Question: What two areas of Tryon Palace were salvaged after a fire caused the main building to collapse?
Answer: Offices for the kitchen and stable were saved after a fire started in the cellar of Tryon Palace—North Carolina’s first capital—in February 1798. The fire devastated the main building, causing it to collapse. The kitchen office was later demolished in the early 19th century, leaving only the stable office.
Bonus info: In the 1930s, a restoration movement for North Carolina’s first capital gained momentum after original John Hawks plans were found. In 1944, Mrs. James Edwin Latham funded it via a trust, leading the 1945 legislature to create the Tryon Palace Commission for reconstruction.
