Plantation Hopping

Here is a plan for a near perfect vacation day. Sleep in. Go for a late breakfast early lunch at The Old Chickahominy House. Do a little shopping while you are there. Drive the John Tyler Highway (VA 5) through the wooded countryside. Tour two or three of the historic plantations along the James River. On the way home stop at The Jefferson for supper.

I researched the plantations open for tours on the Internet and in guidebooks and selected three for our trip. We first drove to the furthest one away, Shirley Plantation and then visited Berkeley Plantation on the way back. My third pick, Sherwood Forest Plantation was a disappointment. We arrived to find this home of President John Tyler offered a house tour only by reservation. We could have paid a piece to tour the grounds. Since it had started to rain we decided two plantation tours was sufficient for our outing.

If we return to the area I’ll pick another two plantations and try to visit John Tyler again. My husband is in favor of any return trip to the Old Chickahominy House.

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This place sounded too good to be true in the guidebooks so we had to check it out. Let me tell you straight out…they were right. Good food, fun shopping, ambiance and convenient location.

The Old Chickahominy House Restaurant & Antiques is located a few blocks from the Historic area of Williamsburg on the way to Jamestown and near the John Tyler Highway that takes you to the James River Plantations. We arrived in time for the last breakfast seating. While we waited we wandered the shop and found some items to leave with the cashier while we ate. Other people waited out on the wide veranda of this authentic old plantation house. When our name was called we were seated in a room decorated in the style of a colonial tavern. The chairs were a little wobbly from much use but they slid easily up to the table and were comfortable. I ordered Eggs with Cheese, Hot Biscuits and tomato juice. Bill had the Plantation Breakfast of Old Virginia ham, Country Bacon, Sausage with two Eggs, Grits, Hot Biscuits and Coffee. He was a happy man. While we waited I overheard a women at the table behind me exclaim. “Their flat!” We wondered what that was all about until our order came. It was the biscuits…they were flat and square and very tasty. The food was excellent and service was top rate, too. I noticed this was a favorite place for locals and tour groups, too. I would like to return and sample the lunch menu. Breakfast for two with two beverages and tip was $20.23.

After eating we continued to shop in the upstairs and basement rooms. Lots of treasures to be found here, but the place is a firetrap. With only one exit and small window openings and very narrow convoluted aisles it would be very difficult to escape from.

It might have been easy to drive by this plain looking restaurant, so I will give you a clue…look for a black buggy parked on the parking in front of the building. This restaurant was established in 1956 and retains that style. The staff dresses in colonial garb. Our waitress was a joy. The colonial décor included copper molds and pots and an “Early American” hutch with green glazed pottery. They start serving at 3:00 pm and there was no grumbling when we arrived slightly before 5:00 pm. That was nice. The cloth covered tables were spread apart which allowed for more private conversation and less jostling.

The menu boasted “Southern Favorites”. Prices seemed high until our order was served. I have never seen such generous portions. We both had peanut soup. Bill had Virginia Ham with an orange sauce. I had Southern Surf n’ Truf which turned out to be a diner plate size slab of ham, and a 6-8 oz crab cake. It was huge. Both styles of ham and the crab cake were delicious. I took leftovers home that served me for part of three more meals! On the side was a generous and tasty serving of green beans. No dessert tonight! Supper for two with one beverage and tip was $50.00.

Shirley Plantation was founded in 1613 and the present mansion was built in 1723. The original land was given to a man named West. Since that name is prominent in directional names he named his property West Shirley, using his wife’s maiden name. Eventually the West part was dropped because it just confused the issue. In 1660 it became the property of Edward Hill whose descendents served in the House of Burgess, and built this mansion as a wedding gift for a daughter who married into Virginia’s famous Carter family. Among the guests at Shirley over the centuries were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Tyler, Teddy Roosevelt and John Rockefeller. Robert E. Lee’s parents were married in the parlor. The mansion is situated right on the river so there is no front and back door; they are called drive side and dock side.

Shirley is a brick building that is basically a 48-foot cube. When the family grew, and it most certainly grew, identical flanking buildings were added for extra bedroom space. These buildings have since been destroyed. The original dependency buildings remain and following the symmetrical dictates have a two story large kitchen building on one side of the present entry lane, and an identical building across the lane that served as the laundry. Further down the lane are identical buildings for icehouse and storehouse.

Our tour guide of the main house was an enthusiastic and well-informed young woman. You could tell she really respected the building and its history. The tour started in the entry hall, which was one of the largest rooms on the main floor. This most interesting aspect of the house is the architectural treasure that rises from this hallway. The stairway rises three stories without visible means of support and is the only one of its kind in America. It is used daily as the owners live on the second and third floor, (they have a modern kitchen and laundry in the basement) and there is no elevator. Our tour was restricted to the first floor where we visited the parlor, dining room and master bedroom. The walls colors have been researched and restored to the original deep creamy buff color. Functional interior window shutters are used daily. We saw many fine pieces of furniture and portraits of family members. I had to laugh at the etched windows in the dining room. An early Carter daughter upon becoming engaged tested her diamond by scratching her initials in the windowpane. That became a family tradition.

Shirley was spared from destruction during the Civil War because the women of Shirley nursed wounded Yankee soldiers camped on their lawn. They also wrote letters for them and generally displayed kindness. General McClelland posted a notice and left a guard stating that this house was to be spared.

A small gift shop is located in the laundry building. Admission was $19 for two seniors.

Berkeley Plantation advertises itself as “Virginia’s Most Historic Plantation.” There is a long list of facts to prove this.
• The son of the original owner, Benjamin Harrison, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and served multiple terms as governor of Virginia.
• William Henry Harrison, who was born at Berkeley, was the ninth President of the United States. He also served the shortest term dying from a cold he caught giving his inaugural address.
• Another Benjamin Harrison served as the 23rd president.
• On December 4, 1619, settlers came ashore at here and observed the first official Thanksgiving in America. No turkey, no pumpkin, pie, no cranberries…just a prayer service.
• Bourbon Whiskey was first distilled here in 1621.
• The first ten presidents were guests here.
• President Lincoln visited twice to review the troops under General McClellan. McClellan was relieved of his duties on the second visit.
• In 1862 “Taps” was composed while the Union Forces were encamped at the plantation.
We arrived by driving a long potholed lane under a canopy of evergreens. Our tour started by trooping down to the basement to view an orientation video. After that we were led to the main floor of the brick mansion (built in 1726) where we saw the wide center hall used occasionally for dances, the dining room, the gentleman’s chambers (bedroom plus office), the informal parlor and the formal parlor. Two identical buildings symmetrically placed to the side of the main house held guest rooms and kitchen. Our guide gave us lots of information about the family and history of the property. She was able to answer all the questions from our group.

We toured the grounds where we saw formal boxwood gardens, a kitchen garden, the James River, Gazebo and a shrine to the first Thanksgiving. We returned to the basement where a museum had some interesting displays about plantation life and the Civil War.

When we returned to the car it was covered with pine needles. We noticed a grounds crew was kept busy raking them up. There was a small gift shop and in a separate build, the Coach House, it appeared to be a dining area. We couldn’t tell if it was functioning. Admission was $19.80 for two seniors tickets.