The detailing, the refined proportions, and finely crafted brickwork combine to make Malvern one of Albemarle County’s most polished works of the Federal style. A distinctive characteristic is the side-passage plan with a formal three-bay facade on the gabled south end which originally had an entrance. The main cornice is treated with a series of pendants, a detail likely inspired by an illustration in Asher Benjamin’s Country Builder’s Assistant (1805). The highlight of the interior is a delicate Federal stair with its unsupported upper flight. The house was built ca. 1800 by Mehan Mills, son-in-law of Jack Jouett. Mills owned Malvern until 1811; from 1812 to 1891 it was the property of the White family. A later owner was Benjamin Wheeler, a mayor of Charlottesville, who lived there from 1902 to 1910. In 1968 the house was restored under the direction of architectural historian Clay Lancaster.