Thorn Hill

Thorn Hill is a historic home located near Lexington, Rockbridge County, Virginia. It was built in 1792, and is a two-story, five bay, brick I-house dwelling. It has a side gable roof, interior end chimneys with corbelled caps, and a two-story, one-bay wing. The front facade features a colossal tetrastyle portico with Doric order columns. The property includes the contributing log smokehouse, frame kitchen, frame servants house and loom house, and barns and farm outbuildings. Thorn Hill was the home of Col. John Bowyer, a central figure in Rockbridge County's formative years.[3]

This article is about the house in Virginia. For the community in Tennessee, see Thorn Hill, Tennessee.
Thorn Hill
Thorn Hill, HABS Photo
LocationSW of Lexington off VA 251, near Lexington, Virginia
Coordinates37°45′50″N 79°28′11″W
Area500 acres (200 ha)
Built1792 (1792)
Architectural styleI House
NRHP reference No.75002035[1]
VLR No.081-0084
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJune 18, 1975
Designated VLRFebruary 18, 1975[2]

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.[1]

The property has historically been closely associated with nearby Washington and Lee University (W&L). In 1782, Bowyer was appointed one of the first trustees of Liberty Hall Academy, which eventually became W&L.[4]. John Robinson, a principal benefactor of Washington College, and Judge John Brockenbrough, founder of the W&L Law School, lived at Thorn Hill. More recently, Thorn Hill was a dairy farm, and the house itself largely fell into disrepair.

In 2004, Bill Johnston and Paul Elliott bought Thorn Hill, spending more than $1 million restoring the property and adding various amenities, including a large pottery studio where the original kitchen (which was built away from the main house to prevent the main house from burning down in the event of a fire) once stood. They also added a scenic driveway and lush gardens. In 2008, the pair attempted to sell the property. Unfortunately the house went on the market the week before the collapse of Bear Stearns. Over the next several years, they kept cutting the price without attracting a buyer. In 2013, the owners decided to auction the house.[5]

Current Washington and Lee Trustee Bennett L. Ross and his wife Alyson Moore Ross were the high bidders during the auction,[6] stating that they "...were interested in buying Thorn Hill because of its ties to Washington and Lee."

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
  3. Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission Staff (December 1974). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Thorn Hill" (PDF). Virginia Department of Historic Resources. and Accompanying photo
  4. Washington and Lee University (December 1974). "Liberty Hall Academy". Washington and Lee University.
  5. LandFlip.com. "HISTORIC THORN HILL". LandFlip.com.
  6. Kit Huffman. "W&L Alumnus New Owner of Thorn Hill" (PDF). Rockbridge News-Gazette.


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