The John Sprunt Hill House served as the family home of John Sprunt Hill, his wife, Annie Watts Hill, and their three children. The Boston firm Kendall and Taylor, which also built Watts Hospital, designed the house in a modified Spanish style with stucco exterior and a red tile roof. All the woodwork on the first floor and most of the furniture was designed and manufactured by another Boston firm
, Irving Casson, the same firm that created the woodwork for Duke Chapel. The original grounds (a full city square around the house) included a tennis court, a putting green, a pergola, and a formal rose garden. Across the street to the south (now the site of Orchard Park, a gift of the Hill Family to the City of Durham) were a large vegetable garden, orchard, stables for horses and cows, as well as several greenhouses. The interior of many of the rooms of the house, particularly those on the first floor, appear today much as they did when the Hill family lived here. Many of the furniture pieces and rugs are original as well. In recognition of his wife’s participation in civic functions, Mr. Hill’s will established a trust, the Annie Watts Hill Fund, so that Hill House would serve as a continuing memorial to wife. In 1963, the Junior League of Durham and Orange Counties, through its nonprofit status, began to enjoy an intricate legal relationship that in effect binds Hill House and the League together, to the benefit of each. In 2020, Hill House underwent a large-scale restoration, updating plasterwork, flooring, the roof, and systems including the HVAC. A multi-stall restroom was also added to the first floor to better accommodate larger events. The home reopened in early 2022 ready to host groups of all sizes.
