The Oliver House attic

North Carolina · USA · House

A young child and her father died up there while quarantined for smallpox. She is still heard playing with the toys, and the attic was eventually closed.

This house in the historic centre of New Bern, North Carolina dates from the 1700s.

A young child and her father died in the attic, quarantined there for smallpox.

She is heard playing with the toys up there, and the attic was eventually closed off to the tours.

That closure is the part worth noting. A historic house that shuts a room to visitors does so for a reason it has to justify to somebody, and it is a decision with a cost.

Smallpox quarantine within a household meant exactly this. The sick were put in the highest, most separated room, food was left at the door, and whoever nursed them usually caught it. A father shut in with his own daughter was making a choice about how she would spend her last weeks.

New Bern was North Carolina's colonial capital and the old town is full of eighteenth century houses.

The house is a private residence and museum.

FAQ

Hvor ligger The Oliver House attic?

The Oliver House attic ligger i North Carolina, USA.