Briggs and Dodd (ca. 1850-1868)
Founded:
Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
Residences:
- Raleigh, North Carolina
Trades:
- Contractor
- Manufacturer
NC Work Locations:
Building Types:
Styles & Forms:
Italianate; Second Empire
Briggs and Dodd was a building and manufacturing partnership formed in the antebellum era by two builders, Thomas H. Briggs, Sr., and James Dodd, in Raleigh. At one time the two were next door neighbors. They took on construction of several important Raleigh houses, including some planned by architect William Percival. In addition to engaging in manufacturing and real estate enterprises, Briggs and Dodd also opened a hardware store on Fayetteville Street, but in 1868 they terminated their partnership. See the entry on Thomas H. Briggs, Sr., for more details.
Andrews-Lyman House
Contributors:Briggs and Dodd, attributed builders; Thomas H. Briggs, Sr., attributed builder; James Dodd, attributed builderDates:1853
Location:Raleigh, Wake CountyStreet Address:105 E. North St., Raleigh, NC
Status:No longer standing
Type:Residential
Note:According to an account in the News and Observer (April 26, 1942), the house at 105 E. North St. was built in 1853 for William J. Andrews, and was once owned by Ellen Mordecai and was for a time the home of Bishop T. B. Lyman. There were also “many others” built by Briggs and Dodd.
Branch-Hillyer House
Contributors:Briggs and Dodd, attributed builders; Thomas H. Briggs, Sr., attributed builder; James Dodd, attributed builderDates:1852
Location:Raleigh, Wake CountyStreet Address:305 Hillsborough St., Raleigh, NC
Status:No longer standing
Type:Residential
Images Published In:Elizabeth C. Waugh, North Carolina’s Capital, Raleigh (1967).
Note:According to an account in the News and Observer (April 26, 1942), the large house at 305 Hillsborough St. was built in 1852 by Briggs and Dodd for Lawrence O’Bryan Branch, a congressman and Confederate general, and was later the home of Mrs. Gussie H. Hillyer. “The first house caught fire and burned when just completed and was at once rebuilt.”
Carter Braxton Harrison House
Contributors:Briggs and Dodd, builders; Thomas H. Briggs, Sr., builder; James Dodd, builder; William Percival, architectDates:1860
Location:Raleigh, Wake CountyStreet Address:18 Seaboard Ave., N. of Peace St., Raleigh, NC
Status:No longer standing
Type:Residential
Images Published In:Catherine W. Bishir, Charlotte V. Brown, Carl R. Lounsbury, and Ernest H. Wood III, Architects and Builders in North Carolina: A History of the Practice of Building (1990).
William B. Bushong, “William Percival, an English Architect in the Old North State, 1857-1860,” North Carolina Historical Review, 57.3 (July 1980).
Elizabeth C. Waugh, North Carolina’s Capital, Raleigh (1967).Note:The Harrison House was razed in 1962.
Montfort Hall
Contributors:Briggs and Dodd, builders; Thomas H. Briggs, Sr., builder; James Dodd, builder; William Percival, architectDates:1858
Location:Raleigh, Wake CountyStreet Address:308 S. Boylan Ave., Raleigh, NC
Status:Standing
Type:Residential
Images Published In:Catherine W. Bishir and Michael T. Southern, A Guide to the Historic Architecture of Piedmont North Carolina (2003).
William B. Bushong, “William Percival, an English Architect in the Old North State, 1857-1860,” North Carolina Historical Review, 57.3 (July 1980).
Elizabeth C. Waugh, North Carolina’s Capital, Raleigh (1967).
Rufus S. Tucker House
Contributors:Briggs and Dodd, builders; Thomas H. Briggs, Sr., builder; James Dodd, builder; William Percival, architectDates:1858
Location:Raleigh, Wake CountyStreet Address:St. Mary’s St. at Hillsborough St., Raleigh, NC
Status:No longer standing
Type:Residential
Images Published In:Catherine W. Bishir, Charlotte V. Brown, Carl R. Lounsbury, and Ernest H. Wood III, Architects and Builders in North Carolina: A History of the Practice of Building (1990).
William B. Bushong, “William Percival, an English Architect in the Old North State, 1857-1860,” North Carolina Historical Review, 57.3 (July 1980).
Elizabeth C. Waugh, North Carolina’s Capital, Raleigh (1967).Note:When R. S. Tucker opened his new house for the inspection of his friends, the mansion Percival designed was “regarded as a marvel of architectural skill, full of the greatest conveniences and magnificently furnished throughout” (Greensboro Times, July 30, 1859). The Tucker House was razed in 1968. A large carriage house built later in the 19th century on its grounds still stands and is an arts center. It is possible that the carriage house was built by Thomas S. Briggs’s contracting firm, but no documentation has been found.