Lone Oaks, also known as the

Benjamin Deyerle Benjamin Deyerle (1806–1883) was an architect, artist and brickmaker in Roanoke County, Virginia. Many of the historic homes, churches and public buildings in Roanoke were designed and built under his and his family's direction. He is credited w ...

Place and Winsmere, is a

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...

listed on both the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

and the Virginia Landmarks Register in the Greater Deyerle neighborhood of the independent city of Roanoke,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. Located at 3402 Grandin Road Extension SW, Lone Oaks was completed in 1850 as the private residence of Benjamin Deyerle overlooking Mudlick Creek. Today the home still stands, with the surrounding area now developed as single family home typical of those built during the 1970s–1980s. Today the home remains as a private residence. The house is L-shaped with a single pediment Doric entrance portico, which has plain square pillars and fluted columns. It became a Virginia Historic Landmark and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

Main house

"A two-story, L-shaped brick house with three bay facade, rigid symmetry, parged antae and full

entablature An entablature (; nativization of Italian , from "in" and "table") is the superstructure of moldings and bands which lies horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and ...

, Lone Oak is well within the form and style of the other houses

erected during his most prolific period, between 1848 and 1851. Today, Lone Oaks retains its original, well proportioned Doric

Portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...

with

Pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

supported by paired groups of outside pillars and inside columns."Pulice, Michael J. 2011
Nineteenth-Century Brick Architecture in the Roanoke Valley and Beyond: Discovering the True Legacies of the Deyerle Builders
Roanoke, Va: Historical Society of Western Virginia, 2011. Pages 68-73. Lone Oak is on a hill facing Mill Mountain and overlooking the Roanoke River, is a brick house of modern appearance. Its central block, with walls two feet thick, was built by the Tosh family, incorporating an earlier log house. It was known originally as 'Rock of Ages' from the rock ledge on which it stands, and was probably the first block house in this part of the valley.Writers' Program (Va.). ''Virginia: A Guide to the Old Dominion''. New York: Oxf. Univ. Press, 1947. "Points of Interest". Page 303.

Outbuildings

Several 19th century outbuildings on the Lone Oaks property are interesting. They date from the construction of the main house or later. Many of the bricks used are rejects from the primary selection, and some are friable and partially deteriorated.

Springhouse

A two-story spring house and dwelling or office is built into the side of Mud Lick Creek where a spring keeps the basement cool. The limestone foundation and brick walls has an entrance to the dwelling area from the uphill side, and has a large fireplace and chimney.

Slave quarters

The slave quarters, barracoon, office and dwelling has two over two rooms, and is made from brick with 13" walls. All the rooms are heated by fireplaces. The south room on the first floor has a large fireplace and may have been used as an outdoor kitchen for the house.

Smokehouse

The

Smokehouse A smokehouse (North American) or smokery (British) is a building where meat or fish is cured with smoke Smoke is a suspension of airborne particulates and gases emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with t ...

is a two-story, front gabled brick structure. Many of the bricks used in the construction are durable, but were probably rejected as being too imperfect to be used on the walls of the main house.

Privy

The

privy Privy is an old-fashioned term for an outdoor toilet, often known as an outhouse and by many other names. Privy may also refer to: * Privy council, a body that advises the head of state * Privy mark, a small mark in the design of a coin * Privy Pur ...

is a curious construction, for a long mis-identified as a brick kiln. Because it had a flue ventilated chimney, it was mistakenly viewed as a fireplace for heating the bricks. However, there is no fireplace at all, and was used only for ventilation.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Greek Revival houses in Virginia Houses completed in 1852 Houses in Roanoke, Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Roanoke, Virginia 1852 establishments in Virginia Slave cabins and quarters in the United States