David Jeptha (D. J.) Rose (November 27, 1861-May 8, 1940), a native of Johnston County, North Carolina, was a major building contractor active in eastern North Carolina and beyond and the founder of the firm that continues as D. J. Rose and Son, Inc., to the present. Taking a key role in the economic development of the region in the early 20th century, with headquarters in Wilson and Rocky Mount, Rose’s company executed a wide range of projects from public buildings and residences to railroad facilities and factories, including some of the most notable structures in their communities. The D.J. Rose and Son Architectural Drawings and Project Files at NC State University Libraries Special Collections Research Center includes numerous records from David Jeptha Rose’s lifetime; several of these document not only Rose’s role as contractor but also the architects involved, including rare survivors of their architectural drawings. A thorough study of the collection can provide insights into the history of building in eastern North Carolina and beyond. The building list here is but a small sampling of known projects. The company’s projects also extended as far as Florida and Illinois. This entry covers only the career of the founder, D. J. Rose.

David Jeptha Rose (November 27, 1861-May 8, 1940), generally known as D. J. Rose, was born near Bentonville in Johnston County, one of at least eleven children of George Pinckney, a planter and millwright, and Nancy Brunt Rose.

David Jeptha Rose, generally known as D. J. and David J., is reported to have begun his contracting business in 1891 and to have come to Rocky Mount in 1892. He arrived in the railroad town at a promising time, early in a local growth era based on tobacco sales and processing and the Atlantic Coast Line’s major depot and repair shops. “Come to Rocky Mount, go into business, and get rich,” urged a promotional publication in 1892. From about 1895 to 1900—a period not covered by census records—D. J. was reportedly active as well in the firm of D. J. Rose and Brother in Wilson. The “brother” was David’s younger brother, William P. Rose (1870-1952). After a few years, the brothers went their own ways, William to work as an architect in Raleigh and David as a contractor headquartered in Rocky Mount. By 1900, D. J. and his family were listed in the United States Census as residents of Rocky Mount.

As recorded in FindaGrave, D. J. Rose was married twice, to Anna Phillip Woodall (1873-1899) and Vara E. Benton (1867-1954). He had children from both marriages, a number of whom died in infancy or childhood. Among those who lived to maturity were Ira Woodall Rose and Dillon Jeptha Rose, who would become involved in the family building business. They joined the firm in 1930, which was renamed D. J. Rose and Sons.

During David Jeptha Rose’s era, the firm constructed buildings for every facet of the region’s growth era: fertilizer (guano) plants essential to agriculture and especially tobacco cultivation; tobacco factories and other manufacturing facilities; railroad structures; banks and other mercantile establishments; and the residences, churches, and public buildings that expressed communities’ prosperity and ambitions. The leaders and citizens of the growing railroad towns commissioned buildings designed by notable local and regional architects such as Benton and Benton as well as Benton and Moore of Wilson, Milburn, Heister, and Company of Washington, D. C., and Joseph F. Leitner, the architect for the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. In some cases, the drawings in the D. J. Rose Collection are rare if not unique examples of these architects’ work, such as the Benton firms, whose own record collections have been lost. A prominent civic and business leader, besides his successful construction business, D. J. Rose was president and director of the Rock Fish Cotton Mills, director of the National Bank of Rocky Mount, director of the Underwriters Fire Insurance Company, president of the Rocky Mount Brick Company. He served on the Board of Alderman in Rocky Mount in 1899-1901.

David Jeptha Rose was interred at Pineview Cemetery in Rocky Mount. The company he established has continued as an important part of the region’s economy for four generations, still owned and operated by family members and longtime associates. The building list herein represents but a fraction of the firm’s work during David Jeptha Rose’s tenure.

History of North Carolina (1919), Vol. 5.

Prominent Buildings of the Carolinas (n.d.)

Wilson Advance, Industrial Issue (November, 1897)

Branson’s North Carolina Business Directory (1896)