Henry Wilson Candy, Sr. was born on September 19, 1866, to Civil Battle veteran Captain Leander “Lee” Candy and Sarah Ann Massey Rivers Candy. The couple had a complete of 4 youngsters, two sons and two daughters. Henry’s brother, James Edward Candy, served as a postmaster and was a service provider in Bessemer, Alabama. Sooner or later, the household surname was modified from Sweat to Candy. Henry W. Candy, Sr. married Martha “Mattie” Breen Candy in Thomas, Georgia on July 4, 1895. By 1900, the couple had settled in Bessemer the place they turned distinguished residents. The couple misplaced an toddler son in 1898, nevertheless, 4 years later, they gave beginning to a different son, Henry’s namesake, Henry Wilson Candy, Jr.
The Candy Residence, additionally known as the Candy Home, was in-built 1906 in Bessemer, Alabama. The house was constructed for Henry Wilson Candy, Sr., the town’s first undertaker and a big furnishings supplier, at a price of $10,000. The contractor was J. C. Scudder, and it was designed by architect William E. Benns Sr. On the time of its building, the 5,072-square-foot residence was one of the crucial spectacular houses within the metropolis. It’s a Queen Anne Neoclassical construction with two imposing porticoes and an octagonal nook turret. Located on a nook lot, the constructing contains two tales and options two avenue facades, one going through Arlington and the opposite going through nineteenth Avenue. The matching entries on each fronts exhibit stained glass transoms and sidelights. The home incorporates a double-teardrop weatherboard siding on a brick basis, a cross-gabled two-story portico with galleries, and pedimented stucco gables with plain entablatures supported by huge Corinthian columns. Decrease porch roofs encompass each avenue facades and are supported by smaller Corinthian columns. A decorative finial graces the highest of the nook turret which is shingled on a 3rd story above the eave line.
Legend has it that Henry Candy, Sr. and one other rich Bessemer resident, banker Jefferson Clay, had been in a race to construct the tallest home within the metropolis within the shortest period of time. Whereas the Candy Residence was accomplished first, Clay’s turret was a bit taller. Clay’s home was situated at 1915 Clarendon Avenue, additionally designed by William Benns, however has since burned down. Benns additionally designed Arlington High School, Bessemer’s first highschool. Henry Wilson Candy, Sr. died on September 26, 1919, on the age of 53. His spouse, Mattie Breen Candy, died on March 25, 1946, on the age of 80. The couple are each buried in Cedar Hill Cemetery in Bessemer subsequent to their toddler son.
Their son, Henry Wilson Candy, Jr. married Lucile Capitola Lytle on August 31, 1925, in Bessemer. He considerably contributed to Alabama’s economic system, politics, and civic life, particularly in Jefferson County and Bessemer. He performed an important function in bringing the College of Alabama Medical Heart to Birmingham as Jefferson County Commissioner by signing the deed conveying land and the Hillman-Jefferson Hospital Advanced to the college. Additionally, Candy served as Director of the Alabama and Georgia State Docks and even ran for Governor in 1954. As Alabama Docks Director, he led Cellular to its highest rating amongst U.S. ports. As well as, he served as Treasurer of the Bessemer Division of Jefferson County, President of the American Affiliation of Port Authorities, and Worldwide Director of Lions Golf equipment. Henry W. Candy, Jr. died on June 22, 1990, on the age of 88. He’s buried at Cedar Hill Cemetery with the remainder of the Candy household.
A landmark marker was erected by the Alabama Historic Affiliation in 2006 to commemorate the Candy Residence as a landmark. Within the early 2000s, the house was renovated and used as an occasion area, nevertheless, that was short-lived. It was later occupied by the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles as a discipline workplace. In 2017, the vacant Candy Home was used as a filming location for a SyFy channel film known as Reality or Dare that debuted in October 2017. Heather Langenkamp, who starred within the Nightmare on Elm Avenue collection, additionally appeared within the movie. Right now greater than a century after its building, the Candy Residence sits vacant and deserted with its doorways and home windows boarded up. The property is at present owned by the Metropolis of Bessemer.
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