Lewis Burwell II, grandfather of the builder of Carter’s Grove, built Fairfield circa 1694. Lewis’ father, of the same name, patented the 2,350 acres on the south side of Carter Creek in 1648. Lewis Burwell II was a member of the Governor’s Council, and he gained financially from his marriage to Abigail Smith of York County, heiress of Council president Nathaniel Bacon (the elder). Upon Lewis’ death in 1710, Fairfield passed to his son Nathaniel, who married Elizabeth, daughter of Robert “King” Carter; and upon Nathaniel’s death, the plantation passed to his son Lewis. This third Lewis (1710-1752) was president of the Council and acting governor of Virginia. His son, also named Lewis, sold the Fairfield tract to Col. Robert Thruston in 1787. Thruston, his wife Frances Simmons Jones, and descendants are buried in unmarked graves at Fairfield. A plat was drawn of the farm in 1847 when William A. Leavitt began to acquire Fairfield Plantation. When the house burned in 1897, it was owned by the Elizabeth G. Booth estate. The property returned to the Burwell family in 1930 when it was purchased by Gerard Lambert. (Photos courtesy of Virginia Historical Society and Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)