642 South Willett. Memphis, TN
Circa 1923. Style of a 17th century Jacobean country manor house /renovated 1948
Robert Moorhead Carrier (1876-1957) and Lenore Woollard Carrier (1895-1963) had this home constructed in 1923. His first wife was Alice Carrier Bridgeford Day (1878-1954)(m1899). He was a Southern lumber baron with a sawmill and a home in Sardis, MS. Carrier Hall went up when he moved his family to Memphis.
Photo by Jim Roberts
Carrier purchased interest in C.M. Carrier & Co. which had a sawmill and timberland in Mississippi in 1904. C. M. Carrier & Co. had operated in Carrier, PA and closed in 1897 - presumably because the timber resources were reduced. Carrier and his family moved south to Memphis after he purchased 35,000 acres of hardwood timber in the Delta area of Panola and Quitman counties in Mississippi. The next year, in 1905, he changed the name to Carrier Lumber and Manufacturing Co. The company built the Sardis & Delta Railroad as a logging railroad to move the cut timer. They also had a home in Batesville called “Barnacre Lodge” for their dog [it burned down in the early 1960s]. In the 1920s, Carrier traveled across Europe with his architect to gather furnishings for his dream mansion. By 1929, much of the timber had been harvested so the company closed the railroad. Five years prior to his death, he moved from Memphis to Oxford and built a new home. His Oxford home became the home for the Ole Miss Chancellor with their donation in 1971. In 1952, Carrier gave money to construct a school of engineering building which was named Carrier Hall. In 1955, the Robert M. Carrier and Lenore W. Carrier Fund was established at the Univ. of Mississippi. In addition, the Robert M. and Lenore W. Carrier Foundation was created at some point.
William Robert Kent (1900-1970) and Louise Campbell Kent (1909-1979) owned the property in 1942. They wed in 1935. Her first husband was Dixon Wilson Fly II. Kent had been vice-president and treasurer of Anderson-Tully Co. for nearly 30 years. He then opened was principal of William R. Kent, investment firm. He had been a chairman of the board of Brooks Memorial Art Gallery.
In 1985, William “Bill” Eubanks purchased the mansion. Eubanks is a world-renowned designer and owns William R. Eubanks Interior Design Inc.. He did a complete restoration of the home to its original design with 1920s English theme.
In 1974, it was owned by William Matthews, Jr. with Gary and Mary Matthews associated with the property.
In 2010, the owners had renovated the structure enough that it was a Decorator Showhouse for the Brooks Art Gallery Museum League. Currently, it has 2 acres.
NR 1980
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