River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1917-08-09

mansion, green-blinded and with a
brass-knockered doorway that q, ems on
q formal box-hedged pathwa- ilanked
by a sun dial at the end of the walk.
| It is only one of hundreds Of historic
! homes in this beautiful state, but as
| "Red HILL" the last home and resting
place of Patrick Henry, it is beloved
| by every Virginian and is also regard
| ed as q shrine by all patriotic Ameri-
cans from coast to coast.
The Ted Hill Of yesterday consisted
of a 2,G00-acre plantation, thus named
| because of the red-brown soil. For two
years after Patrick Henry bought the
place he divided his time between it
and his Long Island plantation 20 miles
| further up the river. Meantime, how
| ever he became so attached to Red
| Hill that he decided to spend the re-
mainder of his days there, and accord
| ingly removed there in 1896, making
no changes in the architecture Of the
old revolutionary house except to add
a shed in order that he might hear the
| patter of the rain on the roof, writes
Louise e. Dew, IN Grit.
The Red Hill of today has been re-
Gently remodeled along colonial lines,
but adjacent to the house stands the
same little hip-rOOfed "cOokhouse" or
kitchen, always a feature of the ante
bellum home, and over which presided
red-turbanned, white-haired "Aunt
Becky" and her kinl1y-headed minions,
all Of whom loved and reverenced the
''marster" with all his kith and kin.
His Office and Tomb.
Nearby, stands the diminutive "of-
fice'' in which Patrick Henry transact
ed all the plantation affairs. Further
on, at the end of the old-fashioned gar
den inclOsed by a lockwood hedge so
feet square, lie his remains marked by
an oblong slab of marble bearing the
inscription of his name, the date of his
birth and death, and the simple words:
Ellis Name Is His Best Epitaph."
Under the adjoining slab rest the re-
mains of his wife, Dorothea cambridge,
to whom he left his estate for life as
follows:
''I do give to my said wife all my
lands at and adjoining my dwelling
place called Red Hill. to be
held during her life with 90 slaves, her
choice of them all. At her death the
said lands are to be divided at her dis
cretiOn."
From that day to this the home of
| Patrick Henry has been jealousy
guarded by his descendants.
In the restoration of Red Hill the
colonial character of the building has
been preserved and added to without
in any way departing from the lines
which Patrick Henry knew and loved.
| The woodwork inside the house is
white; tall mantels and big freplaces
| add to it's quaint character. The brass
locks represent part of the fee in the
famous Randolph case when Patrick
Henry saved the life of Richard broth
er of that eccentric genius John Ran
dolph of Roanoke. The old-fashiOned
garden has been restocked with shrubs
from Mount Vernon and the landscap-
ing done by the brother of the gar
dener at Mount Vernon who was his in
StructOr.
Has a Beautiful Location.
| 1lcO ILL 10 SAIulICus OlA
the north it looks out upon the Blue
Ridge with the lofty peaks of the Otter
plainly visible although so miles dis
| tant; on the south a serpentine stretch
Of the Staunton valley, varying in
width from a quarter of a mile to a
mile, the banks of the river cleaning
with giant oaks and holly trees from
which the Spanish moss trails and gar
lands like fantastic Druidical boards.
1t was recently my privilege to visit
in Richmond, Va, at ROsecroft, the
home of Mrs. Elizabeth Henry Lyons,
great-granddaughter of Patrick Henry,
who inherited with her brothers Red
| Hill, and to see there many relics of
her famous ancestor besides numerous
letters and documents yellowed with
age and creased by times fingers
There stands in bas-relief a day
spent in visiting the historic spots of
Richmond. One incident particularly
is recalled with peculiar significance
at this crisis in our world affairs. Rev
erently sitting in the cathedral-twilight
of old st. Johns church, in the very
pew where Patrick Henry stood when
! he delivered his famous speech before
the second Virginia convention, March
| 20, 1775, I closed my eyes, picturing the
scene as it must have appeared that
day so long ago. There were all the
great men of the day, including George
Washington, Jefferson and many 9th
err, some of whom had Travelled long
distances to be present, filling the pews
to overlooking, even to the window
lodges outside, and in their midst an
orator delivering himself of words of
fire, even as did st. Paul at Athens of
,old. Suddenly voice broke my reverie
and the stiffness Of the church. It was
our old guide repeating the words Pat
rick Henry uttered century and a