Duplin County, NC - Miscellaneous File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Sloan Spence Mason THE TEACHEY MAC HOUSE (Also known as the Robert SLOAN house) Transcribed from records at the Duplin Co. Historical Society in Rose Hill, N.C. This article was published in "The Rose Hill Beacon" Nov. 17, 1961-page 6 By Thelma MALLARD The TEACHEY MAC House (Teachey McMillan House) The old farm house known as the TEACHEY MAC Place is located in Duplin County between Magnolia and Kenansville and lies between Maxwell and Beaver Dam swamps. The house was built by Robert SLOAN on his property, just before he entered the Revolutionary War, according to family tradition. The above house is still standing so it must have been constructed of stout-hearted timbers. The weatherboards are fastened together with hand-wrought nails, as can be seen today. The plan of the house shows two large rooms downstairs and two above with two shed rooms on one side. The main downstairs rooms and those above are heated by large fireplaces, the shed rooms having no provision for heat. The interior is finished in wood and has beamed ceilings. There is a downstairs porch across the front with a side piazza from which the winding stairs lead to a corresponding upstairs porch. Having weathered the ravages of sun and rain for nearly one hundred and eighty years, one concludes that the house was constructed of more durable timber than that of the outhouses which have fallen into decay for the most part. Apart from the main house stood the big kitchen which had several rooms, a wide porch, all of which resembled a Dutch farm house. Not far away was a smaller, two-room kitchen and dining room. A wire dining room was constructed by my grandfather, Teachey MCMILLAN, for summer dining. It stood under the thick shade of the towering beech trees and many large platters of meats and vegetables were carried by hand from the kitchen, some distance away, to this cool room. The present kitchen and dining room attached to the house may be called "recent innovations," since they were built soon after 1900. A large log smoke house for curing meat was located near the high paling fence of the vegetable garden, near this was the "little" smokehouse for storage of meat and lard. Still standing today is the original two-story log barn, but the shed rooms used as corn cribs have rotted away. As a child, the "old" buggy house across the road from the big front gate always interested me as well as the stories about the trip taken in the rockaway-a two horse conveyance-which transported the early SLOANS to Grove Presbyterian church in Kenansville as well as to other places. The big, deep well was considered to have had very superior drinking water. A small wire milk house, with oilcloth drop curtains for protection, was connected with the well by a long trough and iron pipes. Everyone who drew, poured a bucket of cold water into the trough-affair, which was connected with the milk house. Large bowls of milk, cream, and butter set down in the water, which had a drain pipe that prevented any overflow. The yard had many elm, beech, cedar, sycamore, and pecan trees. The spreading roots of the beech trees had crevices or holes which were kept filled with water for the chickens to drink. The above described house was not handsomely furnished but there were several good pieces of colonial style that I remember. The pine blanket chest, with corners dove-tailed together, held many handwoven coverlets, wool blankets and quilts of intricate design. The spool beds were laced together with ropes to hold the mattresses in place. Some of the mattresses were covered with natural colored linen fabrics made from flax grown on the plantation. The colonial mahogany sofa was covered with black mohair which used to scratch the legs of the children in the summer as the mohair cover was wearing out. In the same room with the sofa were several empire-looking straight chairs with fiddle backs. The kitchen dining area had several Hepplewhite walnut tables, a large buffet and a walnut china cupboard. The coin silver teaspoons and tablespoons were engraved with "D & SS" in fine script. To be taken upstairs to look at the old silk dresses, worn by the SLOAN girls, was quite an exciting adventure in my childhood. The dresses were black for the most part, highly boned, lined and conformed to the styles of 1840-1860. When the trunks were opened a dust erose as each dress was taken out for the moths had feasted on the fabrics for many years. Also in the trunk room were many books which had been used by the daughters of David SLOAN while attending the Female Institute at Clinton, N.C. An old report card of Elizabeth J. SLOAN, dated June 2, 1852; had an item stating the number of times absent from prayers. Among the old books, as I recall, was a chemistry text and the ever-popular McGuffy Readers-the latter are about to cause a present day "Tempest in a Teapot" in a Midwestern town. Perhaps the most interesting relics to come from the old place were several daguerreotypes of some of the children of David SLOAN. Among them were Catherine S. DICKSON, Amanda S. MACMILLAN, Martha SLOAN, Robert SLOAN and of Teachey MACMILLAN, as a young man. Now for a few words about the builder of the above house and some of his family. Robert SLOAN was born near Belfast in Down County, Ireland in 1752. He lived in Duplin county most of his life with the exception of a short time spent in New Hanover. Robert SLOAN married Mary, the daughter of Ann and John GREER of Brunswick County. Mary GREER was a sister of Margaret GREER who married William CARR of Duplin County. Robert SLOAN died November 1, 1839. Mary Greer SLOAN died March 26, 1830. Mary and Robert SLOAN had the following children born in the house described above: 1)David SLOAN, b. Nov. 16, 1791 and died March 8, 1863. He married Susan BONEY. 2)Margaret SLOAN, b. March 26, 1793 and married to William DICKSON. 3)Mary SLOAN, b. Nov. 11, 1794 and married James HOWARD. 4)Susannah SLOAN, b. March 6, 1798 and married William NIXON. David SLOAN, mentioned above and who married Susan BONEY, a sister of Wright BONEY, had the following children born in the Robert SLOAN house: 1)Mary C. SLOAN, b. Nov. 24, 1824, married Robert DICKSON, Oct. 9, 1845. 2)Robert D. SLOAN, b. April 11, 1826 and married Ellen WELLS, May 18, 1848; died Nov. 12, 1860. 3)William W. SLOAN, b. Jan. 23, 1828. 4)Margaret S. SLOAN, b. August 20, 1829 and married Levi MOORE, Oct. 28, 1847. 5)Caroline Amanda SLOAN, b. Oct. 3, 1831 and married Daniel Teachey MACMILLAN; Sept. 27, 1855. 6)Martha A. SLOAN, b. March 27, 1834, died July 2, 1893. 7)Elizabeth Jane SLOAN, b. March 11, 1836 and married George James MACMILLAN; Feb. 28, 1858. 8)John Boney SLOAN, b. Feb. 26, 1841; and died August 19, 1857. Robert SLOAN, who was born 1752, was a Revolutionary War soldier; having fought in the battle of Moore's Creek Bridge as well as having participated in other skirmishes. He missed the encounter nearest his home, the Battle of Rockfish; because he obtained a five-day pass to go home and till his corn. (End of Document) __________________________________________________________________________ USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. The electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. 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