Oatlands Plantation
Encyclopedia
Oatlands Plantation is an estate
located in Leesburg, Virginia
. Oatlands is operated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation
and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
as a National Historic Landmark
. The Oatlands property is composed of the main mansion
and 260 acres (101.2 ha) of farmland and garden
s.
On the property, in addition to the Mansion, are a number of outbuildings, including the Carriage House, Bachelor's Quarters, several barns and farm buildings, and a greenhouse, built in 1810, said to be the oldest standing greenhouse in the South.
farm, but expanded to include other grain
s, sheep
, a gristmill
and a saw mill, and a vineyard
. In 1803, Carter began construction of a Federal
mansion, which he expanded in the 1820s and 1830s. He also built a terraced garden and numerous outbuildings.
In 1897 the Carter family sold the mansion with 60 acres (24.3 ha) to Stilson Hutchins
, founder of the Washington Post newspaper, who never lived on the property.
Hutchins sold Oatlands in 1903 to Mr. and Mrs. William Corcoran Eustis
. Mrs. Eustis restored the gardens from neglect, adding boxwood
-lined parterre
s to the terraces, statuary
, a rose
garden, a bowling green
, and a reflecting pool
. Today her plantings include mature specimens of Buxus sempervirens
`Arborescens’ and `Suffruticosa’, Larix decidua, and Quercus robur.
After Mrs. Corcoran's death in 1964, her daughters donated the mansion, furnishings, and estate grounds to the National Trust under the National Trust Community Investment Corporation
.
It was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1971. In 1974 a series of scenic easements around the National Historic Landmark area were designated the Oatlands Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places
. The district includes Oatland Mills, the Mountain Gap School, and the Church of Our Savior.
Estate (house)
An estate comprises the houses and outbuildings and supporting farmland and woods that surround the gardens and grounds of a very large property, such as a country house or mansion. It is the modern term for a manor, but lacks the latter's now abolished jurisdictional authority...
located in Leesburg, Virginia
Leesburg, Virginia
Leesburg is a historic town in, and county seat of, Loudoun County, Virginia, United States of America. Leesburg is located west-northwest of Washington, D.C. along the base of the Catoctin Mountain and adjacent to the Potomac River. Its population according the 2010 Census is 42,616...
. Oatlands is operated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation
National Trust for Historic Preservation
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is an American member-supported organization that was founded in 1949 by congressional charter to support preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods through a range of programs and activities, including the publication of Preservation...
and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
. The Oatlands property is composed of the main mansion
Mansion
A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...
and 260 acres (101.2 ha) of farmland and garden
Garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has...
s.
On the property, in addition to the Mansion, are a number of outbuildings, including the Carriage House, Bachelor's Quarters, several barns and farm buildings, and a greenhouse, built in 1810, said to be the oldest standing greenhouse in the South.
History
Oatlands Plantation was established by George Carter in 1798 on 3,408 acres (1,980 ha) of farmland. It started as a wheatWheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
farm, but expanded to include other grain
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
s, sheep
Domestic sheep
Sheep are quadrupedal, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order Artiodactyla, the even-toed ungulates. Although the name "sheep" applies to many species in the genus Ovis, in everyday usage it almost always refers to Ovis aries...
, a gristmill
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
and a saw mill, and a vineyard
Vineyard
A vineyard is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice...
. In 1803, Carter began construction of a Federal
Federal architecture
Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the United States between c. 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815. This style shares its name with its era, the Federal Period. The name Federal style is also used in association with furniture design...
mansion, which he expanded in the 1820s and 1830s. He also built a terraced garden and numerous outbuildings.
In 1897 the Carter family sold the mansion with 60 acres (24.3 ha) to Stilson Hutchins
Stilson Hutchins
Stilson Hutchins was an American newspaper reporter and publisher, best known as founder of the Washington Post.Hutchins was born in Whitefield, Coos County, New Hampshire, on 14 November 1838, the son of Stilson Eastman and Clara Eaton Hutchins...
, founder of the Washington Post newspaper, who never lived on the property.
Hutchins sold Oatlands in 1903 to Mr. and Mrs. William Corcoran Eustis
William Corcoran Eustis
William Corcoran Eustis was a captain in the United States Army and the personal assistant to John J. Pershing during World War I. He was chairman of the inauguration committee for the first inauguration of Woodrow Wilson in 1913.-Biography:He was born on July 20, 1862 in Paris to George Eustis,...
. Mrs. Eustis restored the gardens from neglect, adding boxwood
Buxus
Buxus is a genus of about 70 species in the family Buxaceae. Common names include box or boxwood ....
-lined parterre
Parterre
A parterre is a formal garden construction on a level surface consisting of planting beds, edged in stone or tightly clipped hedging, and gravel paths arranged to form a pleasing, usually symmetrical pattern. Parterres need not have any flowers at all...
s to the terraces, statuary
Statue
A statue is a sculpture in the round representing a person or persons, an animal, an idea or an event, normally full-length, as opposed to a bust, and at least close to life-size, or larger...
, a rose
Rose
A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
garden, a bowling green
Bowling green
A bowling green is a finely-laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of lawn for playing the game of lawn bowls.Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep on them...
, and a reflecting pool
Reflecting pool
A reflecting pool or reflection pool is a water feature found in gardens, parks, and at memorial sites. It usually consists of a shallow pool of water, undisturbed by fountain jets, for a calm reflective...
. Today her plantings include mature specimens of Buxus sempervirens
Buxus sempervirens
Buxus sempervirens is a flowering plant in the genus Buxus, native to western and southern Europe, northwest Africa, and southwest Asia, from southern England south to northern Morocco, and east through the northern Mediterranean region to Turkey. Buxus colchica of western Caucasus and B...
`Arborescens’ and `Suffruticosa’, Larix decidua, and Quercus robur.
After Mrs. Corcoran's death in 1964, her daughters donated the mansion, furnishings, and estate grounds to the National Trust under the National Trust Community Investment Corporation
National Trust Community Investment Corporation
The National Trust Community Investment Corporation is a private, for-profit subsidiary of the American National Trust for Historic Preservation, founded in 2000. NTCIC is a tax credit syndicator...
.
It was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1971. In 1974 a series of scenic easements around the National Historic Landmark area were designated the Oatlands Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. The district includes Oatland Mills, the Mountain Gap School, and the Church of Our Savior.
Visiting
Oatlands is opened for visitation March 30 through December 30 of each year. An admission fee is charged.External links
- Oatlands Plantation
- National Trust for Historic Preservation
- Search on "Oatlands VA" yields numerous photosets, data pages and supplemental material, at Historic American Building Survey