Thomas Nelson House (Yorktown, Virginia) facts for kids

Thomas Nelson House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
Location in Virginia Show map of Virginia Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Nearest city	Jamestown, Virginia
Built	1730
Built by	Thomas "Scotch Tom" Nelson
Architectural style	Georgian
NRHP reference No.	66000839
Quick facts for kids Significant dates
Added to NRHP	October 15, 1966

Thomas Nelson House is an historic Colonial home in Yorktown, Virginia. It was built around 1730 and held by generations of the Nelson family through the Revolutionary War. After years in private ownership, it was designated as a National Historic Landmark and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.

It was acquired by the National Park Service in 1968 and restored in 1976 to its 18th-century character. It is also a contributing property to Colonial National Historical Park in Yorktown and among the battlefield attractions.

History

"York Hall," Captain George Preston Blow House, Route 1005 and Main Street, Yorktown; photo by Frances Benjamin Johnston, 1929. Griffin & Wynkoop, architects, made additions to 18th-century brick house after Blow's 1914 purchase. It was the home of Thomas Nelson Jr. (1738-1789), during the Revolutionary War. Landscape: Charles Freeman Gillette, from 1914. Today the house has been restored to its 18th-century character and is designated as a National Historic Landmark. It is operated as National Park Service site.

The house was built by Thomas "Scotch Tom" Nelson around 1730, and later occupied by his grandson, Founding Father Thomas Nelson, Jr. (1738-1789) during the American Revolutionary War. Nelson, Jr., who signed the Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Second Continental Congress, was a planter, politician, and later governor of Virginia.

The house was damaged during the siege of Yorktown. It served as a hospital during the Civil War.

In 1914, it was purchased by Captain and Mrs. George P. Blow, who renamed it as "York Hall". They made a number of additions to update the property, which were designed by Griffin & Wynkoop.

In 1968, the National Park Service bought the property. It restored the house in 1976 to its 18th-century character. It has been designated as the Thomas Nelson House, a National Historical Landmark. It is also a contributing property to the Yorktown Battlefield Part of Colonial National Historical Park. It is open for tours as part of the Yorktown Battlefield attractions.