In a pastoral setting above the James River in Bedford County, the compact early-19th-century farmhouse of Hope Dawn is a refined and well-preserved example of Piedmont Virginia’s Federal vernacular. Its finely crafted details and balanced proportions illustrate the high standards maintained by builders even for modest houses in relatively remote areas. Noteworthy features are the original porches, the Flemish-bond brickwork, and the finely detailed Federal mantels based on designs in Owen Biddle’s The Young Carpenter’s Assistant (1805). The construction date is uncertain. The house may have been standing when the property was acquired in 1827 by Dr. Howell Davies, a Lynchburg druggist, who used Hope Dawn as a country home. Preserved in front of Hope Dawn is a short section of the old Bethel Road, an early turnpike. The road is still lined with its original stone retaining walls and dressed-stone gateposts.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Programs
DHR has secured permanent legal protection for over 700 historic places - including 15,000 acres of battlefield lands
DHR has erected 2,532 highway markers in every county and city across Virginia
DHR has registered more than 3,317 individual resources and 613 historic districts
DHR has engaged over 450 students in 3 highway marker contests
DHR has stimulated more than $4.2 billion dollars in private investments related to historic tax credit incentives, revitalizing communities of all sizes throughout Virginia