Eyre Hall facts for kids
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Eyre Hall
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Eyre Hall
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 Location in Virginia
Location in the United States
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| Nearest city | Cheriton, Virginia |
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| Area | 1000 acres |
| Built | 1796 |
| Architectural style | Plantation |
| NRHP reference No. | 69000265 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | November 12, 1969 |
| Designated NHL | March 2, 2012 |
Eyre Hall is a historic plantation house in Northampton, Virginia. It is near the town of Cheriton. The Eyre family has owned this special property since 1668.
Eyre Hall is known as one of Virginia's best-kept colonial homes. It also has some of the oldest gardens in the United States. Because of its importance, Eyre Hall was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 12, 1969. It was later named a National Historic Landmark on March 2, 2012.
Contents
A Look at Eyre Hall's History
The land where Eyre Hall stands was first given to the three sons of Thomas Eyre I in 1668. This large property was about 1,600 acres (6.5 square kilometers).
In 1754, Littleton Eyre, a great-grandson of Thomas, bought 700 acres (2.8 square kilometers) of this land. He wanted to build a main family home and a working farm there.
How the House Grew Over Time
The first house was built in 1760. It was a 2½-story wooden home, about 41 feet (12.5 meters) square. Over the years, the house got bigger.
- In 1790, a middle section was made into two stories.
- In 1807, another two-story part was added.
- Around 1930, the house was updated. It got a big kitchen, a breakfast room, and a storage building.
Other Buildings and Gardens
The property also grew with other buildings:
- A dairy (for milk products) was built in 1760.
- A smokehouse (for preserving meat) was built around 1806.
The house is surrounded by beautiful boxwood gardens. There are also formal lawns and fields that lead down to Cherrystone Creek. On the grounds, you can find:
- A walled garden from the 1800s.
- The Eyre family cemetery.
- The ruins of an orangery (a type of greenhouse for orange trees) from 1819.
The Eyre Family Legacy
Since it began, 12 different generations of the Eyre family have owned Eyre Hall. Many family members went to the The College of William & Mary and served in the House of Burgesses. This was an important government group in colonial Virginia.
Today, the estate is owned by H. Furlong Baldwin. He is a retired bank executive and a descendant of Thomas Eyre.
Treasures Inside Eyre Hall
Severn and Margaret Eyre, who lived in the 1700s, collected many fancy items for their home. This showed how wealthy and refined the family was.
An inventory from 1774 listed many interesting things:
- Two turkey carpets.
- "Queens china" (fancy dishes).
- "Two neat fowling pieces silver mounted" (decorated hunting guns).
- "1 Violin Bow and Case."
- A library with over 300 books.
- "1 large silver Punch Bowl." This bowl was worth thirty pounds, making it the most expensive silver item in 1774.
This silver punch bowl is likely the famous "Morning Star" punch bowl. It was made in London in 1692 by John Sutton. It is rare to find such old silver from the 1600s that has stayed in Virginia. Family stories say that Morning Star, a family racehorse, drank champagne from this bowl after winning a race!
Inside the House
Eyre Hall shows a mix of fancy architecture and local style. Littleton Eyre (1710-1768) likely wanted a house that fit in with his neighbors but also showed his high status.
Most wealthy people at the time built brick houses. But Eyre Hall was made of wood with a gambrel roof. This style was common in the local area.
Changes by Ann and John Eyre
Ann and John Eyre married in 1800. They made stylish changes to the house:
- They replaced a simple fireplace in the parlor with a fancier one. It had a carved urn and leaf designs.
- In 1807, they added a full second story to a part of the house that was only one-and-a-half stories.
- They also made the house longer to add a dining room, a pantry, and a servant's room.
- A "porch room" with a special display cabinet connected this new part to the original house.
The Eyres also added beautiful French wallpaper. It showed Turkish scenes along the Bosphorus river. This wallpaper, called Rives du Bosphore, was designed before 1812. It became popular in the United States by 1817. This showed their interest in romantic and exotic styles, as well as plants and gardening.
Outside the House
When you look at Eyre Hall from the driveway, you see a large two-story wooden front section. It has a door on the far left, framed by a portico (a porch with columns).
The bottom half of the house is covered in white weatherboard (overlapping wooden boards). The top half has dark shingles. There are two large rectangular windows on each floor, with one window above the entrance. Two big red brick chimneys stick out from the roof on the right side.
The next part of the house is set back from the driveway. It is covered in white weatherboard from top to bottom. Another portico sticks out from the side of the front section, looking like the main entrance. A small courtyard is in front of it. There is also a door to the right of this back section, with a window on each side and windows directly above them. More large red brick chimneys are in the center and on the far right of the roof.
The entire house is set behind a white picket fence that goes all around it. The dairy building is to the right of the house. The family cemetery and the ruins of the orangery are behind it.
