The Shelton Family Collection
Preserving the Shelton Family Legacy
Stephen Jehu Shelton and his wife, Mahala, purchased 95 acres of land in 1875. On this land, the architect Henry Napoleon Francis built a four-room house for the Sheltons. Over the years additions were added to the house, creating the historic home we know today. The Shelton family have an interesting history in Haywood County and beyond, and we preserve this history through the Shelton Family Collection. The Shelton Family Collection consists primarily of items belonging to members of the Shelton family, including furniture, home appliances, photographs, and books. The collection also consists of items from the time period in which the Sheltons lived in the house (1878-1944).
Stephen Shelton was a Confederate officer during the Civil War prior to becoming the High Sheriff of Haywood County in the early 1870s, and William Shelton, Stephen and Mahala's second-oldest son, worked as an agricultural instructor for the Navajo in Shiprock, New Mexico. William went on to become the first Superintendent of the San Juan Training School prior to returning to the family home in 1917. Over the years, descendants of the Shelton family have entrusted us with family heirlooms, which are on display alongside items from Stephen and William's respective eras.
Bed belonging to Stephen and Mahala Shelton, carved from black walnut found on the property