History
Land family history on the site spanned the 1630s to the 1850s. [5] The house passed through six males named Francis Land and then the last Francis' daughters before being sold to another family. Slaves were first documented on the site in 1694, with importation of new slaves up to the 1730s. [5] In the mid-18th century the plantation had as many as 20 slaves. [5] The first Francis Land arrived in the area in 1638–1639 and later acquired 1,020 acres (410 ha) of land by 1654, 200 of which was acquired via head rights by bringing four people with him. The plantation got as small as 350 acres (140 ha) over the next 150 years and at the time the current house was built the plantation was just under 700 acres (280 ha). The current house sits on 7 acres (2.8 ha) of that original plantation, [4] [7] [8] and is now in the midst of a very commercialized area. [5] [7]
The house was at one time thought to have been built in 1732, [7] but recent research has placed its construction in the period 1805–1810 by Francis Land VI. [6] [9] Francis VI and his family lived there around 1805–1819, when Francis VI died. [6] When Francis Moseley Land built the house his family had already been living on that land for 150 years. [9] Francis VI and his wife had two daughters, Mary E. Land and Anne White Land. Mary married John Newton Walke (their son Frank Anthony Walke was a Confederate Soldier). Anne married John Minson Galt in 1833. Their son Francis Land Galt was surgeon and acting paymaster of the famed Confederate raider CSS Alabama. Mary and Anne held onto the land until about 1850–1851, when it was first sold outside their family. In the early 1900s, Junius Thompson Sheets and his wife, Flora, purchased land, which included the historic Francis Land house, in what is now Lynnhaven, Virginia. The roof was raised 20 inches (510 mm) in 1912. In 1929, their son, Emmett Don Sheets sold the property to their daughter, Jane (Jennie) and her husband, Raymond Garfield DeFrees.
A large portion of the property was lost to foreclosure during the 1930s, but the DeFrees family kept the primary residence, the Francis Land House, and surrounding acreage as a dairy farm until the mid-1950s.
Raymond DeFrees was a civil engineer, and traveled frequently from Washington, D.C. to Florida while working for the Bureau of Evaluation. He was also a charter member of and teacher for the Amateur Astronomer's Club in Washington, D.C. Many groups came to the historic Francis Land house and farm to learn from him.
Jennie DeFrees managed the dairy farm while raising their son and four daughters: Lindsay (who served in WWII), Florence, Flora Louise, Alice, and Helen. She also played the organ at her church. During WWII, she oversaw German prisoners of war who had been assigned to the historic farm. During World War II, Naval Air Station Oceana opened nearby, and a major road was built through the area. By the 1950s commercial development began along Virginia Beach Boulevard and during the mid-late 1900s, the house was the Rose Hall Dress Shop. [6]
In the early-mid-1970s a developer wanted to tear down the house and build a shopping mall, but the City of Virginia Beach stepped in and purchased the house and 7 acres of surrounding land in 1975; subsequently operating it as a historic house museum since 1986. [6] Special programs for schools, Scouts, and the general public are offered throughout the year. [10] Adjacent to the house are the Rose Hall Apartments and Rose Hall Professional Center. [8]
Shirley Plantation is an estate located on the north bank of the James River in Charles City County, Virginia, USA. It is located on scenic byway State Route 5, between Richmond and Williamsburg. It is the oldest active plantation in Virginia and the oldest family-owned business in North America, dating back to 1614 with operations starting in 1648. It used about 70 to 90 enslaved people at a time for forced labor including plowing the fields, cleaning, childcare, and cooking. It was added to the National Register in 1969 and declared a National Historic Landmark in 1970.
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The Adam Keeling House is a historic house in Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States.
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Virginia Beach, Virginia is a city that has become a popular tourist destination in recent years on account of its historical, scientific, and performing arts.
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Hickory Hill is an estate in Hanover County, Virginia. The 3,300 acre former plantation is located approximately 20 miles (32 km) north of the independent city of Richmond and 5 miles (8.0 km) east of the incorporated town of Ashland. The property was listed in the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register in 1974.
Woodhouse House in Virginia Beach, Virginia, also known as Fountain House or Simmons House, was built in 1810 in the Federal architecture style. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007. It is located south of the Virginia Beach Courthouse complex, still surrounded by farm land but facing increasing encroachment by suburban homes.
Old Donation Church is the third Lynnhaven Parish Church and is the oldest Episcopal Church in Virginia Beach. Records show that the parish's first church services were held in 1637 in the home of Adam Thoroughgood. The first church building was constructed on Mr. Thoroughgood's land in 1639 on the location later known as "Church Point." The vestry, or governing body of the church, was established in 1640.
Ferry Plantation House, or Old Donation Farm, Ferry Farm, Walke Manor House, is a brick house in the neighborhood of Old Donation Farm in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The site dates back to 1642 when Savill Gaskin started the second ferry service in Hampton Roads to carry passengers on the Lynnhaven River to the nearby county courthouse and to visit plantations along the waterway. A cannon was used to signal the ferry, which had 11 total stops along the river. The first ferry service was started nearby by Adam Thoroughgood.
The Lynnhaven House, also Wishart–Boush House, Wishart House, and Boush House, which was built circa 1725, is an example of 18th century Tidewater Virginia vernacular architecture and is located in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Although it was founded by the Thelaball family, it is sometimes referred to as the Boush House or the Wishart House. The house was given the name the Lynnhaven House due to its close proximity to the Lynnhaven River, which flows on the same property. Originally, the home, located at 4405 Wishart Road, stood on a 250-acre plantation. Now, it is located on five and a half acres.
Fall Hill is a plantation located near the falls on the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Though the Thornton family has lived at Fall Hill since the early 18th century, the present house was built in 1790 for Francis Thornton V (1760–1836). The land on which Fall Hill is located is part of an 8,000 acres (3,200 ha) land patent obtained by Francis Thornton I (1657–1727) around 1720. The present-day town of Fredericksburg, Virginia is located on that original patent.
Oakley is a historic plantation and home located in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, Virginia. The Federal/Georgian style, 2+1⁄2-story home was built in 1828 by Samuel Alsop, Jr. as a wedding present for his daughter, Clementina. Alsop built several notable houses in Spotsylvania County including Kenmore, Spotswood Inn, and Fairview.
Upper Wolfsnare, historically called Brick House Farm until 1939, is a colonial-era brick home built, probably about 1759, in Georgian style by Thomas Walke III in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
The Jude–Crutcher House is a historic plantation house in Huntsville, Alabama. The house was built circa 1812 on land deeded that year to Samuel Echols. Echols sold 54 acres and the house to George Jude, Sr., in 1817. Jude died two years later, leaving the land to his son, George Jr. The younger Jude eventually acquired 800 acres and owned 31 slaves. Upon his death in 1873, the land stayed in the family until 1883. In 1906 David Crutcher, who had been born a slave on an adjacent plantation in 1851, purchased the house and 154 acres along with two other African-American men. The Crutchers operated a successful farm on their portion of the land, which was an extension farm for Alabama A&M University until the 1940s. Only 7% of African-American farmers in Madison County in 1910 owned their own farms. David died in 1924, and his wife, Lucy, died in 1943, although the house and land is still in the family.
