Erected in 1759 on the Eastern shore of Virginia, the remarkable Eyre Hall is still occupied by descendants of its builder, Littleton Eyre. Since construction, Eyre’s succeeding generations have acquired and preserved a rich variety of objects reflecting the tastes and aspirations of the many different families that lived there. Featuring extensively researched text from 22 contributors, this volume comprises four main sections that examine the historical, sociological, anthropological and architectural significance of the house, from the first generation through to the current owner, Furlong Baldwin. A catalogue raisonné of the material culture of Eyre Hall includes furniture, silver, ceramics, glass, paintings, prints, books, musical instruments, bound sheet music, textiles and miscellaneous objects. This volume also presents two family trees—one of the Eyre family; the other of people who worked at the house in the early 20th century—and four major maps, alongside stunning new colour photography of the building, grounds and catalogue pieces.

Court day in early Virginia transformed crossroads towns into forums for citizens of all social classes to transact a variety of business, from legal cases heard before the county magistrates to horse races, ballgames, and the sale and barter of produce, clothing, food, and drink. As marketplace, playing field, social center, and administrative and judicial county seat, the courthouse grounds gave rise to an array of public and private buildings. The Courthouses of Early Virginia is the first comprehensive history of the public buildings that formed the nucleus of this space and the important private buildings that grew up around them.

Carl R. Lounsbury surveys the architectural history of these buildings, from their undifferentiated forms in 1650 to 1800, when they had developed into specialized structures that reflected the growth of a wealthy agricultural society built on slave labor. After setting the context of legal and social affairs that conditioned the design, construction, and function of county government buildings, he examines the example of Yorktown. He then proceeds with a thematic exploration of issues including the rise of courthouses of greater civic aspiration and aesthetic ambition, the public building process, attitudes toward punishment and prisons, and the role of taverns and clerk's offices in the legal process. He concludes with a discussion of the evolution of the courthouse grounds into the broader civic squares that characterized many Virginia cities and towns by the early nineteenth century.

With abundant drawings, photographs, and maps and a checklist of important public buildings in early Virginia, Lounsbury's study will fascinate and delight architectural historians, architects, students, and Virginians involved in law and government.

Colonial Williamsburg Studies in Chesapeake History and Culture

For more than thirty years, the architectural research department at Colonial Williamsburg has engaged in comprehensive study of early buildings, landscapes, and social history in the Chesapeake region. Its painstaking work has transformed our understanding of building practices in the colonial and early national periods and thereby greatly enriched the experience of visiting historic sites. In this beautifully illustrated volume, a team of historians, curators, and conservators draw on their far-reaching knowledge of historic structures in Virginia and Maryland to illuminate the formation, development, and spread of one of the hallmark building traditions in America architecture. The essays describe how building design, hardware, wall coverings, furniture, and even paint colors telegraphed social signals about the status of builders and owners and choreographed social interactions among everyone who lived or worked in gentry houses, modest farmsteads, and slave quarters. The analyses of materials, finishes, and carpentry work will fascinate old-house buffs, preservationists, and historians alike. The lavish color photography is a delight to behold, and the detailed catalogues of architectural elements provide a reliable guide to the form, style, and chronology of the region's distinctive historic architecture.

Covering the full range of building in the South from 1607 to the 1820s, An Illustrated Glossary of Early Southern Architecture and Landscape is now available for the first time in paperback. This unique and exhaustive compilation traces the origin and development of an American architectural vocabulary in the colonies and states of the eastern seaboard from Delaware to Georgia.

From the fortified earthfast dwellings of Jamestown to the intellectualized landscape of Monticello, southern architectural forms underwent major changes in their early period, as did the language of building. Carl R. Lounsbury's illustrated glossary of architectural and landscape terms delineates regional and traditional terminology as well as classical influences introduced in America through English architectural books and by professionally trained craftsmen. Featuring 1,500 terms ranging from building types to methods of construction, Lounsbury's book is the first of its kind to identify and define the language of building during this formative period of American architecture.

Abundantly illustrated with over 300 photographs and drawings, An Illustrated Glossary of Early Southern Architecture and Landscape is an ideal, and now affordable, resource for architectural and cultural historians, preservationists, students of architecture, and anyone who works with older buildings.

A comprehensive look at Williamsburg's evolution and important role in defining our understanding of 18th-century America Today best known as the world's largest "living history" museum, Williamsburg was the capital of the colony of Virginia in the 1700s and the setting for key debates leading to the American Revolution. Inspired by growing interest in America's colonial heritage, W. A. R. Goodwin, supported by John D. Rockefeller, Jr., initiated a major restoration in the 1920s and 1930s that has allowed visitors to see how Williamsburg looked in the 18th century. Restoring Williamsburg expands on Williamsburg Before and After, a now-classic book with more than 200,000 copies in print, offering an updated and nuanced look at the continuing process of restoration. In addition to capturing moments throughout the site's transformation, the book offers important considerations about modern curatorial practices and changing approaches to historic preservation. Lavishly illustrated with more than 350 photographs, watercolors, sketches, maps, and other illustrations, Restoring Williamsburg features new images from both before and after the restoration. This is an important contribution not only to architectural history and restoration practices but also to our understanding of the town that continues to inspire Americans to think about their history. Distributed for The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation