Haunting: Rosewell Plantation Ruins

December 2010

The extravagant Rosewell mansion ruins rests upon the middle point of a 3000 acre plantation in Gloucester County, VA.  It overlooks the York River and was quoted as “the largest and finest of American houses of the colonial period”.  The building was built with red bricks and established between the years 1725-1738. The structure was three stories tall with 17 fireplaces, many rooms, and a beautiful grand staircase. For more than 100 years, a division of the Page family called the mansion their home.   During its heyday, slaves worked the fields producing tobacco and grain.  From the 18^th and 19^th centuries, and also throughout the duration of the Civil War, Rosewell was the gathering place for many fancy balls and celebrations.

In 1916, Rosewell mansion was destroyed by fire which started in the southwest chimney.  It quickly moved throughout the structure leaving only a skeleton of what used to be.  Many artifacts have been dug up and being studied by archaeologists.  Today, preserving the ruins continues with no plans of reconstructing the massive mansion.  When visiting Rosewell, you start at the visitor’s center.  There are exhibits of what was found on the grounds, a short video of its history, and a gift shop.  You pay a small fee which is totally worth the admission price to see this extraordinary ruin.  (Check out their website: www.rosewell.org .)

I just recently visited the ruins, and went crazy taking pictures of this place, because everywhere I looked was an amazing photo opportunity.  I put them together on a video for your enjoyment.