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Survey of
Historic Sites and Buildings

	WESTOVER Virginia
Location: On James River 7 miles west of Charles City Courthouse, Charles City County. James River Plantations

Ownership and Administration (1961). Private.

Significance. The present Westover Mansion was built by William Byrd II in 1730-34 on one of the earliest Virginia plantations, first occupied in 1619. Typical of the tidewater tobacco plantations, Westover was a vast, l,200-acre estate that barely provided a living for its owner. Typical of his class, Byrd supplemented his income as a tobacco planter with large-scale speculation in western lands.

Westover was built by William Byrd II between 1730 and 1734. (National Park Service)

Present Appearance (1961). One of the most famous Georgian houses in the United States, Westover is noted for the quality of its construction and for its architectural completeness. The mansion proper consists of a two-story central section on a high basement, and two attached wings. The east wing is a replacement of the original, which was destroyed during the Civil War. Several dependencies, including the original kitchen, which is reputed to antedate the present house, stand nearby. Notable features of the mansion include formal doorways in Portland stone on both main facades; a steeply pitched hip roof, rising to a sharp ridge instead of a deck; an off-center main hall, utilizing one of the regularly spaced facade windows as a light source; and a finely detailed interior with full-length paneling and enriched plaster ceilings. Exterior features include three original gates, the distinguished central set probably made by Thomas Robinson, of London; an underground tunnel from the house to the riverbank; formal gardens, containing the grave of William Byrd II; the site of the first Westover Church, about 400 yards west of the house, where a number of prominent Virginians are buried, including the first Benjamin Harrison, of Berkeley, the first William Byrd and his wife, and Capt. William Perry, who died in 1637; and the remains of an old icehouse. The mansion group was restored about 1920 and came into possession of the present family in 1921. The garden and grounds are open to visitors. [78]