Underhill-Wedeles House

The Underhill-Wedeles House in Quincy’s historic district represents a direct connection to one of the most prominent families in the history of Gadsden County’s shade tobacco industry. Constructed in 1905 by G.M. Underhill and subsequently purchased by Max Wedeles — a member of the first and largest family in the shade tobacco industry in Gadsden County — the house carries the legacy of a family whose commercial enterprise helped shape the county’s identity and prosperity for generations.

Max Wedeles and his family were central figures in the shade tobacco industry that made Gadsden County world-famous in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Their various properties and commercial interests were deeply embedded in the fabric of Quincy’s business and social life.

A member of the Wedeles family still lives in the house today — an extraordinary continuity of ownership spanning over a century that reflects the deep family roots that are characteristic of Gadsden County’s most historic properties, and that give the district its living, inhabited character rather than the atmosphere of a frozen museum piece.