Homes on Tour

Using native limestone, the house at Cool Spring Farm was built in 1761 by Zackquil Morgan, son of Colonel Morgan Morgan.

The 1761 Federal-style two-storey house includes two rooms on the first floor, each with an original corner fireplace. An enclosed stairway leads to the second floor rooms, with two identical corner fireplaces. All of the fireplace mantels are original. The bedrooms in the original section of the house have painted plaster finishes with tongue-and-grove white pine flooring. Former owners of the farm built a living room and kitchen over the original stone foundation of the log cabin. This foundation has been dated prior to 1760. Many American Revolutionary War and Civil War artifacts were discovered at the farm during the 1970 restoration and are on display.

The home features a large, fine collection of antiques. The gardens feature many limestone foundations and structures (the springhouse, for example) which are marked by bronze plaques explaining the historic and pre-historic heritage of the farm. A Garden Club member will providea tour of the gardens and explain many of the items on display. The present owner is an avid gardener and knowledgeable horticulturist.

Shown by Norborne Garden Club.

Built in 1776, this exceptionally large log home was constructed on a rock ledge and contains a center log beam forty-eight feet long. The exterior logs were covered with rough plaster, which was scored to look like blocks.

A large hall centers the first floor and features a three-storey Japanese mural in the entrance. The Italian-styled dining room is done in gold leaf and boasts some contemporary design as well. The second floor contains a large room that was used for dances in years gone by. In the ballroom, as well as two other rooms on this floor, visitors will see fine examples of marbled paint work on doors and baseboards.

A walk-out ground floor or basement provides a view of the west side of the property. With thick stone walls and ample space, this area was used during the Civil War for hiding, storage, and even the stabling of horses. A terrace has been added, with a green landscape dotted with statuary and fountains.

Restoration work on this lovely old house has been done by the current owners who purchased it in 1979.

Shown by Olde Berkeley Garden Club.

(Also known as Hilda Lingamfelter’s House.) Sitting on land originally granted from Lord Fairfax to Joshua Hedges in 1754, this farmhouse was built from hand-hewn logs on a fieldstone foundation.

Over the years the farmhouse had suffered general deterioration inside and out. During restoration it was entirely stripped to bare logs. Many of the original features were kept and restored including two fireplace mantles, window glass, doors, field stone fireplace and chimney, staircases and railing, lighting fixtures and log rafters. A log wall has been left exposed in the dining room with the end of the logs visible in the family room to show the construction methods used by the original builder. A restored stone smoke house and a two-seat privy are also on the grounds, as well as an unrestored post-and-beam bank barn built in 1909 by 109 local men and boys in a oneday barn-raising.

Shown by Berk-Mar Garden Club.

This house was built in 1793 and has had fourteen owners, several of whom never lived in the house. Over the years, the house was rented to a succession of doctors, dentists, and druggists, a retired farmer, a retired minister, a famous Shepherdstown portrait painter, and the family of U.S. Congressman Thomas Van Swearingen.

The Federal-style house is constructed of red brick with alternating Flemish and English bonds. Among the architectural features are a stringcourse of half-round bricks above the foundation that forms a water table to divert heavy rains; hand-hewn wooden “keystones” that decorate the windows; and barge boards at the gable ends of the house. The house has high ceilings, an open stairway winding from the first to the third floor, and fireplaces in every room.

The Chapline-Shenton House has undergone a number of renovations. The present owner has undertaken a significant number of restorations and renovations, including replacing old knob-and-tube wiring throughout the house and installing central heat and air on the top two floors. He also rebuilt and relined the fireplaces, five of which remain operational and include a wood-burning stove in the kitchen and gas logs in the dining room. The most significant renovation involved transforming an unfinished attic into a bedroom suite which features three new dormer windows.

Shown by Dolley Madison Garden Club.

The original house at this address was a “two up and two down,” built in the Greek Revival style, circa 1825. There was an addition in the late Victorian era which now holds the dining room, kitchen, and an attractive double porch, facing the garden in the east. It was at that time that the original part of the house received a new front staircase, windows, and mouldings.

The third addition (rear addition) was completed in 1993. It consists of a sitting/dining area, screened porch, circular staircase, and bathroom. This section of the house reflects the changes made during the Victorian remodeling. Owners Paul and Lisa Welch have generously opened the ground floor and gardens of this home.

Shown by Shenandoah Garden Club.

Refreshments will be served.

The Carriage Inn was built in 1836 in sections. The front four rooms, upstairs and downstairs, were followed shortly by the rear section composed of what now is the kitchen, the Copper Beech Suite and the two rear bedrooms. The cottage on the east side of the house was built about the same time as the original structure to serve as servants’ quarters. The home was used as General Sheridan’s headquarters on numerous occasions during the Civil War. During renovation by previous owners, many surprises were discovered, including the flag carried at the first Battle of Manassas.

After a succession of prominent owners and subsequent improvements and renovations, in 1985 it was established it as a bed and breakfast: The Carriage Inn. In 1996 the facilities were expanded by completing restoration of the servants’ quarters. Renovations to the Carriage House Suite (the newest Jacuzzi suite), were completed in the summer of 2006.

Shown by Piedmont Garden Club.

Also known as “Hojola,” construction of the Major Richard Sylvester family summer home began in 1903. It was built in a somewhat eclectic architectural style, but it is primarily “Arts and Crafts.” The floor plan was very open, and all doors had transom windows to take full advantage of the breeze along the Heights.

“Hojola” was sold in the early 1930s to the Wilt family who eventually owned most of the homes along Bolivar Heights. In 1997 “Hojola” was purchased from the Wilts. The current owners have since completely updated the home with new wiring, plumbing, insulation, and roof. Other extensive renovations have occurred, including a new addition to replace the 1940s addition which was destroyed by fire in 2006.

Shown by the Woman’s Club of Harpers Ferry District