Information & history on rear of piece:
In 1883, the North Carolina legislators approved the plans for the new Executive Mansion.   The old mansion had been so completely ransacked by Sherman's troops during the Civil War, that it was never used again as the home of the chief officer of the state.   Designed by Samuel Sloan and Gustavue Adolphus Bauer of Philadelphia, it took eight years to complete due to the tight-fisted legislature.   In construction, they used many native materials, such as, locally quarried sandstone, Carolina marble, and heart of pine.   Most of the construction was performed by convicts from the state prison.   Some of the fine-guaged bricks in the house still bear the initials of the prisoners who moulded them.