by Agecroft Hall is a Tudor manor house in Richmond, Va., with a wild and wonderful backstory.
The tale begins in the 15th century in Lancashire, England where a wealthy English landowner built himself a manor house.
In the next couple of centuries, the original house was expanded, but by the early Victorian era, the progress of industry and the toll taken by time had rendered the house inhabitable.
Coal was discovered on the lands of the estate, and thus mining commenced on the site. Then, a railroad was planned to be routed through the manor’s front yard, with the owner helpless to prompt Parliament to make any change to the path. And so the home, or what was left to it, was put up for auction.
Around this time, Thomas Williams, a wealthy entrepreneur in Virginia, learned of the availability of a large estate in Lancashire. As he was desirous of a country manor, he jumped at the opportunity–purchased the home sight unseen.
When Williams’ architect arrived in England, however, he discovered that much of the home could not be saved. He had what could be dismantled from the building, numbered, and boxed up, and the shipped off to America. Amazingly, all of the leaded windows made it across the Atlantic intact!
Once the crates arrived in Virginia, they were unboxed and the pieces were reassembled and incorporated into a new manor house on a 23-acre estate overlooking the James River.
The Richmond home had a new floor plan comprised of usable components from the original home, including the stone roof, stained-glass windows, interior paneling, 11 chimneys, and many other features. To these many 20th century conveniences were added (an original garderobe is in the house, but thankfully the plumbing was upgraded!). The new Agecroft was completed at a cost of $250,000 (in 1928 dollars) and the WIlliams moved in.
The Williams proceeded to fill the house with an astonishing collection of antiques all dating from the periods in which the house was in use in England. Furniture, tapestries, armor, paintings, and other objects fill every room in the home.
Unfortunately, Mr. Williams died within a year of the house’s completion. In his will, he stipulated that the estate was to become a house museum after the death of his wife, Elizabeth. Elizabeth lived another 40 years after the death of her husband, adding magnificent landscaping inspired by Hampton Court Place in England. Agecroft Hall opened to the public in 1969.
