The Garden Club of the Northern Neck (GCNN) will host Historic Garden Week (HGW) in the Northern Neck on April 19.
The Garden Club of Virginia (GCV) will celebrate 90 years of Garden Week tours and GCNN is excited to be presenting two never-before-seen historic homes and two historic tour favorites in Warsaw, reported publicity coordinator Hyte Smith.
Recently the town of Warsaw, having undergone a revitalization, offers charming specialty shops and eateries abound along with a new town park and outdoor center with access to lovely trails at The Bounds, said Smith. Three of the four historic homes on the tour have largely remained in the hands of the original families that built them.
Virginia’s Historic Garden Week began in the 1920s to preserve trees planted by Thomas Jefferson and is often referred to as “America’s Largest Open House.” Tour proceeds provide grants and scholarships designed to promote conservation and preservation throughout Virginia, including Stratford Hall, Belle Isle State Park and Westmoreland State Park. Additional details about the homes, tickets and logistics may be viewed on Facebook at Historic Garden Week in the Northern Neck, and Instagram at historicgardenweek-nnk.
Chinn House
This two-story Warsaw icon was originally home to Judge Joseph William Chinn.
Completed in 1908, it is a fine example of the popular hipped roof variation of the colonial revival style. The land was part of a large farm owned by the Douglas family that had been gifted to the young lawyer, a distant relative of George Washington. His bride was Sarah Fairfax Douglas.
In its heyday, the residence was a grand gathering place of families and local citizens. The first floor includes the library, a formal parlor, a sitting room, the dining room, the kitchen and a pantry while the second level boasts six bedrooms. Connecting the floors is a beautiful, custom staircase made of quartered sawn oak that was shipped by steamboat from Baltimore. Much of the home’s building supplies, including the rift pine wood floors and concave leaded glass in the front door, the door between the pantry and the custom curved windows in the sitting room, were also shipped to Warsaw from Baltimore during construction.
Local resident, Mary Douglas Lawton, the granddaughter of Joseph and Sarah Chinn, remembers that the family often opened the house to the community for celebrations. After the death of S. Chinn in 1932, followed by Judge Chinn in 1936, the family donated the property to the Virginia Community College System in 1969. With the state government launching a much-needed renovation, the plan is for the home to serve as a community gathering place for cultural meetings, receptions and get-togethers.
The property is owned by Rappahannock Community College.
Jones House
This striking three-story Victorian home was built by Congressman William Atkinson Jones and his wife, Claude Douglas Motley, in 1887. The original house burned down during the Civil War. At the age of 15, Jones fought for the Confederacy as a VMI cadet. He is best known for authoring the Jones Act of 1916, which provided for the independence of the Philippines.
The yard is bordered by original wrought-iron fencing. In the side yard is a gazebo covering a 30-foot-deep icehouse. Family members have referred to the gazebo as the “summer house,” a favorite gathering place during Virginia’s hot, humid summers.
Portraits dating to the colonial period tell the story of the Jones family and its prominence in the nation’s history. In 1970, the grandson of Congressman Jones, Col. William A Jones III, was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for heroic actions in a rescue mission over North Vietnam.
In the parlor are many artifacts and furnishings acquired by Congressman and Mrs. Jones during their travels to the Far East. Original woodwork and family antiques contribute to the overall elegance of the home.
The property is owned by the Jones Family.
Sabine Hall
A fine example of a Colonial Georgian House, Sabine Hall was built c. 1738 by Landon Carter, the fourth son of Robert “King” Carter of Corotoman who was the builder of Historic Christ Church in Lancaster County.
Originally a classic Georgian brick structure, Sabine Hall reflects alterations by both the builder and later generations. In 1764, the south wing was built as a covered passage to the kitchen. The covered “piazza” on the river side of the house was added by Landon Carter and documented in a 1797 insurance policy.
Just inside the front door, the great hall is bright and filled with family portraits, including one of King Carter. The traverse corridor staircase, just off the great hall, has walnut balusters and the original heart-pine floors are side-pegged. Sabine Hall rises on a ridge of the Rappahannock River, with six terraces sloping toward the water. The garden retains its original 18th century design.
The house has always been owned and occupied by direct descendants of Landon Carter and is both a Virginia and a National Historic Landmark.
The property is owned by Mr. and Mrs. Robert Carter Wellford IV and Mrs. Peter Drayton O’Hara.
Belle Ville
Nestled at the end of a long straight drive with an allee of Pin Oak trees and a Horse Chestnut tree planted in 1860 in the back, this property was built between 1826 and 1832. The first known structure on the farm and property was built circa 1730.
This is the first time this beautiful Federal-style house, which has two stories and five bays above a high English basement, has been on the garden tour. The bricks, laid in Flemish bond, were made on the property. There is an ample classical-style front porch with four columns, reached by a flight of steps gracing its entire width.
The interior has all original woodwork and original windows and glass. The front hallway and stairwell feature lovely architectural design ascending the entire stairway tying it into the elegant and spacious hallway. The interior also features original family pieces such as a dining table and chairs and a wicker child’s rocking chair.
The owners are in the process of a loving renovation using salvaged materials and lumber from the property which provides an intriguing view of before and after.
Descend into the backyard and view a setting of 100 years ago of agricultural fields and naturalized daffodils filling the remains of the rolling terraces of the once formal gardens.
To the left is the Warsaw Female Institute where several hundred local children were educated between 1871 and the mid-1920s along with other interesting out buildings.
The property is owned by Charles and Patty Lamb.
Tour information
Tour headquarters may be found on the Campus of Rappahannock Community College, 52 Campus Drive, Warsaw. Tour hours are 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Advance tickets are $40 per person at vagardenweek.org.
Restrooms may be found at Tour Headquarters and Warsaw Town Park, 171 Main Street, Warsaw.
Parking is available at Tour Headquarters, Main Street, Town Park, Sabine Hall and Belle Ville.
Box lunches may be pre-ordered until April 12 for $15. Contact Anna Garrett, 296-8899 or Agarrett7790@gmail.com. There are takeout or eat-in options, as well as gluten-free options.
Complimentary refreshments will be available at the Garden Market on Main Street for GCV ticket holders.
There will be special activities from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Garden Market Place on Main Street. Tour guests will find outdoor seating to enjoy lunch, floral demonstrations, a native plant sale and a free tree sapling from Bartlett Tree Experts.
This is a self-driving tour. Properties require walking and have uneven ground. Walking shoes are highly recommended.
Other places of interest nearby include:
- The Saddlery, 171 Main Street, Warsaw. This harness shop was constructed in 1832-1833 and is now the home of Northern Neck Visitor’s Center and Menokin’s Outdoor Adventures.
- Menokin, 4037 Menokin Road, Warsaw. The home of Francis Lightfoot Lee, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, is a National Historic Landmark and one of the best documented 18th century houses in the U.S. Menokin is a waterfront refuge featuring pristine nesting and migratory bird habitat.
- Stratford Hall, 483 Great House Road, Stratford. This historic home was established in the 1730s by the Lees and is one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture in the U.S. Tour the Great House, birthplace of Civil War General Robert E. Lee. The Garden Club of Virginia has completed restoration work on its gardens and grounds, most recently in 2018. Admission is waived for HGW ticket holders on Northern Neck’s tour day.
- St. John’s Episcopal Church, 5987 Richmond Road, Warsaw. Completed in 1835, the Greek Revival entrance has a triple-arched loggia with plastered columns leading to two Gothic Revival doors. In 1924, a memorial given by the Philippine Republic was erected over the grave of Congressman William A. Jones.
- Richmond County Jail and Museum, 5874 Richmond Road, Warsaw. Located in the c. 1872 jail on the courthouse green, this museum tells the story of Richmond County from prehistoric to present day through its collections.
