The members of the Colonel James Patton Chapter of the National Society of Daughters of the American Revolution, assembled in October on a bus to visit sites in Richmond, Virginia, having to do with the American Revolution.
We began at the Wilton House, a brick plantation house on the James River, completed in 1753 by William Randolph III. It was a house in which Washington, Jefferson, and Lafayette had been entertained. Later owners of Wilton House sold off the plantation land until the house was left on a small plot of land surrounded by industry. The mansion was scheduled to be razed, but was rescued by the Virginia Society of the Colonial Dames of America. The Colonial Dames bought the house in 1933 and had it moved brick by brick 15 miles up river to a site in Richmond. As we viewed the house and its splendid furnishings, we were carried back in time to the Colonial period.
We lunched downtown in an old brick tobacco warehouse, now a restaurant. After lunch, we were driven through the oldest part of Richmond, where we visited St. John's Episcopal Church, built in 1741. A costumed tour guide explained that the Virginia delegates, returning from the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, met at St. John's Church. Patrick Henry, one of the delegates, there made his famous speech, ending with the words, "Give me liberty or give me death."
Our last stop was at the beautiful State Capitol Building, designed by Jefferson and featuring Houdin's famous statue of George Washington.
Written by: Mary Echols
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