Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-03-14
OLD COLONIAL HOMES
ALONG THE MATTAP0N|
Country Seats Which Have Been
Owned by Some of Virginia's
Ancient Families.
MANY Or THEM HISTORIC
DR.. Bernard n. Walker Writes Rcmi-
niscently OF Houses and People
Prominent I'm Virginia's Early
Day-TraditioDs Retold.
ny DIR. BERNARD II. WALKER.
D

o"'oush' puiit Dy Coioncl humphrey
Hill. He was a man Of large means
and carried large merchandise
business. buying his goods in England
{ and sending back cargocs of tobacco.
4 Up to some twenty years ago the old
tobacco warehouse was still standing
the foundation of this warehouse was
laid on large. solid roclr brought from
! Eng land as ballast This house was
wen and substantially built. With
handsome black walnut stairway In
this house, as we'll as other Colonial
houses. tho chimneys In the basement
nave an arched fireplace, but there Is
no Hue passing upward from the arch.
No one has ever explained to me why
such y, q should he left I'm the chin
neys. This -rtainly did not strengthen
inc chimney, I'D very few bricks were
saved by leaving the opening There
was an arrangement on this house
"hich never saw on an% other. Under
inc second story windows there were
earthenware martin nests In the shan.
or hover pots. fastened TO the house
ny wooden pins. My carly morning
maps were often disturbed when visiting
mere by the chattcrnH OF the martins
This place was sold by Charles Hill the
GRANDSON OF Colonel Humphrey Hin. to
william Ainpler, and he made Il present
o. IL 10 his sister. Mrs Betny Henley.
INC wife of IT. NJ. Henley. and a mem
Dor OF that family still owns it,
The next Colonial residence is Iiieka-
noe pronounced Richah0ck). The build
ing was destroyed by fire some thirty
years ago. 1t was the seat Of the
smith family moro than 100 years ago
Francis Smith represented that district
IN Congress prior to the time that the
lsoanes were In Congress- An old gen
tieman. Charles Chilter. told me whc,,
was hoy that when he WAS a hoy lie
visited Rtckahoc during MIR Smiths
NE. and mat IT was then the most ole
giant country rcsidcnc" that he over
saw The grounds were wen laid off
ana ornamcntcd. The approach To TN.
river though steep, was graded and
Wei kept The interior or the house
was painted in limitation Of the rrcsi-
dents house In Washington. The Smith
fanny left The county perhaps Ion
Years ago. ana tho place has PASSED
,hroush many hands SINCE. The I!icks-
noe mouse was IA one story buildIr.
win -four rooms and a wide hail Oh
the trst floor. The roof was very .tcnp.
and tho upper rooms wero large ana
comfortable.
Next to Rickahoo vas Mantua.
cannot learn the carly hiatory Of Man
tua. Carter Braxtou, the sieucr Of tho
declaration o. Independence owned n
once and his "a, adson. Carter ~ Iirax-
ton, AT later date owned and lived
there, but before that IL was owned
by Charles Iiill. Attached 10 the Man
'oa estate Us largo marsh. Mir. IInl
conceived the idea that 4, could hc
diked and made arabic lie throw IN a
ncar% dixie around II and put In three
gates ana planted corn on IT, The
ditching, dkinE. etc. cost him 5000
inc manwho was his manager told me
MAJ 'nc corn crop was by far tho
heaviest that lie ever saw, and MIR hin
realized $4,000 from the sale OF the
corn. Next year nc attempted to raise
"h"ther crop corn. but the ground had
SUNK foot or more and tho muskrats
cut his dixie in so man, places letting
INC water in that the crop failed en-
tirely Then lie tried rice but did
rot succeed with that. and so tho at,
y hapt TO make it arabic failed. and
since ne marsh has returned to its
l.aturai condition and Is one of the
hnest grounds for sora on the Mnttn-
POM have sometimes thought that
as so much shot has been used over II
mat ultimately il might be- worked as
a lead mine.
COLONIAL HOME or
CHAMRERLAIN FAMILY
opposite Mantua across the river is
tEsicston. tho Colonial homo If the
hamber!ain family. II popcd nut of
their hands many wears ago mud mo
many acres OF open land is now mostly
oHersrown in scrub oak ana hriars
'nc OF Inc Chamberlain family became
sailor and vessel owner. He loaded
one evening in March down the rive,
with all three vessels. Neither he nor
MS vessels were ever heard of again
what became OF them has been an en-.
,ire mystery Adjoining this farm
Mahtua was many years ago :: larc.
manufacturing mill built in Coloni,,
'imcs ana from which large quantities
OF flour were shipped to The West
ihd'es. Just below this mil, IS the
large farm. "HoclSley Neck" owned
h,,N
DRY, VINO at that time lived across the
iiverfai Sandy Point This farm wos
a'~3 kept as quarter, ana managed
by ovcrsecr.
+ ross the river from Hockey Neck
Sandy Point at one time Tie resi-
snce OF william Gregory The Co
lonial building there, was built by
George braXton, the father OF Garter
t5raxton, as a home for his son, ana
afterwards came into the posession NJ
the Gregory family. Adjoining loci
icy Nee pts Mantapike, the home of
me Broc emily for many genera
lions. c. 81 Richard Brooke. the
last OF the me who lived there, was
man OF distinction and wealth. The
h'ildinS IN the usual Colonial STYLE OF
that day stood on the banks of tho Mat
tapon'. Some ftty., years ago II was
puilen down, nc timhcrs used I'm
INC cohstructio. more modern
house away from the river. 81 hi.
place was large fishery. at which as
many as Il thousand shad were some
times caught in n day. III tho early
history of the country there was !,
ferry and road leading 10 Williams.
burg. TN tho opposite siic of The
river even now can be seen the evil
dcncc of Il wide roddbcd tnrou.,, :,
long Strstcli nt MARSH or low lands.
The tradition 10 that it was Il national
road leading 10 williamsburg Ii was
II one time a place OF some commcr,.i,I
Importance and 4 shipping point for
tobacco, and there was {; large tobacco
warehouse. AS have before said. She
mousse at Sandy Point was built ia 1853
Wy George Braxtom Tor his son. Carter
''raXton. 1t soon popped out Of the