Mary Worthington Macomb House
The oldest of Governor Worthington's daughters was Mary, who was born in 1797. Although Mary and her family lived in the grand Adena Mansion on Chillicothe's northern side, she chose to marry lower in society circa 1816. Her new husband, David Macomb, was a member of a prominent local family, but his poor management of their property forced them into debt, and they settled in the southern United States, where Mary died while moving to Texas in 1836. Before moving southward, the Macombs resided in the present two-story house, which is built primarily of large blocks of sandstone.
After the Macombs' departure, the property was converted for industrial uses. By 1845, multiple new buildings arose around the old structure, including a frame building and a slaughterhouse. These buildings are no longer on the property. In 1976, the Macomb House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, qualifying both because of its historically important architecture and because of its place in local history: most significant were its architecture, its role in commerce, and its place in the exploration and settlement of the local area. By the early twenty-first century, the house had deteriorated greatly; with the proposal of an influx of money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, applications were made for stimulus dollars to restore the house, and a complete restoration was estimated to cost approximately $500,000.
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ Owen, Lorrie K., ed. Dictionary of Ohio Historic Places. Vol. 2. St. Clair Shores: Somerset, 1999, 1220-1221.
- ^ Mary Tiffin Worthington (1797-1836), Adena Mansion, 2010. Accessed 2011-01-25.
- ^ Adena Mansion & Gardens Archived 2011-01-27 at the Wayback Machine, Ohio Historical Society, 2011. Accessed 2011-01-25.
- ^ Macomb, Mary Worthington, House, Ohio Historical Society, 2007. Accessed 2011-01-25.
- ^ "Ross County could see money to work on historical sites." Chillicothe Gazette, 2009-02-21, A3.