Bacon's Castle
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| Bacon's Castle (Arthur Allen House) | |
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| (U.S. National Historic Landmark) | |
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| Location: | Surry County, Virginia |
| Coordinates: | Coordinates: |
| Built/Founded: | 1665 |
| Architect: | unknown |
| Architectural style(s): | Jacobean and Greek revival |
| Added to NRHP: | 1966 |
| NRHP Reference#: | 66000849 [1] |
| Governing body: | Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities |
Bacon's Castle, also variously known as "Allen's Brick House" or the "Arthur Allen House" is located in Surry County, Virginia, USA. Soon after Surry County was formed in the Royal Colony of Virginia in 1652, Arthur Allen built a Jacobean brick house in 1665 near the James River, where he and his wife Alice (née Tucker) Allen lived. He was a wealthy merchant and a Justice of the Peace in Surry County. Allen died in 1669, but his son, Major Arthur Allen II, inherited the house and property. Major Allen was a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses.
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[edit] Architecture
The house is a stunning example of Jacobean domestic architecture on a grand scale. Memorable architectural features include the triple-stacked chimneys, shaped Flemish gables, and carved compass roses decorating the cross beams in many of the public rooms. One of the oldest surviving dwelling houses in the United States, Bacon's Castle is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is one of only three surviving Jacobean great houses in the Western Hemisphere; the other two are in Barbados.
[edit] History
About mid-September, 1676, a number of the rebel followers of Bacon seized the brick house of Major Allen and fortified it.[2] The garrison, commanded at various times by William Rookings, Arthur Long, Joseph Rogers and John Clements, retained control of the house for over three months while their cause declined.[3] The death of Bacon in October left his forces under the leadership of Joseph Ingram, who proved to be unsuited to the command.[4] Ingram dispersed his army in small garrisons, and as the demoralized troops began to plunder indiscriminately, the condition of the colony was soon deplorable.[5]
Royal Governor Sir William Berkeley began to conquer the isolated posts one by one, some by force and some by persuasion.[6] On December 29, a loyal force aboard the vessel Young Prince, captured an unidentified "fort" which many historians have identified as Bacon's Castle.[7] After withstanding a brief siege early in January, 1677, the loyalists used the "fort" as a base of operations for the last engagements of the rebellion, which ended before the month was out.[8]
[edit] Origin of the name
The Allen family's brick home became known as "Bacon's Castle" because it was occupied as a fort or "castle" by the followers of Nathaniel Bacon during Bacon's Rebellion in 1676. However, contrary to popular folklore, Bacon never lived at Bacon's Castle, nor is he even known to have visited it.[9] Bacon was the proprietor of Curles Neck Plantation in Henrico County, about 30 miles upriver on the northern bank of the James River. Many historians believe the name "Bacon's Castle" was not used until many years after Bacon's Rebellion. In 1769, the Virginia Gazette newspaper in the capital city of Williamsburg used that name when it published several articles about Bacon's Rebellion.
[edit] Current Status
Bacon's Castle was acquired by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities in the 1970's and restored. It is now open to the public as one of Virginia'a historic houses which are also museums. Visitors can tour the house, stroll through the recreated 17th century garden, or view a variety of outbuildings including an original 18th century smokehouse and 19th century slaves' quarters.
[edit] References
- Wertenbaker, Thomas J. (1914). Virginia under the Stuarts, 1607-1688. New Jersey: Princeton University.
- Morrison, Hugh (1952). Early American Architecture.
- Kimball, Fiske (1922). Domestic Architecture of the American Colonies and of the Early Republic.
[edit] Notes
- ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2006-03-15).
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, Bacon's Castle, p. 2.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, Bacon's Castle, p. 2.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, Bacon's Castle, p. 2.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, Bacon's Castle, p. 2.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, Bacon's Castle, p. 2.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, Bacon's Castle, p. 2.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, Bacon's Castle, p. 2.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, Bacon's Castle, p. 2.
[edit] External links
- Bacon's Castle webpage on the APVA Preservation Virginia website
- National Park Service, a brief history of Bacon's Castle
- Photoblog of Bacon's Castle
- Historic American Buildings Survey, Library of Congress
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