St. Julien (Spotsylvania County, Virginia)

St. Julien is an historic plantation home located in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. The main house was built by Francis Taliaferro Brooke in 1794, with an addition added in 1812.^[3] There are several outbuildings that surround the main house. They include a slave quarters, smokehouse, milk house and law office used by Francis Brooke.^[4] Though relatively small in size, the home is exemplary of Federal architecture.^[5] The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in June 1975^[1]

St. Julien
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Virginia Landmarks Register
St. Julien (1804), Spotsylvania County, Virginia
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Location	South of Fredericksburg between VA 609 and VA 2, near Fredericksburg, Virginia
Coordinates	38°13′20″N 77°24′56″W
Area	338 acres (137 ha)
Built	1794; 1812
Architectural style	Federal
NRHP reference No.	75002038[1]
VLR No.	088-0061
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	June 5, 1975
Designated VLR	March 18, 1975[2]

Design

The house is a two-story, single-pile (only one room between the front and back of the building), Federal structure. St. Julien has a five-bay front. An unusual design element of the house is the in antis, or recessed portico at the summit of stone steps up to the front door. The most distinctive feature of St. Julien is its entrance bay. The balcony of the portico is faced with a smaller scale version of the modillion-and-fretwork cornice that encircles the house. A fanlight with wooden mullions. Above the front door, on the second floor, a door and sidelights mirror the portico's design. The house has a hip roof covered with sheet metal with interior end chimneys.^[6]

History

St. Julien was the home of Francis Taliaferro Brooke (1763-1851), an important figure in early Virginia politics. Brooke was elected to the State Senate in 1800 and appointed a Judge of the General Court in 1804. Brook eventually became the President of the Supreme Court of Appeals in Virginia.^[5][6] Brook purchased 200 acres (81 ha) in Spotsylvania County in 1796 when he moved his practice and residence to Fredericksburg, Virginia. This tract became St. Julien.^[5]

Henry Clay was a frequent visitor to St. Julien. Brooke lived on the plantation from the time of the building of the house until his death there in 1851.^[6]

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. "Spotsylvania: 'Sunday in the country'". The Free Lance-Star; Fredericksburg, Virginia. 13 October 1990. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
4. Amrhine, Richard (11 January 2008). "St. Julien undergoing major renovation project". The Free Lance-Star; Fredericksburg, Virginia. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
5. Loth, Calder, ed. (2000). Virginia Landmarks Register (4th ed.). Virginia Department of Historical Resources. p. 498. ISBN 9780813918624. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
6. "St. Julien" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places - Nomination Form. United States Department of the Interior: National Park Service. Retrieved 4 June 2012.