USA > Virginia > Manors of Virginia in colonial times > Part 5
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14
Even the untrained eye wonders at the door- ways, which, in proportion to the extravagant height of the walls, seem inadequately low.
96
GUNSTON HALL The home of one of America's greatest statesmen, George Mason
GUNSTON HALL
The handsomest apartment in the mansion is the historic white drawing-room at the south front of the house, the scene of many brilliant and ceremonious affairs of the first owner's day. The two doors that lead into this room, in common with the two large windows and chimney recesses, are encased in Corinthian pilasters, the panelled doors also being finished with carving in the flower and scroll design. Throughout the in- terior the wood-work is ornate and beautiful, George Mason having imported from England workmen who spent, so the story goes, three years in accomplishing their task. Some years ago a Northern architect who visited Gunston Hall in quest of new ideas from old examples offered $3000 for the wood-work of the drawing-room alone.
The stately dining-room and library are more plainly, though still handsomely, wainscoted and corniced. Loitering in one of these hospitable corners, it is not difficult to picture the distin- guished guests of an age long dead, whose wraiths must present an imposing array when they return, as the old legends say they do, in memory of their golden days.
Jefferson's room is still pointed out; Lafay- ette's room, too, has place in the annals of Gun-
7
97
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
ston Hall, in connection with those of other eminent men who helped to make the wonderful history of Virginia. A dreamy trance lays hold of the stranger guest who crosses for the first time the threshold of this hall of fame.
The walk which leads from the mansion to the terraced gardens, or " Falls," as Mason loved to call them, is hedged on either side by trees of rare flowering boxwood. Here from a commanding knoll one looks down upon two miles of the his- toric Potomac, on the blue waters of which vessels with their snowy sails pass up and down in ceaseless procession. Rolling back toward the horizon are the smiling meadow lands, in pleasing contrast to the forests, of miles in extent.
The old " King's Highway," with its gilded chariots and gold-laced cavaliers, has long been unused, but the unchanging, immortal watery highway still caresses the shores of the old planta- tion as it did for the noble statesman of an age forever irrecoverable.
At the beginning of the Revolution, in the summer of 1776, Dunmore's fleet came up the Potomac, meaning, it was believed, to ravage Gunston Hall, but the following letter from Mason to Washington, written a little later,
98
GUNSTON HALL
shows that if any attempt was made it proved unsuccessful :
" Dunmore has come and gone, and left us untouched except by some alarm. I sent my family many miles back in the country, and advised Mrs. Washington to do likewise as a prudential movement. At first she said, 'No, I will not desert my post; ' but she finally did so with reluctance, rode only a few miles, and, plucky little woman as she is, stayed away only one night."
George Mason, the stern patriot, who died at his beautiful country-seat, was buried in the old graveyard in October, 1792, and now sleeps quietly in a spot blue with loyal periwinkle or green under a mantle of clinging English ivy. For years there was not even the simplest slab to mark his resting-place, but in 1869, through the Sons of the Revolution, a granite shaft was erected to his memory.
Let one of his descendants sum up the character of this remarkable man: "In mak- ing an estimate of George Mason's character and abilities, we can but retouch the picture as portrayed by the more intelligent and sym- pathetic of his contemporaries. One of a famous group of historic figures, the friend and associate
99
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
of Washington, Richard Henry Lee, Jefferson, Madison, Patrick Henry, they have all helped us, directly or indirectly, to see him as he lived and walked among them. Though we obtain no sketch of George Mason from the lips of Wash- ington and Lee, we are not left in doubt as to their high regard for him. Washington's free and intimate correspondence, carried on for the greater part of a lifetime, attests his estimation of the sterling traits of character and the eminent talents of his friend. And this impression is scarcely impaired at the last by the few slighting words Washington suffered himself to write of Mason when his early ally and familiar com- panion had become his determined political oppo- nent. Richard Henry Lee seems to have had George Mason's entire confidence all through his career, and we cannot fail to perceive how thorough was Lee's appreciation of Mason, with whom he was in complete sympathy, apparently, on all the great issues of the eventful years in which they labored together, first for inde- pendence of Great Britain, and secondly for the independence of the state against Federalaggres- sion. Jefferson, from first to last, looked upon George Mason as one of the wisest of Vir- ginians, or indeed of his contemporaries on the
100
GUNSTON HALL
theatre of the American Revolution. These two statesmen, George Mason and Thomas Jeffer- son, bore the relation, more fully perhaps than Jefferson himself perceived, of master and dis- ciple in the school of states' rights, though Jefferson, like Madison, did not at first see with the elder sage's clear vision."
James Madison, when asked by a grandson of Mason for some personal recollections, wrote: " The biographical tribute you meditate is justly due to the merits of your ancestor, Colonel George Mason. It is to be regretted that, highly distinguished as he was, the memorials of him on record, or perhaps otherwise attainable, are more scanty than of many of his contemporaries far inferior to him in intellectual powers and public services. It would afford me a pleasure to be a tributary to your undertaking. But although I had the advantage of being on the list of his personal friends, and, in several instances, of being associated with him in public life, I can add little for the pages of your work."
In the Virginia State Library, preciously guarded by a glass case, is what is believed to be the only original draft of the Virginia Bill of Rights, which instrument has placed Mason's name among those of the immortals who made American history what it is.
101
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
Mason's loyalty to his country is amply proven in the simple changing of one word in the motto which came to him " Pro patria semper," but was left to his son, George Mason 5th, who inherited Gunston Hall, as " Pro republica semper."
The war-cloud of '61 hung low over this " Pen- insula principality," then in the possession of the grandson of the founder. To the lawless soldier the venerable manor-house, enveloped in its film of historic association, was no more than the lowliest cabin. The beautiful gardens were sadly trampled, rare old trees were felled by the axe, and in some of the rooms of the mansion the panelling and wainscoting were torn from the walls, and the historic structure was robbed of all but its glorious memories.
A few years later, that part of the estate still suffering cruelly from the effects of the war was sold to General Robert Gibson Smith, of New Jersey, and immediately the work of restoration was begun. This was fully accomplished by Mr. Joseph Specht, of St. Louis, who bought the place from General Smith. Lately Gunston Hall has once more changed hands, being now owned by Mr. Paul Kester.
So again the sun shines brightly over the proud plantation. The overgrown hedges and way-
102
GUNSTON HALL
ward rose-vines have felt the needed touch of care. The grass that was trampled by soldiers, or scorched by heavy shells, once more carpets the picturesque grounds, and from the terraced gardens a wealth of fragrant blossoms breathe promises of peace and calm repose.
And when the midnight hour comes over the ancient Hall, a shadowy throng of noble spectres hold misty carnival in memory of a noble name.
WOODLAWN
MONG the rare Vir- ginia homesteads famed in the early days for a bountiful hospitality, for distin- guished guests and magnificent surround- ings, none took pre- cedence of Woodlawn, which, on the high bank of the Potomac River, stands to-day as staunch and firm as it did for the winsome bride of years ago.
Excepting only Mount Vernon, perhaps no other of Virginia's historic estates appeals so strongly to Americans and foreigners alike, for this manor was a part of the Mount Vernon tract; its mistress was reared and educated under the affection and care of the first President of the country ; its master was his nephew, who had won laurels as a soldier, and the mansion was erected through the munificence of the nation's greatest idol.
The beginning of Woodlawn as an estate was
104
Instiş.
COLONEL DANIEL PARKE Aide-de-camp to the Duke of Marlborough Portrait by Sir Godfrey Kneller
NELLIE CUSTIS Portrait by Gilbert Stuart
WOODLAWN
in 1799, the 2000 acres being Washington's wedding-gift to his beautiful ward, Nellie Custis, the granddaughter of Mrs. Washington, who on February twenty-second of that year was married to Major Lawrence Lewis. This wed- ding, which has been the inspiration of artists and authors alike, has come down in history as one of the most notable in the country, and is said to have been the culmination of Washington's worldly desires, uniting as it did the two beings most loved by him.
Nellie Custis was the daughter of Eleanor, daughter of Benedict Calvert, sixth Lord Balti- more, who in 1698 married Lady Charlotte Fitzroy, and John Parke Custis, of no less dis- tinguished lineage, the first of the name having come to Virginia in 1640. Among his most cele- brated relatives was Colonel Daniel Parke, aide- de-camp to the Duke of Marlborough, of whom Sir Godfrey Kneller has left a superb portrait, which now hangs at Brandon, on the lower James.
On being made Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, Washington appointed John Parke Custis one of his staff, the latter being his aide at the siege of Yorktown, in 1781.
Eleanor Parke Custis, or "Nellie," as she is
105
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
always called, was born at Abingdon, her father's country-seat on the Potomac, March 21, 1778, but on his death, immediately after the Revolution, was adopted by Washington, and made Mount Vernon her home.
Her portrait, done by Gilbert Stuart, shows a sweet-faced, serious girl of eighteen, dressed in the simple Empire gown of the period, filmy in texture and scant in design. The soft, clear flesh-tones blend into the pure white of the gown. The features, so strikingly regular, and the deep, pensive eyes show to advantage beneath the dark curls massed carelessly on top of the head, where they are caught with a few white blossoms.
A distinguished writer of that time said of Nellie Custis, " She has more perfection of ex- pression, of colors, of softness, of firmness of mind, than any one I have ever seen before; " so one marvels not that she was the admired of all who frequented the White House during the years of Washington's administration.
The story of the Lewis family is much too long to be told here. The first of the name who came to Virginia, in 1635, is said to have been de- scended from the Earl of Dorset, and no armorial bearings in the country are as interesting as those borne by this family. There is a good bit
106
WOODLAWN
of controversy regarding the name of the first Lewis in Virginia, some asserting him to have been General Robert Lewis, of Brecon, Wales, who in 1650 patented 33,3331/3 acres of land in Gloucester County, while other authorities dis- pute both the name and the grant.
However that may be, there was certainly a Lewis in Gloucester County who left a son, John Lewis, who married Elizabeth Warner, and was the father of John Lewis, born in 1692. This John married Frances Fielding, and they were the parents of Fielding Lewis, born July 7, 1725. Colonel Fielding Lewis married Betty Wash- ington, she being his second wife, and in the family Bible now in the possession of the Lewises of Marmion, King George County, is the entry, in the handwriting of Colonel Fielding Lewis: " Our ninth, a son, Lawrence Lewis, born April 4, 1767. Mr. Charles Washington and Mr. Francis Thornton God fathers, and Miss Mary Dick, God mother."
The word-picture painted by one of the con- temporaries of Lawrence Lewis is more apt than any that could be given by those who know him only as an actor in the drama of long ago: "I remember him well, and entirely concur with those who supposed him to exhibit a remarkable
107
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
likeness to his uncle, the General; at least, he was in appearance so much like the best pictures of Washington that any one might have imagined he had actually sat for them."
It is plain to be seen that the marriage of Lawrence Lewis and Nellie Custis was one of more than passing interest. Mount Vernon was in gala attire for this early wedding, which took place in the presence of the Dandridges, Lewises, Bushrods, Masons, Lees, Calverts, Carrolls, Custises, Blackburns, and numerous other dis- tinguished families.
Flowers bloomed in the great drawing-room; myriads of wax tapers cast their soft glow about the merry assemblage, upon which the impassive faces of early ancestors looked down from their tarnished frames. Dainty maids with red-heeled slippers tripped through the stately minuet with lace-cravatted gallants who still wore the periwig. Never was there a scene more brilliant, or two beings more favored than they who were united amidst such beautiful surroundings.
In the will of George Washington, dated July 9, 1799, the Woodlawn estate is defined as " all that tract of land north of the road leading from the ford of Dogue Run to the Gum Spring, as described in the devise of the other part of the
108
WOODLAWN The home of Nellie Custis
WOODLAWN
tract to Bushrod Washington, until it comes to the stone and the three red or Spanish oaks on the knowl-thence with the rectangular line to the back line, between Mr. Mason and me-thence with that line westerly along the new double ditch to Dogue Run by the tumbling dam of my mill- thence with the said run to the ford aforemen- tioned, to which I add all the land I possess west of said Dogue Creek, bounded easterly and southerly therby-together with the Mill and Distillery, and all other houses and improvements on the premises."
The name Woodlawn was given the estate in memory of one of the old Lewis homes in Cul- peper County, and the manor-house, erected in 1805, was in accordance with the last will of Washington, which also bequeathed to these favored beings of his affection a large amount of money for that purpose.
Woodlawn was then, as it is now, one of the most pretentious of the Potomac River home- steads, being much more stately than Mount Vernon, and a fitting abode for a family of the high position of Major Lewis and his bride.
The brick mansion is placed upon a hill com- manding a superb view of the river, which here branches into a narrow cove, enclosing on two
109
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
sides the shores of the estate. A winding road- way climbs the steep slope to the terraced lawn, being there bordered with boxwood bushes of a century's growth and uniform size. Clumps of the same pungent shrub grow on either side of the river front, close to the house. In the rear the driveway is around a box-hedged circle, further adorned with an inner ring of that ever- green.
Here the pleasaunce, carpeted with thick turf- ing, is studded with monarch trees, oaks, maples, and lindens for summer shade, and conical firs and red-berried hollies for a touch of color against the neutral winter background.
The great manor-house has a most extraor- dinary frontage, consisting as it does of a large central building, sixty by forty feet, connected by covered corridors on either side with wings which in turn adjoin uncovered porches leading to a smaller annex. The red brick structure, with white stone window-arches and wooden portico, shows to-day no sign of its lengthy existence, and, though empty and neglected for some years, has responded nobly to the touch of those who have undertaken its rejuvenation with care not to mar or disturb the old lines. Ivy has been left to climb where it reached its tendrils in an age
110
WOODLAWN
gone by; the old landmarks have been replaced, and the entire mansion may be said to rejoice in the youth that comes of an old age.
At Woodlawn originally were many of the treasures now seen at Mount Vernon, for Nellie Custis was a child of fortune who lived her life under the brightest of stars. Under the roof of the commodious mansion unbounded hospitality always reigned. Lafayette and other titled old- world dignitaries were often the guests of her whom they had known as a child at Mount Vernon. President Zachary Taylor, one of the greatest favorites of the fair chatelaine, spent many happy days as her guest at the beautiful plantation, where a life of mingled sunshine and roses was led for many years.
After the death of Major and Mrs. Lewis, the lands passed to their son Lorenzo, who married Esther Maria Coxe, of Philadelphia, and lived there for some time. In 1845 the estate was bought by the New Jersey Colony, and was subsequently divided into small farms; but it is the present owner of the old mansion, Miss Eliza- beth Sharp, who has restored to their early grandeur the buildings that cost nearly $100,000.
There is no graveyard at Woodlawn to give rise to melancholy dreams of those who gave the
111
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
fair acres fame, for Mount Vernon was the family place of burial, and there may be seen on the marble monument:
" Sacred
to the memory of Eleanor Parke Custis, granddaughter of Mrs. Washington, and adopted daughter of General Washington. Reared under the roof of the Father of his Country, this lady was not more remarkable for the beauty of her person than for the superiority of her mind, and died, to be regretted, July 15, 1852, in the seventy-fourth year of her age."
In her memoir of George Washington Parke Custis, Mrs. Robert E. Lee, the niece of Nellie Custis, says: " All who knew her were wont to recall the pleasure they had derived from her extensive information, brilliant wit, and bound- less generosity. The most tender parent and devoted friend, she lived in the enjoyment of her affections. She was often urged to write her memoirs, which might even have surpassed in interest to her countrymen those of Madame de Sévigné and others of equal note, as her pen gave free expression to her lively imagination and clear memory. Would that we could recall the many tales of the past we have heard from her
112
-
WOODLAWN
lips; but, alas! we should fail to give them accurately."
Woodlawn is a picturesque bit of family his- tory in Virginia, associated as it is with those who made the country, and whose ideas and manners are retained to-day, though they themselves live only in the halo of an unforgettable past.
TUCKAHOE
N the midst of this prosiac age, when it is only in day-dreams and reveries that the famous figure of the Colonial Cavalier can be conjured up, we turn with gratefulness towards the old homesteads where he enjoyed his wealth, and something yet better, the peace of a quite mind.
It is with just such a feeling of appreciation that Tuckahoe is first seen, the oldest Randolph estate in the country, and though the years have depleted the acres, the mansion still shelters the descendants of the splendid family of him who built it in the long ago.
The Randolph name has been second to none in point of brilliancy throughout the history of America, the progenitor being William Ran- dolph, who came from Yorkshire, England, to Virginia about 1660, and is said to have been descended from Mary, Queen of Scots. Accord- ing to the best authority, the Robert Randolph
114
TUCKAHOE Original seat of the Randolphs of Virginia
TUCKAHOE
of Sussex who married Rose, the daughter of Thomas Roberts of Kent, was the great-grand- father of the Immigrant. William, the son of Robert, was born in 1572, and married first Elizabeth Smith, by whom he had a son, Thomas Randolph, born at Newnham in 1605 and known always as " the poet." Another son was Henry, who in 1643 came to Virginia, where he was Clerk of Henrico. The second wife of William Randolph was Dorothy, the Widow West, daugh- ter of Richard Lane of Courtenall, she being the mother of Richard, born in 1621, who married Elizabeth Ryland and lived in Warwick- shire. These were the parents of William Ran- dolph, the Immigrant, who was born in 1651 and on coming to Virginia in 1666 succeeded to the office of his uncle.
Having bought, it is said, the whole of Sir Thomas Dale's settlement on the James, and other lands amounting to 10,000 acres, William Randolph settled on the plantation known as Turkey Island, so called from an island which was then but a short distance from the mouth of the Appomattox River and was noted for the wild turkeys which frequented it. He was a prominent member of the House of Burgesses and later of the King's Council.
115
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
In 1680, or about that year, Colonel Randolph married Mary Isham, the daughter of Henry Isham of Bermuda Hundred, Virginia, their fourth child being Sir John Randolph of Wil- liamsburg, who married Susanna Beverley of Gloucester County. It is very probable that the mansion at Tuckahoe was built by him for his second son, Thomas, about 1700, Turkey Island having been inherited by the eldest son, William the Councillor. The general belief is, however, that the house was erected by Thomas Randolph himself after his marriage to Judith Churchill, which seems to have been about 1710.
The name of Tuckahoe was borrowed from the Indians, who called the creek which flowed through the estate Tuckahoe. The rather odd- looking mansion, built in the form of an H, is placed on the brow of a hill overlooking the James, and has much the appearance of two houses connected by a large central hall. In olden days the family lived exclusively in the rear wing, the front being reserved for guests, who were always there in plenty. The square hall, or salon, is very lofty, and is used as a living- room as of yore, being so placed that it com- mands the light and air from all four points of the compass. Owing, perhaps, to necessity, the
116
THE NORTH STAIR Renowned in the architectural annals of the country
THE HALL AT TUCKAHOE which forms the H of the building
TUCKAHOE
wing ends are of brick laid in Flemish bond, the remainder of the building being frame, as were many houses of that time.
Those misguided beings who unthinkingly or ignorantly state that in the South the interior trim was less carefully thought out and executed than in the dwellings of the North would do well to visit Tuckahoe, where there are many beautiful examples of interior decoration of the early seventeen hundreds. The exquisite carving of the stairways and balustrades is particularly fine, and there is every indication that it was executed by foreign workmen imported for the purpose during the construction of the mansion. Though simple in design, the old mantels and fireplaces are perfect types of true Colonial art, never having been replaced by any of later date. The panelling of most of the rooms is of mahogany, and the entire staircase is of black walnut, which, though once barbarously painted, was scraped some years ago, and is now in its original state.
Much of the furniture placed there in the early days is still at Tuckahoe, one of the most inter- esting pieces being the old desk which records prove stood in the great salon in the time of Wil- liam Randolph 2nd. Though most of the family portraits, with other cherished Lares and Penates,
117
COLONIAL MANORS of VIRGINIA
now adorn other mansions, there are still hung upon the rich walls the likenesses of some early Randolphs, who greet one kindly from their ancient frames. Notable among these are copies of Stuart's superb portraits of Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Mann Randolph, the latter showing the half-length figure of a man of merry counte- nance. He wears the velvet coat of the period, and over his hands, one of which is thrust inside the satin waistcoat while the other holds care- lessly a riding-whip, fall lace sleeve-ruffles.
The manor-house is set in the midst of forest trees of magnificent growth, the long avenue which forms its outer approach being bordered with ancient cedars, which give place to well-kept box hedges, these, near the house, being interlined with a row of trees of the same shrub.
The old garden, or " maze," as it is called, extends along one side of the mansion, and is one of the largest as well as the most beautiful of the old homesteads of the country. In the quaintly irregular flower squares and circles no new flowers have been allowed to supplant the modest old ones, and each bed knows always just one kind. In this grow only varicolored ver- benas, and in that golden marigolds bloom triumphant. Then come meek gillyflowers and
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.