The Sweetwater Mansion
By: Kurt Vetters
Sweetwater Mansion in Florence Alabama is beginning to take on a new life. Completed in 1835, it is the former residence of Alabama’s first Reconstruction Governor Robert Patton. Abandoned for many years, the site was purchased as an investment for a hotel. The owner has since recognized the importance of the old Georgian architecture building and the historical significance of the grounds and has allowed the Sweetwater Foundation to restore and find a purpose for the beautiful property.
The Sweetwater Foundation is led by Florence resident Angela Howell, a descendant of the original owners. A hard-working team of volunteers and board members have begun cleaning the property and the home, as well as protecting the site from vandals and the weather as best as they can with limited resources. Clean-up days have drawn significant volunteers, and social media has quickly spread the word that there is a small window of opportunity to save the structure.
Sweetwater was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 as the Governor Robert Patton Home, and holds NRH status with the National Park Service; however, that does not guarantee any protection or funding for the building or grounds. Over the years many efforts have been made by local citizens, government bodies, and public history professionals to save the structure and grounds, but none have quite coalesced until now.
To build this grassroots organization, Howell has contacted the Governor's office, local historians and officials, and many other interested parties in the community to organize a restoration effort. The property includes the remains of a dairy barn that burned in the 1920s, a natural spring that gave the house its name, and a cemetery that holds a general from the War of 1812 and the original owner of the property, John Brahan.
At one time up to three hundred enslaved persons were tied to the property, and many of their descendants are involved in the project. Great efforts to discover the cemeteries and influence of these people are being conducted, and descendants as far away as Arizona have been contacted. It is easy to see in the construction of the home the skill of the builders, many enslaved, as they created a structure that has lasted almost 200 years.
Many ideas have been brainstormed for property use. One suggestion for the site is a Botanical Garden with the mansion itself as its entry and focal point. Finding a way for the home to be self-sustaining is important to the foundation.
