restoration of the
Berryhill House. The JLC contributed its
own funds and acquired additional money
Community
Junior League of Charlotte’s Role in
the Revitalization of Uptown BY NICOLE HARGROVE VANDENBOSCH
Fourth Ward in the 1970s.
PHOTO FROM JLC ARCHIVES
Impact
from Knight Publishing and Ivey’s Department Store. The
League also contacted North Carolina National Bank (now
Bank of America) President Hugh McColl for his help.
“I remember two attractive young women came to see
me, Catherine Browning and Adelaide Davis,” says McColl.
“They came to me and asked for money, around $15,000
to $30,000 to help renovate the house.” McColl
continues, “It was the early 1970s, and we had just started
to get interested in Fourth Ward at the time. There weren’t
many homes there and the ones that were there were in
poor condition. Very few people were living in Fourth
Ward. The Salvation Army housing was there, but that was
about it. Most people used it to park cheaply, 25 cents a
day, and walk to the bank. We knew that if this town was
ever going to be anything, we would have to get people
living here again.”
Not every person in Charlotte shared McColl’s enthusiasm
for the project. “There was a lot of controversy in the
community about us buying this property because they
thought the League had no business getting into the real
estate business,” Browning recalls. “One business leader
even went as far to tell me that if we bought it, certain
local contributions to the JLC would be no more.”
26 The Junior League of Charlotte - Making a Difference Since 1926