The Virginia Governor's Mansion, better known as the Executive Mansion, is located in Richmond, Virginia, on Capitol Square and serves as the official residence of the governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Designed by

Alexander Parris Alexander Parris (November 24, 1780 – June 16, 1852) was a prominent American architect-engineer. Beginning as a housewright, he evolved into an architect whose work transitioned from Federal style architecture to the later Greek Revival. Parr ...

, it is the oldest occupied governor's mansion in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. It has served as the home of Virginia governors and their families since 1813. This mansion is both a

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 ...

and a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

, and has had a number of successive renovations and expansions during the 20th century. Adjacent and immediately north of Capitol Square is the

Court End 250px, 1000 block E. Clay Street Court End is a neighborhood in Richmond, Virginia, that sits to the north of the Capitol Square and East Broad Street. It developed in the Federal era, after Virginia's capital moved from Williamsburg. Boun ...

neighborhood, which houses the

White House of the Confederacy The White House of the Confederacy is a historic house located in the Court End neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia. Built in 1818, it was the main executive residence of the sole President of the Confederate States of America, Jefferson Davis, ...

. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, the

Virginia State Capitol The Virginia State Capitol is the seat of state government of the Commonwealth of Virginia, located in Richmond, the third capital city of the U.S. state of Virginia. (The first two were Jamestown and Williamsburg.) It houses the oldest elected ...

, also in Richmond, housed offices of the Confederacy. Tours of the mansion are offered several days a week.

History

When Richmond became the capital of Virginia in 1779, there was no residence for the governor, but

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

rented one. The state was so poor that it could not pay the rent in time and blamed Jefferson for the problem. The state finally paid its rent and built a residence for the governor on the site of the present building. The law that provided for the construction of the current building was signed on February 13, 1811, by

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...

, with the building being completed in 1813. Monroe was succeeded by George William Smith in 1811, but Smith was not the first governor to live in the mansion because he lost his life in the

Richmond Theatre fire The Richmond Theatre fire occurred in Richmond, Virginia, United States, on Thursday, December 26, 1811. It devastated the Richmond Theatre, located on the north side of Broad Street between what is now Twelfth and College Streets. The fire kille ...

while he was saving others on December 26, 1811. His successor,

James Barbour James Barbour (June 10, 1775 – June 7, 1842) was an American slave owner, lawyer, politician and planter. He served as a delegate from Orange County, Virginia in the Virginia General Assembly, and as speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates ...

, was the first governor to live in the mansion. The term "mansion" was not used in the law authorizing it to be built, but it has been used ever since. The gardens were redesigned in the 1950s, at the request of Governor Thomas B. Stanley, by noted landscape architect

Charles Gillette Charles Freeman Gillette (1886–1969) was a prominent landscape architect in the upper South who specialized in the creation of grounds supporting Colonial Revival architecture, particularly in Richmond, Virginia. He is associated with the res ...

.Library of Virginia: About the Charles F. Gillette Photograph Collection
/ref> Under Governor James S. Gilmore III, the Mansion was renovated and expanded in an effort to restore the home to its historical appearance but also to bring the Mansion into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and to provide additional living space for the First Family. Anne Holton lived in the mansion twice: during the 1970s when her father, A. Linwood Holton Jr., was governor and when her husband

Tim Kaine Timothy Michael Kaine (; born February 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 38th lieutenant governor of Virgi ...

was governor. Thomas Jefferson's daughter Martha Jefferson Randolph, known as "Patsy", was also the daughter and wife (to

Thomas Mann Randolph Jr. Thomas Mann Randolph Jr. (October 1, 1768 – June 20, 1828) was an American planter, soldier, and politician from Virginia. He served as a member of both houses of the Virginia General Assembly, a representative in the United States Congress, a ...

) of Virginia governors, but never lived in the Mansion. Currently, Governor Glenn Youngkin occupies the mansion.

In the media

It was featured on ''American Idol'' (season 5) when Tim Kaine and his wife, Anne Holton, welcomed Richmond-native and Idol-finalist

Elliott Yamin Efraym Elliott Yamin ( he, אפרים אליוט ימין; born July 20, 1978) is an American singer known for his hit single " Wait for You" and for placing third on the fifth season of ''American Idol''. His self-titled album, released Marc ...

and his family to the mansion on national television. Restoration and remodeling work on the Mansion was shown on Bob Vila's ''Home Again'' television show's tenth season, which aired in early 2000. The Mansion's most notable television appearance occurred on January 31, 2006, when recently inaugurated Governor Tim Kaine delivered the Democratic response to the 2006 State of the Union address. The address was delivered from the Mansion's historic ballroom. 2011-07-10 Virginia Executive Mansion Plaque

2011-07-10 Virginia Executive Mansion Plaque

Distinguished visitors

* Albert Edward, Prince of Wales (later

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...

) * Queen Elizabeth II *

Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 19th president of the United States from 1877 to 1881, after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives and as governo ...

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

Arthur Balfour Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, (, ; 25 July 184819 March 1930), also known as Lord Balfour, was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. As foreign secretary in the ...

Ferdinand Foch Ferdinand Foch ( , ; 2 October 1851 – 20 March 1929) was a French general and military theorist who served as the Supreme Allied Commander during the First World War. An aggressive, even reckless commander at the First Marne, Flanders and Ar ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...

Richard Evelyn Byrd Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (October 25, 1888 – March 11, 1957) was an American naval officer and explorer. He was a recipient of the Medal of Honor, the highest honor for valor given by the United States, and was a pioneering American aviator, p ...

References

External links

Official site for the Executive Mansion

Governor's Mansion: Virginia Is For Lovers

Homes Of Virginia - The Governor's Mansion

* ttps://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/va1456/ Governor's Mansion, Capitol Square, Richmond, Independent City, VA 1 photo, 1 color transparency, 16 measured drawings, and 1 photo caption page at

Historic American Buildings Survey Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...

Governor's Mansion, Summer Kitchen, Capitol Square, Richmond, Independent City, VA
1 measured drawing at Historic American Buildings Survey {{National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Historic American Buildings Survey in Virginia Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia

National Historic Landmarks in Virginia Historic house museums in Virginia Houses completed in 1813 Houses in Richmond, Virginia Museums in Richmond, Virginia Federal architecture in Virginia Government buildings in Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Richmond, Virginia Governor of Virginia

History

In the media

Distinguished visitors

See also

References

External links