Smith-Montgomery House (Andy Croy House) (Stop Q)

Introduction

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The Smith-Montgomery House located at 103 South Penn Street is a historic home within Blacksburg's original sixteen squares. It was built by Adam Croy, whose family owned many lots on the blocks between Jackson and Lee during the 1800s. According to local tradition, the home was moved across the street from its original location after its purchase by a Dr. Philips. Neither the date nor the reason for the relocation are known.

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According to local tradition, the Adam Croy House was originally located across the street from its current location

Backstory and Context

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During the 1800s, the Croy family owned many lots on the blocks between Jackson and Lee. The family ran a number of businesses within the town. Adam Croy, the original owner of the home at 103 South Penn Street, was the sexton of the Blacksburg Methodist Church. As sexton, he blew a horn that alerted people when it was time for church services to begin. Croy built the two-story, single-pen log house sometime in the early nineteenth century on lots 37 and 38, which he bought from the trustees of the town of Blacksburg.

According to local tradition, a Dr. Philips bought the home and moved it across the street where it stands today. Philips had the home dismantled, after which the numbered logs were rolled across the street and reassembled. During the process, the home received an L-shaped addition and a brick chimney. In the 1900s, the central door was filled in to serve as a bookcase and the entryway was relocated to the northwest bay of the formerly-symmetrical three-bay facade.

Sources

Bodell, Dorothy H. "A Special Place for 200 Years: Blacksburg Social Life andCustoms." Special Collections at Virginia Tech. Last modified October26, 1998. http://spec.lib.vt.edu/bicent/recoll/histbook/bodell.htm.

"The Sixteen Squares of Blacksburg". YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB1zBWt4KVw, published by the Town of Blacksburg, VA, http://tobweb.org/WalkingTour/.

"National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Blacksburg Historic District". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. December 1990. Accessed February 28, 2017.

http://www.dhr.Virginia.gov/registers/Counties/Montgomery/150-0108_Blacksburg_Historic_District_1991....

The Adam Croy House, image from Special Collections Virginia Tech https://imagebase.lib.vt.edu/image_viewer.php?q=bbg53.