Haywood Hall was elaborate by the local standards of the time with much molding, spacious rooms, and faux painting, as well as colorful green walls. Its exterior has undergone few alterations. The interior originally had two great rooms, the library and the parlor (or sitting room), flanking a spacious hall. The mantle and surround in the parlor are painted to look like green marble; the woodwork is painted with double-turned Greek keys and flame and candle motifs. The upstairs bedrooms are spacious, reflecting the gracious style of the home. The third-floor attic was the bedroom area for the twelve children.

Haywood Hall engages visitors in more than two centuries of Raleigh and North Carolina history. The Haywood home became an unofficial meeting place for legislators and dignitaries visiting Raleigh. In 1825, one illustrious guest was General Lafayette. A carved pomegranate and a carved pineapple were placed above the second floor landing as symbols of hospitality. Haywood Hall is furnished with some original furniture and other period pieces. Eleven family portraits beginning with John Haywood give faces to many family names.

Haywood was built on a foundation of locally quarried stone on a site only a short walk from the Capitol building. The basic style of the house is of the Federal Period with these characteristics:

• central passage plan
• Classical-style double front porch
• beaded weatherboard exterior walls
• fine modillion cornice under the eaves

Guided tours held the second and forth Thursday of each month. Group tours by appointment only.