- Berkeley Plantation
Infobox_nrhp | name =Berkeley Plantation
nrhp_type =nhl
caption =House from the South (river) side
nearest_city=Charles City County, Virginia
area =
built =1726
architecture= Georgian
designated=November 11 ,1971 cite web|url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1180&ResourceType=Building
title=Berkeley Plantation |accessdate=2008-06-23|work=National Historic Landmark summary listing|publisher=National Park Service]
added =November 11 ,1971
governing_body = Private
refnum=71001040cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]Berkeley Plantation, one of the first great estates in America, comprises about 1000 acres (4.0 km²) on the banks of the James River on State Route 5 in
Charles City County, Virginia . Berkeley Plantation was originally calledBerkeley Hundred , and named after one of its founders of the 1618land grant ,Richard Berkeley .Among the many American "firsts" that occurred at Berkeley Plantation are:
* The first official
Thanksgiving :4 December 1619
* The firstbourbon whiskey distilled: 1621, byGeorge Thorpe , an Episcopal priest
* First time Army bugle callTaps played: July 1862, by buglerOliver W. Norton ; the melody was written at Harrison's Landing on the plantation by then GeneralDaniel Butterfield .On
December 4 ,1619 , a group of 38 English settlers arrived atBerkeley Hundred , about eight thousand acres (32 km²) on the north bank of the James River near Herring Creek in an area then known as Charles Cittie (sic).It was about 20 miles upstream from Jamestown, where the first permanent settlement of theColony of Virginia was established onMay 14 ,1607 .The group's charter required that the day of arrival be observed yearly as a "day of thanksgiving" to God. On that first day, Captain John Woodleaf held the service of thanksgiving. The Charter of Berkeley Plantation specified the thanksgiving service: "Wee ordaine that the day of our ships arrival at the place assigned for plantacon in the land of Virginia shall be yearly and perpetually keept holy as a day of thanksgiving to Almighty god."Fact|date=December 2007
During the
Indian Massacre of 1622 , nine of the settlers at Berkeley Hundred were killed, as well as about a third of the entire population of the Virginia Colony. The Berkeley Hundred site and other outlying locations were abandoned as the colonists withdrew to Jamestown and other more secure points.After several years, the site became
Berkeley Plantation , and was long the traditional home of the Harrison family, one of theFirst Families of Virginia . In 1634, it became part of the first eightshires of Virginia , as Charles City County, one of the oldest in theUnited States , and is located along Virginia State Route 5, which runs parallel to the river's northern borders past sites of many of theJames River Plantations between the colonial capital city of Williamsburg (now the site ofColonial Williamsburg ) and the capital of theCommonwealth of Virginia at Richmond.Benjamin Harrison IV built the mansion on the estate in 1726 and married Anne Carter, daughter of Robert "King" Carter ofLancaster County, Virginia , who was probably the state's most powerful planter. His son,Benjamin Harrison V , a signer of theAmerican Declaration of Independence and a governor of Virginia, was born at Berkeley Plantation, as was his sonWilliam Henry Harrison , a war hero in theBattle of Tippecanoe , governor ofIndiana Territory , and ninthPresident of the United States .During the
American Civil War , Union troops occupied Berkeley Plantation, and PresidentAbraham Lincoln twice visited there in the summer of 1862 to confer with Gen.George B. McClellan . The Harrisons were not able to regain possession of Berkeley Plantation after the war, and it passed through several owners' hands and fell into disrepair. In 1907, it was bought by John Jamieson, a Scotsman who had served as a drummer boy in the Union army during the Civil War, and it was his son Malcolm Jamieson (who inherited it in 1927), and Malcolm's wife Grace, who restored the manor to the beauty that attracts visitors from all over the country and other parts of the world, today.The architecture is original, and the house has been filled with antique furniture and furnishings that date from the period when it was built. The grounds, too, have been restored, and cuttings from the boxwood gardens are available as living souvenirs for its visitors.
ee also
*
Berkeley Hundred References
External links
* [http://www.berkeleyplantation.com/ Berkeley Plantation official website]
* [http://www.jamesriverplantations.org/Berkeley.html Virginia's James River Plantations]
* [http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/jamesriver/ James River Plantations, a National Park Service "Discover Our Shared Heritage" Travel Itinerary] …
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