Westover Plantation By Hannah Frey History of Westover

Westover Plantation By: Hannah Frey

History of Westover plantation � In 1607, when the colonists arrived in Jamestown, a private English company settled the lands upstream of the James River. � These settlements were known as “Hundreds”, because of the wanted number of people to be settled. � The leaders for these settlers were John Rolfe, Pocahontas’ husband, Francis, and John and Nathaniel West who were brothers of Lord Delaware � Westover most likely got its name from the West brothers. � Around 1637, the Colonial Governor patented 2, 000 acres of the plantation to Captain Thomas Paulette who was the first recorded owner � The Captain sold the plantation to the Blands, and Richard Bland sold it to William Byrd I in 1688

Who built the house? Until recently, history has supported William Byrd II for building the house. The dendrochronologic (tree-ring dating) testing showed that it dated in circa 1750, which means that William Byrd III most-likely built the house. When William Byrd II died, the property of his diaries was passed on to his son.

plantation One of the grandest and beautiful plantations and an example of Georgian architecture. This was built in the 1 st half of the 18 th century and is also known for its superb proportions. Westover is on several trails like Civil War trails, James Driving and Water trails, and the Virginia Birding and Wildlife trail.

The plantation �The Westover Church originally stood half a mile west from the house that still has buried plots of prominent Virginians �In 1814 the widow of William Byrd 3 rd died. After that, the plantation got sold out of the Byrd family. �Since then, there were eight owners

What happened to the house During the American Civil War, the East wing of the plantation was hit by a cannon that was meant for the Union troops The troops who shot at the plantation were the Confederate soldiers that were on the south side of the James river. This wing lay in ruins until Mrs. Clarise Sears Ramsey, who was a descendant of the Byrd family, bought the property in 1899.

The modifications made to the house Mrs. Ramsey was very helpful when they rebuilt the building. She added hyphens to connect to the main house to the older parts of the building. When she made these modifications, she made, basically, one long building.

The gate These pillars on the front side are capped with signs of virtue. These are: Pineapple for Hospitality, Greek Key for Wisdom, Urn of Flowers for beauty, Cornucopia for Horn of Plenty, Beehive for Industry, and Acorn for Perseverance This place included formal gardens, a rare iron clairvoyee, an outhouse, tunnel, icehouse, several barns with different ages, and three wrought-iron gates, which were the finest from the 18 th century in this county

The owners of the plantation � In all, there around twenty owners for Westover plantation � 1634 -1637: Francis, John, and Nathaniel West were the first owners of the plantation � 1637 -1643: The Governor patented 2, 000 acres of Westover to Thomas Pawlette, who was the first recorded owner � 1643 -1665: Sir John Pawlette owned it during this time � 1665 -1688: Sir John Pawlette sold it to Theodorick Bland � 1688: T. Bland Jr. /Richard Bland � 1688 -1701: Richard Bland sold it to William Byrd I � 1701 -1744: William Byrd I died, so William Byrd II inherited it � 1744 -1766: When William Byrd II died William Byrd III inherited it � 1766 -1814: After William Byrd III died, his wife took over

The owners of the plantation >1814 -1821: William Carter bought the Westover house after Mrs. William Byrd III died � 1821 -1828: Robert Douthat owned the plantation during this time � 1828 -1829: George Harrison owned this for one year � 1829 -1862: John Seldon � 1862 -1866: Clay Drewrey/Andrew Ellet � 1866 -1899: Augustus Drewrey � 1899 -1921: Claris Sears Ramsey � 1921 -1938: Richard Crane � 1938 -1952: Ellen Bruce Crane � 1952 -1999: Bruce Crane Fisher � 1999: Mrs. Fisher transferred ownership to a family patnership � 1999 -2012: Managed by Fred and Muschi Fisher � It’s now managed by Andrea Fisher Erda and her husband Rob

Westover plantation today �Now you can tour the rarely seen interior �Weddings �Holiday parties �Reunions �Political fundraisers �Country BBQs

Bibliography �www. westover-plantation. com