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The People Who Lived on the Land that is Now Redstone Arsenal, page 100
The house that was on parcel a-17
The construction of this house is said to date to 1835, based its architectural style, wooden peg construction of the ceiling beams, and other construction techniques. In 1835, James and Sophia Manning owned 2,200 acres of land that included the land on which this house was built. Therefore, it has been speculated that James Manning built the house so it has been referred to as the Manning House.
During the land ownership of Luke and Lucy Matthews, and then James P. Matthews, the house was part of Oakendale Plantation.
When Loundes H. Davis was bequeathed the 700-acre parcel by his mother, Elizabeth, the property was known, until Loundes Davis' death as the Homestead Plantation.
M.G. Chaney lived with his family in the house from 1924 to 1941. Former residents of the pre-arsenal communities remember M.G. Chaney. They refer to Chaney's land and the Chaney House.
In 1956, the Army changed the name of the house and its location. It is now on Redstone Road, and it is the Goddard House. The U.S. Army named the house in honor of Dr. Robert Goddard, the “Father of American Rocketry.”
The name Chaney House will be used in this document.
Since becoming the Goddard House, the house has undergone extensive remodeling, resulting in the removal of the back staircase, fireplaces, the four identical chimneys (one on each corner), and other significant changes. Bernice Chaney, whose late husband was the nephew of M.G. Chaney, visited the house with the researcher on July 27, 2005. A feature Bernice Chaney recognized when she visited the house was the one remaining fireplace, which had been faced in pink marble.
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