Thoroughly Virginia – Fredericksburg Historic Garden Tour

What do Stonewall Jackson, farming, fox hunting, flowers and fund-raising all have in common? They all have deep roots in Virginia culture and were all highlighted on the 2019 Fredericksburg Historic Garden Tour, hosted by the Rappahannock Valley Garden Club.

Spread across the countryside along the Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary War Route, outside of Fredericksburg, the club members successfully secured 4 intriguing sites that highlighted a wide range of interests, without even setting foot in the town’s charming historic district.

On the morning of the tour, my husband and I met Tricia Garner, one of the club members. She now serves as the new Historic Garden Week Statewide Chairperson. She graciously agreed to take us around to the sites. We were in good hands! It was so helpful to have her there to answer questions and introduce us to key people. She also confirmed that we had permission to take pictures inside the homes (which is normally not permitted). There was so much to see and learn that it’s hard to cover in one post. I’ll give you the highlights and include links so you can find out more.

Stonewall Jackson’s Shrine

The only building still standing on the Fairfield Plantation, near what was once a railroad stop called Guinea Station, is the farm office where Confederate Lieutenant General, Thomas Jonathan “Stonewall” Jackson spent the last days of his life. The legendary Jackson died here of complications from pneumonia on May 10, 1863, eight days after he was mistakenly shot by friendly fire.

The National Park Service manages this historic site and several knowledgable rangers were on hand the day of the tour to share the history and details about General Jackson’s final days.

Whether you’re sympathetic to the Confederacy or not, it’s hard not to feel compassion when learning about a human who was committed to his men, his military service, and his family. When, from all accounts, his death was the result of a series of mistakes by people who cared deeply about him. In those days, even the doctors weren’t aware that the General could develop pneumonia just by his lack of movement after surgery. Things would have been much different for him today.

While on the grounds of Jackson’s Death Site, we had the pleasure of meeting several of the women from the Rappahannock Valley Garden Club. I learned that it’s the tradition of the ladies of this club to dress in period attire that coordinates with the timeframe of the site where they’re volunteering.

We also stopped to see artist, Nicole Hamilton beginning work on a plein air painting of three volunteers in their Civil War era dresses, bonnets and parasols. Ten different artists participated in painting the day of the tour. I’m hoping to gather some examples of their work that day and share it in a separate post. Stay tuned on that.

Learn more about Stonewall Jackson’s Death Site

Stonewall Jackson’s Death Site – National Park Service

Fox Hunting at Chase’s End

Our next stop was the sprawling estate of the Caroline Hunt (fox hunting club) and its Masters, Col. & Mrs. Robert Ferrer. Two of their daughters welcomed visitors on the front porch in their traditional hunt attire.

The beautiful hunt-themed home was built twenty-five years ago to reflect the style of an early 1800’s house that had stood on the property.

One of the treats on these tours is getting a glimpse, both inside and out, of gorgeous private homes, that you wouldn’t have a chance to see otherwise.

It was clear that horses and foxhunting are held in high regard when we visited the impeccably clean and welcoming stables. This building also includes “The Munnings Room”, which hosts hunt breakfasts and other social functions.

We timed our stop here to take in the demonstration of the Caroline Hunt members riding out with the hounds at 11 am. The traditions, etiquette and history of fox hunting were explained to the guests while the ride was in progress. Note: No foxes are killed in the hunts.

Learn more about Fox hunting, Chase’s End and Caroline Hunt:

• For the Love of the Chase – The House and Home Magazine

• Caroline Hunt – Foxhunting Life

• Caroline Hunt at Mount Vernon – The Caroline Progress

• Twentyfirst Century Fox – The Washington Post

La Vue – Alsop Family Home – Built in 1818

Stop number 3 was La Vue, a stately 1818 brick home perched high on a hill, with original floors, doors, and plaster walls. Clay for bricks, timber for support beams and pine for the floors were all sourced directly from the property.

We learned that the L-shaped porch was added in the 1830’s and served as a hospital triage center. During the Civil War the home was used as a military hospital during the Battle of Fredericksburg. You may notice another plein air painter in the lower left corner of this image below. It was so interesting to see how various artists captured these homes so differently.

Intricate stenciling was added in 1834. As in all the homes, lovely floral arrangements designed by the Garden Club fill the rooms with even more stunning beauty.

In true Virginia style, current owner, Carole Boniface commissioned local artist Patte Ormsby to paint a family foxhunting scene in the grand foyer. It was painted in the spring of 1995 and took over 200 hours. It’s based on the landscape of LaVue & depicts all members of their family on their horses. If you look closely, you’ll also see a whimsical addition hidden in the scene.

Members of the Rappahannock Garden Club hosted a horticulture display on the grounds. They identified and answered questions about many indigenous flowers in the area.

Learn More About La Vue

• Patte Ormsby – Mural Artist – you can also visit her Facebook page here

• Virginia Dept. of Historic Resources – Architectural and historic details about La Vue

• Even more about La Vue’s history

Snead’s Farm

Our last stop was Snead’s Farm. An eclectic property that serves many purposes. This working sustainable farm specializes in growing and selling asparagus in the spring, and pumpkins in fall. Christmas trees come in winter, and they host a Fall Festival. The farm is host to weddings, special events, photo shoots, field trips, and pop-up dining too.

On tour day, during the lunch hours, delicious farm-to-table boxed lunches were available by pre-order from the Sunken Well Tavern in Fredericksburg. During our meal, Chef, Paul Stoddard discussed how he focuses his menu on seasonal produce from this and other local farms. He then shared his recipe for creating fresh roasted asparagus with balsamic glaze, which everyone had a chance to sample. Farm owners, Ellen and Emmett Snead, also answered questions about the ecological farm techniques and a bit of history of the farm.

Their love of open spaces motivated them to set aside 290 acres of their land to be designated as “green space in perpetuity” through the Virginia Outdoor Foundation. This protects those acres from the encroaching sprawl of Fredericksburg, so they remain strictly undeveloped or farmland forever.

Ladies from the Garden Club shared tips and tricks for flower arranging at the demonstration area throughout the day. Below are just a few examples of their creations. Many gardeners look forward to these tours to glean ideas from the creative arrangements on display at every site.

Ellen Snead is the force behind these artistic fences and many other found art and repurposed pieces around the property. I love these!

The “Modest Museum” houses Civil War and Native American artifacts that were found on the farm.

Learn More About Snead’s Farm

• Snead’s Farm website

• Virginia Outdoor Foundation – Land protection and conservation

• Sunken Well Tavern – Farm-to-table box lunch provider

Fredericksburg was just one of seven tours that I attended for Historic Garden Week this year. This tour was so quintessentially Virginian that I wanted to share about it in more detail.

If you’d like to see more images from the Fredericksburg Historic Garden Tour, please visit my Flickr page HERE.

I’ll be sharing more about the other tours in the weeks to come, so sign up for my mailing list to get updates when new posts are up and stay tuned!

The annual Fredericksburg Historic Garden Tour, with others like it around Virginia, serves as the primary fund-raising event for the Garden Clubs of Virginia. Funds are used to restore and maintain many of Virginia’s historic gardens. They also assist state parks, provide graduate-level research fellowships and more.

I’ve had the privilege of attending nearly a dozen of these Garden Tours around the state and each is uniquely their own, with an ever-changing list of homes and places of interest.

Sadly, Historic Garden Week had to be cancelled for 2020 due to COVID-19, but I hope you’ll mark April 17-24, 2021 on your calendar and make plans to attend one or more tours in Historic Garden Week April 2021.

Do you have any questions about Fredericksburg Historic Garden Tour? Have you had the chance to attend one of the many in the state? I’d love to hear your thoughts and recommendations for which ones were your favorites.

Find More About Historic Garden Week Here