A striking exception to the normally conservative dwellings of Virginia’s plantation aristocracy is this castellated Gothic-style mansion that architect John E. Johnson designed for Staunton Hill, the vast Charlotte County estate of Charles Bruce. The design is based on a plate in an English work by Thomas Kelly: Designs for Cottage and Villa Architecture (1829). Completed in 1850, Staunton Hill’s romantic qualities are seen primarily in the crenelated parapets, polygonal corner towers, and delicate marble veranda. The dwelling stands as a significant expression of both the exoticism and the historicism that would permeate American architecture for the balance of the century. At the time of its listing in the registers in the late 1960s, Staunton Hill was the country home of the noted diplomat David K.E. Bruce, a descendant of Charles Bruce, who served as the U.S. ambassador to Great Britain and France and as America’s first envoy to the Peoples’ Republic of China.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Programs
DHR has secured permanent legal protection for over 700 historic places - including 15,000 acres of battlefield lands
DHR has erected 2,532 highway markers in every county and city across Virginia
DHR has registered more than 3,317 individual resources and 613 historic districts
DHR has engaged over 450 students in 3 highway marker contests
DHR has stimulated more than $4.2 billion dollars in private investments related to historic tax credit incentives, revitalizing communities of all sizes throughout Virginia