For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 04/19/1988
NRHP Listing Date 01/19/1989
DHR's Virginia Board of Historic Resources easement
NPS property number 88003208
Mount Columbia is situated on one of the highest points in King William County, property that originally was part of the vast landholding of the College of William and Mary. The two-part dwelling illustrates the refinement of architectural taste that occurred in the area in the early 1800s. The older section, a simple, single-cell house erected for Gideon Bosher in the 1790s, typifies the homes of the period’s moderate inland planters. The sophisticated Federal-style front section, built in the 1830s for Bosher’s son William, reflects the gentry’s increasing tendency to display prosperity in a more stylish manner. The general appearance of the later section may have been influenced by Virginia’s Executive Mansion. William Bosher’s brother John, a carpenter, and his neighbor Christopher Tompkins, a master builder, were both involved in the building of the mansion.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated April 4, 2018
