White House of the Confederacy
I had a little bit of hesitation about touring the White House of the Confederacy (WHC), worried it would celebrate the Lost Cause mythology/“if only the South had won the war” trope. I was pleasantly …
Maymont Mansion and Gardens
Over-the-top Maymont is an estate and public park in Richmond, Virginia. Sitting on 100 acres, it includes the Maymont Mansion (a combination of Romanesque Revival and Queen Anne styles), an arboretum, formal gardens (Italian and …
Edgar Allan Poe in Richmond
Just two short months ago we visited the Poe House in Baltimore, so of course we made sure to visit the Poe Museum in Richmond, Va. If you refresh yourself on that story, you’ll recall …
Historic St. John’s Church
St. John’s Episcopal Church in Richmond, Va., is not just the oldest church in the city (built in 1741), it is the site of a major speech that one could argue ensured the success of …
The Washingtons in Fredericksburg
If you’re a fan of George Washington and his family, and you have a fair amount of time available, you could be very busy in Fredericksurg, Va. We are definitely interested in Washington’s role in American …
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, VA opened in 1936. It is one of the largest art museums in the U.S., and it’s free! The museum has a large Faberge and Russian collection, …
Wilton House Museum
The Wilton House was built around 1753, but not at its current location in Richmond, Va. When William Randolph II built his Georgian home, it was on his 2,000-acre tobacco plantation 15 miles down the …
Agecroft Hall
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 …
Architecture / Art / Books / Museums
Gari Melchers Home and Studio
My research put the Gari Melchers Home and Studio on our travel map, yet neither of us had ever heard of Gari Melchers. We figured that if preserving his home and studio seemed worthwhile, a …
Ladew Topiary Gardens
I lured Doug into a garden tour by explaining that this wasn’t your regular garden, it was a topiary garden, and thus entirely different. Though it turned out there were way more flowers than topiary, …