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The house, having been built in 1905, was featured in House & Gardens or House Beautiful soon after being built as an example of the a lovely designed and decorated home of that era. Frank P. Milburn, the architect that designed the handsome Salisbury Depot is credited with having designed this home that is known as the Franklin Smith House. Legend has it that the beautifully hand-carved Italian marble mantel in the front parlor had ties with the infamous Diamond Jim Brady, a prominent railroad figure in the late 1800s and early 1900s, and that the mantel was originally located in the home of architect Sanford White in New York.

As one enters from the mosaic tiled vestibule through the double bevel glass doors (with side lights of circular cut beveled glass), you'll step into the massive and impressive front room that features beautiful inlaid flooring, a large tiled fireplace, English oak tapestry arched panels and wainscoting. The study is entered from the entry room. This room overlooks the large front veranda and has the same English wainscoting as the previous room. There is also a fireplace located here.

Beside the entry area, the big living room or parlor is located. This is a beautiful room with oak inlaid and parquet floors and the spectacular hand carved mantel of marble. The ceiling moldings in this room are also plaster.

Behind the parlor area, the colossal master suite features an adjoining nursery and an all tiled bathroom with a skylight, whirlpool tub and separate shower.

Behind the entry room you will enter into the lovely appointed formal dining room with a concave ceiling and another massive fireplace. This room is also appointed with the oak panels, wainscoting and inlaid flooring and is the center for entertaining.

The newly installed kitchen cabinets, with glass facing on the top cabinets, are appropriately suited for the home and have been crafted from dark American oak that resembles the wood in the remainder of the home. The countertops are custom tiled and the flooring is an attractive ceramic tile.

The laundry and mud room, located off of the kitchen area, is a spacious and attractive area offering a tremendous amount of cabinet storage space and the back entryway. The additional bedrooms and bath are located on the second floor. Each room is large in size and three of the four rooms have nice mantels and fireplaces.

The recessed arcaded porch on the second floor creates asymmetry on this otherwise balanced facade. The shaped dormer and roof parapet mimic those found in Spanish Colonial buildings. The porch roofs are supported by large square piers that have decorative tile detailing at the top of each column. These reliefs are also found above each second floor window. Wooden balconies, with heavy bracket supports, extend from several second floor windows. The stuccoed chimneys have carbeled caps that extend high above the roof line, each featuring several clay flue ports. The widely overhanging eaves are open. The complex hip roof has eyebrow dormers, shaped gables and Spanish tiles. A sweeping veranda welcomes visitors and friends where there's a large, original wisteria vine on the east side that shades the porch and offers privacy. The wall surface of the home is smooth stucco over brick.

For a number of years the house was divided into multiple apartments, but returned to its single family status in 1977. The current owner has completed much of the restoration, including patching cracked stucco, reviving the landscaping, painting and restoring original woodwork, updating wiring and plumbing, etc.. A new two car detached garage that compliments the home was added in during recent years. It is a two-story structure with steps leading to the second floor storage area. This property is an anchor home in beautiful West Square Historic District and is ideally located and in walking distance to downtown shopping, the public library, post office, restaurants and area churches.