History and images have been compiled from various sources including, among others, the 1987 National Register of Historic Places, Stack & Beasley's 1902 Sketches of Monroe and Union County, Union County Public Library (Patricia Poland, Genealogy & Local History Librarian), the Heritage Room Photo Collection, North Carolina Map Collection, Rootsweb - An Ancestry.com Community and Ancestry.com family histories.

Thomas J. Shannon House 1901 - 406 W. Franklin Street

Thomas J. Shannon House - Stack & Beasley's Sketches of Monroe...
"In 1900, T.J. Shannon (1868-1907), who ran a general store, purchased a lot on which he built this Queen Anne/Classical Revival style house, pictured in Stack & Beasley in 1902. 

"Its patterned slate roofs with sheetmetal ornamental ridges have intersecting hipped sections with pedimented gables on the northwest, northeast and southwest corners, the latter two over three-sided bays. These gables have patterned tongue and groove sheathing. 

"At the southeast corner the roof pushes out into a round corner bay over the projecting second story porch. This porch has turned columns in pairs, a spindle fringe and a railing with balls set between the balusters in a garland pattern. The main porch runs across the front of the house and has Tuscan columns, though the railing is like that of the second floor. Over the front steps is a small portico with diagonal board patterning in its gable end. Underneath the porch
are two large diamond-shaped windows. Other windows on the house are one over one. At the west side of the house is a rectangular bay window, and at the rear a one-story, gable-roofed wing. There are interior and exterior end chimneys, both with corbelled caps." National Register 1987

Stack & Beasley wrote of T.J. Shannon and Company in 1902, "This firm is composed of T.J. Shannon and F.M. Welsh. Mr. Welsh resides in South Carolina and is the father-in-law of Mr. Shannon. The latter first began selling goods at Jefferson, S.C., but moved to Monroe in 1894. Shannon & Co. do a wholesale and retail mercantile business in hardware, dry goods, shoes, notions, etc., and also deal largely in wagons, buggies and farming implements. Their principal stores are in the Shute building, at the corner of Franklin and Hayne Streets. They run a livery stable on Franklin Street and a grocery store at the corner of Church and Franklin Streets. They also have a retail store at Jefferson, S.C. Mr. Shannon, aside from his other enterprises, deals largely in stock and cattle and farms considerably. He is a very busy man and a splendid business man.
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