The George Pierce Wadsworth Estate is located at 400 South Summit Avenue in the Wesley Heights neighborhood.Add a caption
It was designed in 1910 by Charlotte’s prominent architect, Louis H. Asbury and built by developer E.C, Griffith in 1911. The original owner, George Pierce Wadsworth, was a local businessman who assumed presidency of the family business, Wadsworth Sons Company, in 1902. He diversified the family’s livery and livestock business to include Smith-Wadsworth Hardware Company, Carolina Baking Company, Wadsworth Land Company and Wadsworth Seborn Company, a sales operation for Reo cars throughout the Carolinas. He also served as a director for Charlotte National Bank.
Wadsworth Estate Today
Shortly after George Pierce Wadsworth’s untimely death in 1930 at the age of 51, the house was sold to James Ramsey, an officer of the Textron-Southern Company, and his wife, Pearl Ramsey. In the late 1940’s the Ramseys converted a portion of the west side of the second floor to an apartment and adapted a small sleeping porch as a kitchen. The Ramsey's moved in 1967 and the house stood vacant for two years.
In 1969, Mrs. Ramsey sold the property to Worthy D. Hairston and his wife, Marie S. Hairston. Mr. Hairston lived less than one year after the purchase. Mrs. Hairston’s nephew, Charles McClure, bought the Wadsworth House property in 1977 and continued ownership until his death in the 1990’s. Upon his death, family members owned the property until it was sold to Judge Shirley L. Fulton in 2001.
Judge Fulton had a vision for the property to serve as a conference and event center, something that was missing on the west side of Charlotte. She pursued that vision through a restoration of the Main House, being sure to maintain the home’s structural integrity and most of its original features. The Carriage House, however, underwent a full transformation to become a fully functioning event space. The Wadsworth Estate opened its doors August 21, 2001 and after celebrating its centennial in 2011, it stands proudly as the crowning jewel within The Historic Wesley Heights community.
