Rosewell Plantation in Gloucester County, Virginia, was the Page family’s home for almost a century. The Page family was one of Virginia’s first families.
A splendid three-story home erected between 1725 and 1738 previously stood at the heart of the three thousand acre estate.
Rosewell Mansion held the area’s most lavish ceremonial balls and celebrations during most of the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as during the American Civil War.
During colonial times, slave labor constituted “an vital aspect” of Gloucester’s economy.
The Rosewell Plantation’s owners, the Rosewell family, had been involved in slavery since the 1670s.
Colonel John Page, an ancestor of the Page clan, was a Royal African Company agent who was a “major participant in the shipment of Africans to the West Indies and Virginia.”
In the 1680s, the Company was shipping around 5,000 slaves to the states every year.
The house originally had a flat lead roof behind a parapet above its three floors, as well as twin octagonal cupolas at either end.
An ornate courtyard was constructed by flanking dependencies in front of the home. The inside was painted in such a way that the Colonial Williamsburg restorers relied, in part, on an order from John Page for paints from London to provide a feeling of the hues in the Governor’s Palace at Williamsburg.
In 1771, Page requested fresh materials from John Norton & Sons of London, with the following instructions:
“Because my house is in desperate need of repair, I would be grateful if you could send me the following items: 100 lbs. white lead; 20 lbs. yellow ochre; a barrel of oil; 20 lbs. Venetian Red; 2 gallons Turpentine spots; 5 lbs. Red lead; 3 lbs. lamp Black; 2 lbs. white Copperas.”
Author James Joseph McDonald described Rosewell Mansion and its history in “Life In Old Virginia” (The Old Virginia Publishing Co., Norfolk, Va., 1907) as follows:
“The mansion is three floors tall with a basement and is mostly made of brick.”
The walls of the foundation are three and a half feet thick. The reception hall is spacious, the ceilings are high, and the entire home exudes exquisite taste and riches.
A lovely view of the surrounding flat plains and the waters of the streams and the York River may be gained from the higher windows.
“During Governor Page’s tenure, Thomas Jefferson was a frequent and welcome visitor.”
During one of his trips, he drafted the Declaration of Independence in what is now known as the “Blue Room,” which is located on the northwest corner of the second storey of this home.”
Today, the site is mostly an intact historic ruin that has been the focus of archaeological excavation that has unearthed many items and provided light on hitherto unknown aspects of colonial life and design.