Highlight of a Historical Location: Rokeby Plantation

The land encompassing the earth fast house at Rokeby was apparently part of a patent of 6350 acres awarded to John Waugh on March 2,1691. Some of the land passed from John Waugh to his son Joseph Waugh on Oct 1, 1731. Then to William Waugh, son of John or Joseph.

At some time, Dr. John Michael Wallace purchased the land. Documentary evidence shows that Dr. Michael Wallace arrived in Virginia in 1734. He is identified: Wallace, Dr. Michael (1719-1767), King George County; son of William Wallace, of Galrigs, Ayrshire, Scotland, merchant, and nephew of John Wallace, of Elderslee (or Ellerslie).

The first documentary reference in King George County for Dr. John Michael Wallace (1719-1767) is dated Jan 10, 1751. A second documentary reference in King George County to Dr. John Michael Wallace is dated Dec 7, 1752. In his will dated June 4, 1767, Dr. John Michael Wallace willed three tracts of land to his son Gustavus B. Wallace (builder of Rokeby):

(1) "the land I now live on purchased of William Waugh";

(2) "The Land and Plantation in Stafford purchased of Wm Ross“

(3) "and that part of the Land I purchased of Col. Carter; which lies between the ridge Road and Minton ‘s. Ordinary to my son Gustavus Wallace and his heirs forever ".

The John Warner map of 1745 shows that the land area surrounding Rokeby was surveyed and mapped in 1730 and 1737. The Fry and Jefferson map of 1755 identifies the following landmarks in the vicinity of Rokeby: (*the four names below are also marked with a small circle) Skinker*, Clevar*, Turner*, Denaphon* (sp?), Matompkin P. Boydshole (sp?), Muddy Cr., Lamb Cr., Falmouth, Paspatansy (sp?)

The Wallace Family Legacy:

General Gustavus Brown Wallace (1751–1802) (Brother of Dr. John Michael Wallace) was born at Ellerslie in King George County to Dr. Michael Wallace and Elizabeth Brown, Colonel Wallace was commissioned Captain in the Third Virginia Regiment in 1776 and promoted to Major in 1777. He served with George Washington at Valley Forge during the harrowing winter of 1777–78. He was captured by the British at the fall of Charleston, he was later paroled by Lord Cornwallis at the personal request of Governor Thomas Nelson. The Wallace family held deep roots in Virginia's colonial aristocracy, connecting Rokeby to the broader network of influential Chesapeake families.

Gustavus Brown Wallace Sr. (1776-1845) nephew to General Gustavus Brown Wallace (1751-1802).

He was the son of Michael Wallace and Lettice Smith Wishart the widow of Reverend James Wishart of Lamb's Creek Church As a result, the plantation White Hall came into and remained for many years in the possession of the Wallace family.

Gustavus Brown Wallace Sr. was a graduate of Princeton College, a member of the American Whig Society at Princeton, and a private soldier in Captain Brown's Company, 25th Virginia Regiment, during the War of 1812.

Rokeby was built circa 1827.

In the early part of the nineteenth century, Rokeby occupied the center of a vast plantation of approximately two thousand acres. The substantial size, quality of construction, and internal elegance of the mansion suggests that Gustavus B. Wallace, Sr., and his family enjoyed a comfortable prosperity from their agricultural-based estate. Census records from 1820-1840 reveal that Gustavus B. Wallace, Sr. owned eighty-six slaves and employed an additional thirty-three workers in agriculture and manufacture.

Rokeby was built around 1827 as a Federal-style country mansion in King George County, Virginia. Set at a commanding height, it offers a magnificent view of the Rappahannock River Valley.

The estate was established by the Wallace family, a large extended family of social, political, and economic prominence in Virginia's colonial and antebellum past.

The name "Rokeby" evokes the romantic literary tradition of Sir Walter Scott, whose works were widely admired among Virginia's planter class during the early 19th century.

The structure is a two-story, three-bay brick dwelling with a low hipped roof, brick foundation with slate and tin roofing. The structure contained tripartite windows, lintel-type window heads, and an elegant elliptical leaded-glass fanlight with flanking sidelights.

Rokeby's 50-acre estate features a remarkable collection of outbuildings that tell the story of a self-sustaining Virginia plantation. Antebellum Structures: a brick smokehouse (pre-Civil War) 1917–1920 Building Program: schoolhouse, summer / tenant house, playhouse, garage, Sears and Roebuck catalog horse barn, sheep barn and cattle run-in shed.

King George County found itself in the crossroads of conflict during the Civil War. Situated between Washington, D.C. and Richmond along the Rappahannock River, the region saw significant military activity.

The Rappahannock served as a natural boundary between Union and Confederate forces, and the surrounding countryside bore the scars of repeated troop movements and engagements.

Many of the region's plantation estates, including those of prominent families like the Wallace’s, endured considerable hardship. The antebellum smokehouse that survives at Rokeby today is one of the few structures that predates this turbulent period.

Rokeby, at that time, commanded a view which included both the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers. It was no wonder that General Ambrose Burnside of the Union Army selected this site as a headquarters during the Fredericksburg campaign of 1862.

Rokeby's survival through the war speaks to both the resilience of its construction and the fortunes of its location, set high on a hill above the river valley.

In 1912, The original Federal block mansion is enlarged with a pair of flanking two-story frame pavilions, expanding the mansion's footprint.

In 1916, Langbourne Meade Williams, one of Richmond's most successful investment bankers, purchased Rokeby and begins his vision for the estate.

In 1917, the west wing of the mansion is substantially enlarged and Williams launched a comprehensive building program across the entire property.

In 1917 through 1920, construction of the schoolhouse, summer house, playhouse, garage, horse barn, sheep barn, and cattle shed transforms Rokeby into a complete country estate.

Rokeby became a playground for Virginia's elite. After Langbourne Meade Williams purchased Rokeby in 1916, he transformed the estate into far more than a private residence. Williams organized lavish gatherings that attracted the wealthy and powerful members of Virginia's political elite. The estate became a preferred destination for members of the Virginia legislature, the Governor of Virginia, Richmond's banking and business leaders, and prominent social figures of the era. Parties and picnics at Rokeby became legendary gatherings where political deals were made amid the pastoral beauty of the Rappahannock Valley.

Rokeby's historical and architectural significance has been formally recognized at both the state and national levels. It was listed December 1, 2004, in the Virginia Landmarks Register.

On January 20, 2005, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP #04001544). The property meets three National Register criteria:

• Criterion A: Associated with significant historical events

• Criterion B: Associated with significant persons

• Criterion C: Embodies distinctive architectural characteristics

Rokeby remains a private dwelling, continuing its nearly two-century legacy as a Virginia country estate.

While not open to the general public, the property is visible from the public right-of-way along Kings Highway (Route 3) in King George County.

Several of the 1917–1920 outbuildings have undergone restoration work, including the summer/tenant house, schoolhouse, and sheep barn — a testament to ongoing preservation efforts. The mansion has also undergone restoration.

The estate stands as one of King George County's finest examples of Federal architecture and early 20th-century country estate planning.