Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 02/28/1992
NRHP Listing Date 10/30/1992
NRHP Reference Number 92001387
The architecturally refined residence at Rothsay was built in 1914 on the site of a Federal-period house that burned. The design represents an accomplished melding of the Georgian Revival and Craftsman styles popular during the period. The Lynchburg firm of Heard and Cardwell designed a 1918 addition and likely designed the main part as well. Defining features are the spreading hipped roof, symmetrical façade, and unaltered interior woodwork. A garden terrace, designed by Washington landscape architect George E. Burnap in 1918, joins a combined dovecote/garden seat, a pumphouse, and several ancillary structures. Lynchburg architect Stanhope Johnson designed the distinctive gateposts. Behind the house are farm buildings viewed against a panoramic backdrop of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Rothsay was built for Octavius Loxley Clark Radford (1870-1935), who maintained one of the largest and most progressive farming operations in Bedford County. Rothsay remains the property of his descendants.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: April 25, 2022
