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February 14: Public Presentation Click here to read the article in the Winchester Star covering this presentation.
February 19: Reception for City Manager
February 20: EDA Hopes to Revive Vacant City Buildings
February 20: Planners Endorse New Inn
April 19: Winchester Underground About Winchester Underground The Winchester Underground tour series was conceived in 2007 by Preservation of Historic Winchester as a way to raise awareness and educate the public on the value of historic buildings in downtown Winchester. The tours offer an interactive aspect not available to a slide presentation alone—by physically seeing the buildings, tour-goers can better appreciate the special history and unique character of Winchester’s architectural legacy. The tour is geared toward rarely seen gems that are not open to the public, or are “works in progress” to show historic preservation in action. It is the theme of progress that brings PHW to Kent Street in 2008. A sense of renewal and promise follows you as you travel down South Kent Street and admire the turn of the century vernacular architecture. So come aboard the Winchester Underground—our next stop is South Kent Street! Why Kent Street? PHW has been fighting a plan to demolish a row of houses in the 400 block of South Kent Street. Many have asked, including some of our own members, “What’s the beef?” “Why should we citizens be concerned about Kent Street?” We invite you to come see for yourself—see what progress has been made by private owners to restore the street, see what a commitment to community and neighborhood can accomplish, see what promise Kent Street holds—and see what challenges remain. Judge for yourselves if demolition should be the future of the street. Also take this opportunity to learn more about the “Patsy Cline House” and the plans for its future.
Tour Stops: Approximately 100-125 people showed their support by touring the seven houses that Saturday. Thank you again, and stay tuned for more Winchester Underground events! Read the Winchester Star articles covering the event here and here.
April 30: Centerpiece of 'New Urbanism'
May 12: Public Meeting
Annual Awards Nomination Forms Due May 15 Nominations are due at the PHW office by May 15, 2008. Click here for a nomination form.
June 21: PHW's Annual Meeting
Belle Grove Plantation would like to invite you to "A Midsummer Night Garden Party" Wednesday, June 25, 2008, 6:30 to 8:30 P.M. at the Inn at Vaucluse Springs. Enjoy a sumptuous feast at the historic Inn, nestled on 100 acres south of Stephens City. Originally owned by Lord Fairfax and Yost Hite, subsequent owners served as military and political leaders for the Valley during the Colonial Period. Vaucluse was occupied during the Civil War and an account in the words of the Jones family and their relatives can be read in the book Defend the Valley. From 1801 to 1965, it was owned by the Rice family of Winchester. John and Bettye Chumbley purchased the property and added a mill and other buildings to the site. The present owners, Neil and Barry Myers, bought the property in 1995 and have transformed the manor house and its surrounding buildings into an bed and breakfast inn. Today, the Inn is acclaimed as one of the "Top 10 Romantic Hideaways in the East". A splendid summer night buffet will be presented by the Myers and fine wines from Salute will accompany the meal. An enchanted and entertaining evening is planned to delight guests. Gather around the craggy boxwoods and view the Blue Ridge Mountains. All proceeds from the event will benefit Belle Grove Plantation. To make a reservation, call Belle Grove Plantation, 540-869-2098. The cost is $50.00 per person. PHW Is not affliated with this event. We provide notice to our members for their interest.
June 26: Winchester City Comprehensive Plan Public Input Sessions If you cannot attend this meeting, the meetings in July are Monday, July 14th at John Kerr Elementary and Tuesday, July 22nd at Frederick Douglass Elementary. For more information on the Comprehensive Plan please see the City’s website at: http://www.winchesterva.gov/planning/compplan.php
June 30: Invitation to Join Proposed Northern Shenandoah Valley Branch of APVA The APVA is our primary state-wide, citizen volunteer, non-profit general preservation organization in Virginia. It was founded in 1889 and its first major activity was the rescue of the site of Jamestown, which it still owns and sponsors, along with about thirty other of the some of the most historic sites in Virginia. Its primary work since the beginning has been to enlist citizens state-wide in the cause of advocacy for historic preservation, and not just of “famous” or elite sites, but of all the places and landscapes that have been important to Virginians over the last 400 years. APVA and its members and local branches address not only decision-makers in state and local governments, but also private companies and individuals whose decisions affect the historic fabric and landscapes that have been and continue to be part of our lives. It is also an important educational and research organization, with annual conferences, Preservation Trades weekends, periodicals, the annual “Most Threatened List”, programs of archeology, study, and interpretation at the many sites it owns or controls, and much more.
At the organizational meeting on June 30 we will: For more information please download the full text of the letter in PDF format here and visit the APVA website at http://apva.org/.
July 1: Preservationists Study Greenway Court Plans Historical society representatives from Winchester and Clarke, Frederick and Warren counties met Monday to discuss establishing a local chapter of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. The 119-year-old Richmond-based preservation organization’s first major preservation activity was the Jamestown settlement. The nonprofit group’s local chapters are usually connected to individal historical properties, said APVA Executive Director Elizabeth S. Kostelny, so the establishment of a local chapter of regional preservation groups may be a new organization model for APVA. Click here for the full Winchester Star article.
July 14: Winchester City Comprehensive Plan Public Input Session The next meeting will be held on Monday, July 14 at the John Kerr Elementary School. The fourth and final meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 22 at Frederick Douglass Elementary School. Both meetings will run from about 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm and be held in the school cafeterias. At the Public Input Meetings, attendees will be asked to complete a word exercise using the letters spelling out W-I-N-C-H-E-S-T-E-R. The respondent is asked to write in a word or phrase beginning with the letter on each line that expresses their view about Winchester today as then another phrase (or perhaps the same one) that expresses what they envision the City being in the future. Copies of the exercise are being distributed at the Comprehensive Plan input sessions and can otherwise be requested from the City Planning Department (667-1815 or plngdept@ci.winchester.va.us). Attendees will also be broken into small groups to mark up maps identifying areas where change should occur and other areas that should be preserved as they are.
July 21: APVA Organizational Meeting We will be focusing on bylaws and process. APVA representatives will be present. There may be some limited discussion of Greenway Court. Anyone interested in historic preservation in (especially Winchester, and the counties of Frederick, Clarke, and Warren) is invited to attend. If you have any questions please contact Maral Kalbian, 955-1231; Bob Steig, 837-2790; Jennifer Lee, 955-2600; or Chuck Johnston, 540-955-5130.
July 23: PHW Names Ten Winners of 2008 Preservation Awards
August: Handley Library Anniversary Events
August 1: "Crowning Jewel" Correction The rest of the article may be found online at The Winchester Star.
August 19: PHW Summer Newsletter Past issues from v. 28 to the present are available in the online archive.
September 10: Day of Caring If you are interested in learning more about this event, visit the local branch of the United Way online at http://www.unitedwaynsv.org/
September 13: Family Heirloom
September 27: A Community Thanksgiving Celebration
October 12: Book Signing
October 22: Our Community, Our State, Our Nation: American History in the Modern Era Warren Hofstra is the Stewart Bell Professor of History and director of the Community History Project at Shenandoah University. His areas of expertise include the American frontier, Virginia history, culture of the Cold War, and vernacular architecture. For more information on the series call Sandy Snyder (540) 535-3543, or email ssnyder@su.edu. All lectures are free and open to the public. The topic of the October lecture is "American Frontiers: National Identity, Frederick Jackson Turner, and the Question of Significance." The program begins at 7:30 pm at the Quaker Meeting House, Corner of Piccadilly and Washington St.
October 25: Winchester Underground: The Apple Tour Ticket Sales: Advance tickets at the PHW office, all tour stops on day of the event. Click here to view the PDF format postcard for this event.
November 6: BAR Public Hearing for Community Food Store The plan to demolish the former Community Food Store has been approved and stood unopposed at the BAR meeting due to the severity of the deterioration. You can find the story online at The Winchester Star.
November: Holiday House Tour Advance Information Preview Party tickets are $35, adult tickets $15, and children 12 and under $6. Children under 6 are free. The PHW Office will have special hours 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday, November 17 to December 5 for Holiday House Tour ticket sales. To see the Holiday House Tour brochure in PDF format, click here.
Street Closures and Parking
Holiday House Tour Decriptions
December 6 and 7: Holiday House Tour - Amherst Street: Aglow for the Holidays
The following locations are slated as stops on the 32nd Annual Holiday House Tour: The Preview Party and Candlelight Tour will be held December 6 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the home of Wilke Green on 703 S. Washington Street. The Daylight Tour will be held December 7 from noon to 5 p.m. Ticket costs will be $35 for the Preview Party and Candlelight Tour (reservations needed by December 4 at the PHW office,) $15 in advance or $20 at the door for adults and $6 for children for the Sunday Daylight Tour. For a general overview of the Holiday House Tour, click here. If you have questions in the meantime, please contact the PHW office at 667-3577 or at phwi@verizon.net.
This Italianate-style home was built c. 1889 by Robert Y. Conrad for his sister, Katherine Conrad. Although the home has passed through several owners since its construction, it remains largely unchanged since Katherine Conrad called it home. The house features attractive round-headed windows and offers a sense of privacy with the long brick sidewalk leading up to the house and brick wall in front. The Boxleys are avid collectors of model ships and glassware, which will be on display in the home.
This late eighteenth century home was built by John Hatley Norton. He arrived in Winchester in 1783 and constructed the earliest portion of the house in 1786. “Ambler Hill” is named for the widow Catherine Norton’s second husband, John Ambler. Ambler Hill's frame was nogged, or loosely filled with bricks and stones, when it was built, and the house remains one of the few known extant box frame structures in Winchester. Ambler Hill was the birthplace of famous Virginia novelist John Esten Cooke in 1830, and it has served as a boarding house once and a school twice, before the Scully family bought and completely renovated it. The house has a brick wine cellar, walnut paneling in the library and a collection of fireplace mantels.
The southeast timber frame portion of this house was built by George Flowerdew Norton, John Norton’s brother, in 1786. In 1800, Revolutionary War hero, General Daniel Morgan purchased it and built a large brick addition. Found throughout the house are the original Dutch elbow locks, doors, and red heart pine flooring. Most of the eight mantles are from the 1830s, when some upgrading to the house occurred. Other major architectural features, including the staircase, room layout, paneling and wainscoting, would have been familiar to General Morgan himself. The Morgan House currently holds an eclectic collection of art, family antiques, lead soldiers, and a cherry paneled library.
The house at 227 Amherst Street was built in 1912 by the Barry family in the eclectic Colonial Revival style with Italian tendencies. It was the home of the Fred Glaize family until 1982 and was purchased by the Sweeneys in 2003. They have been busy renovating the house with special emphasis on the butler’s pantry and the kitchen. Of special interest is the Shenandoah Valley tall case clock and the Winchester mantel in the living room. Also of interest is the den which is paneled in wood from the Rock Enon Springs Hotel. The family Christmas tree is decorated with the ornament collections of the Sweeneys’ two sons, Tyler and Paul.
This Italianate style home (built c. 1872) displays an inviting full façade porch, almost full length windows on the first floor, and interesting eyebrow windows and cornice detailing near the roof. The exterior has been left almost untouched and most windows retain their original glass. The interiors were extensively remodeled by a former owner who was a master carpenter at Henkel Harris when he added closets, updated bathrooms, and added many built in features to the home. The Jacksons are the sixth family to call this house home.
Bessie McCann purchased this lot from Jonah Cather in 1897, and this Queen Anne style house was erected by 1902. PHW purchased and resold this home through its Revolving Fund in 1980, making it the first building purchased on Amherst Street. Home to the young Getaz family since 1987, the house boasts two corbelled chimneys, a hipped slate roof, and welcoming front porch. The interior retains original oak and cherry woodwork, pine and oak flooring, double sliding parlor doors and five fireplaces. Family antiques and newly acquired pieces are throughout the home. Musical entertainment courtesy Dr. Jim Laidlaw, John Taylor, and the Shenandoah University caroling quartet. Artwork courtesy Sandra Bosley, F. Andrew Boyd, Julie Read, and Kate Schultz.
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Preservation of Historic Winchester * 530 Amherst Street * Winchester, VA 22601
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Advance tickets will go on sale by Wednesday, November 19 at the following locations:
222 Amherst Street
223 Amherst Street
226 Amherst Street
227 Amherst Street
310 Amherst Street
316 Amherst Street
Copyright © 2007-2009 Preservation of Historic Winchester, Inc.
All Rights Reserved