Abbott-Holloway Farm
Encyclopedia
Clark County, Indiana
Clark County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana, located directly across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. At the 2010 Census, the population was 110,232. The county seat is Jeffersonville. Clarksville is also a major city in the county...
. It overlooks the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
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The land comprising the Abbott-Holloway Farm was first owned by Jonathan Clark, one of the early founders of Bethlehem in 1812. The primary building on the lot is believed to have been built in 1830 by Asa Abbott; records destroyed by the Ohio River flood of 1937
Ohio River flood of 1937
The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February 1937. With damage stretching from Pittsburgh to Cairo, Illinois, one million persons were left homeless, with 385 dead and property losses reaching $500 million...
makes the exact date unknowable. When first built it was used as a store and post office, as Abbott was the postmaster for the town. Abbott is also believed to be the builder of the farm that also still stands. Due to fires and tornados, these buildings are among the few buildings before 1840 still standing in Bethlehem since before 1840; only two other houses still stand from the time.
After Abbott died in 1873, control of the town went to his widowed daughter Athenatia (Abbott) Ross. With her 1885 marriage to Missouri man Fleming Holloway, they and his children moved to the farm. During their time of ownership several more barns were placed on the property, but most of those structures were destroyed in a tornado during the 20th century. Upon Athenatia's 1899 death, Fleming gave up the house to his son Barnes Holloway, and moved to a smaller house on the property. In 1939 the farm was sold to Ira Church. Its modern owners acquired it in 1988 and turned it into a bed and breakfast
Bed and breakfast
A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...
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The structures of the property include a main house, two shed, and a privy
Outhouse
An outhouse is a small structure separate from a main building which often contained a simple toilet and may possibly also be used for housing animals and storage.- Terminology :...
. The main house is Federal two-story double-pile brick house with a one-story extension. It features a central passage, twin end chimneys, and side gable roof. Many of its doors are paneled wood with limestone lintels. The house was named in 1992 by the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana
Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana
Indiana Landmarks is America's largest private statewide historic preservation organization. Founded as the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana by Indianapolis pharmaceutical executive Eli Lilly in 1960, the organization is a private non-governmental organization with nearly 11,000 members...
among the ten most significant buildings in Clark County. The barn on the property is of a tranverse-frame timber construction that has been converted for guest housing.
It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1994, two years after its HLFI designation and one year after the local historical preservation group, the Historic Bethlehem Inc., was founded.