Wilton House

Date: 1753
Address: 215 S. Wilton Rd.

Constructed in 1753, the Wilton House Museum is among the oldest buildings in Richmond. Originally, it served as the rural plantation home of the influential Randolph clan, one of the First Families of Virginia. It was moved to its current location in Richmond’s affluent West End in 1933 as its original surroundings in eastern Henrico industrialized. The lavish Georgian mansion hosted many notable visitors such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Marquis de Lafayette. Though it no longer sits on the same land, the house was also the command center of a working plantation on which more than 100 enslaved Africans and African-Americans toiled.

The building’s exterior is spare and simple despite its grand scale. Its walls are largely unadorned brick planes and its crisp slate roof is lined with copper gutters. The house is a satisfying study in proportion, mass and texture, with metal and wood accents delineating the large cubic volume. An axial path leads up to the central entrance, continues through the house, and extends down rear terraces to a small brick patio overlooking the James River. Across the river, the entirely undeveloped Williams Island is visible.

Wilton House is now open the public as a museum. It offers tours and information on the history of the Randolph family, the experiences of enslaved laborers, and authentic Georgian interiors and antiques. The original plantation site featured several symmetrically organized service buildings only one of which was moved to the current location. In its current context in Richmond’s western suburbs, the house could be mistaken for a colonial revival mansion, but on closer examination it offers a connection to the country’s distant and sometimes forgotten past.

DOK

For more information on the museum, use this link:
http://www.wiltonhousemuseum.org/