The Anchorage (Kilmarnock, Virginia) facts for kids
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The Anchorage
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 Location in Virginia
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| Location | 1 mi. W of jct. of VA 605 and VA 669, N side, near Kilmarnock, Virginia |
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| Area | 32.3 acres (13.1 ha) |
| Built | 1749 |
| Architectural style | Colonial |
| NRHP reference No. | 95000245 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | March 17, 1995 |
The Anchorage is a very old and historic house in Northumberland County, Virginia. It's located near Kilmarnock, Virginia, in the state of Virginia. This special house is known as a plantation house.
The main part of the house was built a long time ago, even before the year 1749! It had two and a half stories. People still live in this original section today. The house was made bigger in 1855, adding a basement. Later, in 1955, a small building with one and a half rooms was moved and attached to the house. Some new information suggests this small building might be even older, perhaps built over 100 years earlier as its own separate home.
More additions were made to the back of the house in the mid-1980s. Then, in 2016 and 2017, the house went through a big update and got even more new parts. It has six fireplaces, and three of these are part of the very first chimney.
A Long History
The land where The Anchorage sits has been owned by only a few families since 1658. The current owners are the Byrne family. They have owned the property since 1929 or 1930, and it's now their third generation living there.
The property was originally called "Road View." It was about 350 acres big. It sits right on Mill Creek, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. There's a dock in Kent Cove, which is a small inlet off the creek. Near the woods, you can find the Kent family cemetery. This cemetery has graves dating back to the American Civil War. There's even a special tombstone for a soldier from the Confederate States Army (CSA).
The Land and Its Surroundings
The Anchorage property is beautiful, with rolling orchards and woods. It has about 2,000 feet of waterfront along Mill Creek. There's a barn area with a corn crib and other barns that are very old, dating back to the 1840s.
This area, called Ball's Neck in the Northern Neck of Virginia, is full of early American history. It was originally a tobacco farm. Mary Ball Washington, who was George Washington's mother, was born just a few miles away. Also, Richard Lee I, an important early settler, had a large tobacco farm nearby. His farm was about 2,600 acres and was close to The Anchorage.
Historic Recognition
The Byrne family helped get The Anchorage recognized as a historic landmark in 1995. It's listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. It's also on the National Register of Historic Places, which means it's important to the history of the whole country.
Scientists are planning a second study to figure out the exact age of the original buildings. This study uses a method called dendrochronology, which looks at tree rings. They hope to prove that parts of the house date back to the 1690s. Right now, old records show that a building was on the property in 1702.
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