March, 1910 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



99 



Historic Mansions of the Rappahannock River 



By Edith Dabney 



''Kenmore" 



The Home of Betty Washington, now in Possession of the Howard Family 



'ROM the picturesque hills that form the 

 Palisades of the Rappahannock River, 

 the historic town of Fredericksburg is 

 viewed in its luxurious setting of rolling 

 meadow and forest lands, lying as some 

 charming jewel endowed by nature and 

 admired by man. Here, in a quiet, se- 

 cluded spot, a fitting monument for history and for legend, 

 stands "Kenmore," the rare old home built by Col. Field- 

 ing Lewis for Betty Washington, the sister of George 

 Washington, whom he took there as his bride. 



The Kenmore estate is not large, as it includes only a 

 few acres, but these, placed away and apart from the rest 

 of the town, give an effect of ease and space unwarranted 

 by the mere area. The grounds are partially enclosed by 

 a heavy brick wall of English appearance, to which ivy 

 clings with grim tenacity, and the mosses of ages have 

 mellowed in tone ; grounds where great trees stand sentinel 

 around the mansion; oaks, maples and poplars; firs and 

 sycamores, surviving the forest monarchs that have suc- 

 cumbed to the wash of time and storm. 



The brick mansion built in 1749 might tell a tale of 

 romance and history blended, could the staunch old walls 

 but speak, for this was the house where Washington often 

 found needed rest after tireless duty, and where his mother, 

 "The Rose of Epping Forest," lived to the last. The 

 visiting stranger pauses always almost directly in front of 

 "Kenmore" and gazes reverently at a granite obelisk bear- 

 ing the simple inscription, "Mary, the Mother of Wash- 

 ington," beneath which lies the quiet sleeper who blessed her 

 country as no other woman can. In this great house, too. 



was born Major Lawrence Lewis, who married beautiful 

 Nellie Custis. 



"Kenmore" played its first part in history in the French 

 and Indian Wars of 1755-57, being at that time a rendez- 

 vous for recruits and headquarters for Washington, then 

 a colon'el in the English army. Twenty years later, when 

 America was in the throes of her greatest struggle, General 

 Washington many times sought his sister's fireside for a 

 council of war or a breath of home. During the Civil 

 War the dwelling served as a barracks for Federal Sharp- 

 shooters, and bears to-day the marks and scars of the 

 shells which struck it during those troublous times. Col. 

 Lewis must have had in view a lengthy existence for the 

 house presented to his little bride, for its thick walls and 

 massive foundations have weathered three bitter wars. 

 Being desirous of having this home made one of the hand- 

 somest in all Virginia, the early builder spared neither 

 time nor trouble nor expense to attain that end, and the 

 remarkable material and workmanship bespeak both an 

 architectural triumph and a practical forethought. 



In color, the mansion is of the true Colonial buff, with 

 the framework of the doors and arched window facings 

 white, which contrast restfully with the time-stained stone 

 steps that have borne the footsteps of one hundred and 

 sixty years of joy and sorrow and of peace and war. The 

 covered corridor or arcade forming a left wing to the 

 building presents rather original lines, having served no 

 particular purpose beyond proving a decorative relief from 

 the kitchen, which is placed in the rear. But under those 

 graceful archways, perhaps, Betty Lewis often sat with a 

 bit of tatting or old-time sampler. Here, too, fancy makes 









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Col. John Eager Howard 



Mary Washington 



General Seth Barton 



