Elsing Green facts for kids
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Elsing Green
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Elsing Green Plantation manor house
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 Location in Virginia
Location in the United States
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| Location | SW of jct. of SR 632 and 623, near Tunstall, Virginia |
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| Built | 1758 |
| Architectural style | Georgian |
| NRHP reference No. | 69000252 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | November 12, 1969 |
| Designated NHL | November 11, 1971 |
Elsing Green Plantation is a very special place in King William County, Virginia. It's a National Historic Landmark and also a wildlife refuge. This means it's important for both history and nature! It covers almost 3,000 acres along the Pamunkey River. That's a huge area, about 33 miles (53 km) northeast of Richmond.
This amazing property has been a working plantation for over 300 years. The main house was built in the 1700s. Today, the Lafferty family owns it. Besides the main house, Elsing Green includes 2,454 acres of farmland, forests, and marsh. It's also listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places.
Its history goes back nearly three centuries. It has ties to the West family, including Lord Delaware. The very first building was a brick lodge. It was built before 1690 by Colonel John West. People say Lord Delaware used it as his hunting lodge. He would travel to the King William woods by way of the Pamunkey River. Now, it's a wildlife refuge, so no hunting is allowed there.
A Look Back in Time: Elsing Green's History
Many old records about Elsing Green were lost in a fire during the American Civil War. But the Lafferty Foundation has worked hard to piece together its story.
The plantation was passed down through the West family after Colonel John West died in 1692. Later, it became connected to the Dandridge family. This was the family of Martha Custis, who became George Washington's wife. There's a fun story that Martha Custis Washington once rode her horse right through the house!
The Dandridge family built the main house and kitchen house. These buildings were made in the Queen Anne style between 1715 and 1720. In 1753, Carter Braxton bought the plantation. He was a very important person who signed the United States Declaration of Independence.
Over the years, Elsing Green was passed down or sold many times. In the 1930s, Beverly D. Causey bought it. His family worked hard to fix up the property, which had become quite run down.
About 20 years later, the Lafferty family bought Elsing Green in 1950. Edgar R. Lafferty, Jr., and his wife, Margaret, continued the restoration. They also bought more land next to Elsing Green to make the plantation even bigger.
After Edgar Lafferty, Jr.'s death, the Lafferty family created the Lafferty Foundation. This special organization helps protect and preserve Elsing Green. To make sure it stays preserved forever, Lafferty also gave special historic preservation rights to the Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission and the Virginia Outdoors Foundation.
The House: Architecture and Furnishings
The main house at Elsing Green is built in the Queen Anne style. Its outside walls are made of a special type of brickwork called Flemish-bond. The house was built between 1715 and 1720.
It has two stories and is shaped like a "U." There are wings that stick out to the north on both the east and west sides. Doors on each side of the house lead to other buildings. The east side has the original hunting lodge, which is now a separate building. The west side has the kitchen house. The Pamunkey River is very close, just about 250 yards from the home.
Inside the house, you can see beautiful furniture from the 1700s. It includes pieces from both America and England. One very famous piece is the "Surrender Table." This is where American and French leaders talked with the English. They discussed the terms of surrender after the Battle of Yorktown during the American Revolutionary War.
