Green Spring Plantation in

James City County James City County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,254. Although politically separate from the county, the county seat is the adjacent independent city of Williamsburg. Located ...

about west of Williamsburg, was the 17th century

plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...

of one of the more popular governors of

Colonial Virginia The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colonial empire, English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertG ...

in North America, Sir William Berkeley, and his wife, Frances Culpeper Berkeley. Sir William Berkeley, who served several terms, is perhaps the best-known of Virginia's colonial governors. Contrary to popular belief the well-known

Berkeley Plantation Berkeley Plantation, one of the first plantations in America, comprises about on the banks of the James River on State Route 5 in Charles City County, Virginia. Berkeley Plantation was originally called Berkeley Hundred, named after the Berkele ...

in nearby Charles City County was not named in his honor. Today, a section of the land that formed the core of Green Spring Plantation is part of the

Colonial National Historical Park Colonial National Historical Park is located in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia and is operated by the National Park Service of the United States government. The park protects and interprets several sites relating to the Colony of Virgini ...

. It also lends its name to the section of the multi-use

Virginia Capital Trail The Virginia Capital Trail (VCT) (informally, the ''Cap Trail'', or simply ''the Cap'') is a dedicated, paved bicycle and pedestrian trail crossing four counties and between Jamestown and Richmond, Virginia — that is, between the Colony ...

that extends from Governor Berkeley's capital at Jamestown, past many former great plantations (including Berkeley plantation) to the current state capital at Richmond, Virginia.

History

The name Green Spring Plantation originated from the natural spring on the site, which continues over 350 years later to produce huge quantities of very beautifully clear, ultra cold water. The Green Spring produced a flow "so very cold that 'twas dangerous drinking the water thereof in Summer-time," wrote a visitor in the 1680s." The

plantation house A plantation house is the main house of a plantation, often a substantial farmhouse, which often serves as a symbol for the plantation as a whole. Plantation houses in the Southern United States and in other areas are known as quite grand and e ...

at Green Spring was built in 1645. The plantation originally encompassed a experimental

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used ...

. Seeking alternative export products to supplement

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

, which had become the Colony's mainstay, Green Spring produced flax,

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

potash Potash () includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form.

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the ...

, and spirits, which were shipped to markets in North America, the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

, and

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...

. The plantation was owned by Governor William Berkeley until his death in 1677. When Berkeley's widow Lady Frances married

Philip Ludwell Philip Cottington Ludwell (1638 – 1723) was an English-born planter and colonial official who sat on the Virginia Governor's Council and briefly served as speaker of the House of Burgesses. Ludwell, in addition to operating plantations in Vi ...

, ownership passed to him, and then to his son Philip Ludwell II and grandson

Philip Ludwell III Philip Cottington Ludwell III (December 28, 1716 – February 28, 1767) was a Virginia planter, soldier and politician who twice represented Jamestown in the House of Burgesses, but in 1760 left his plantations in the care of overseers and perma ...

. On March 13, 1683, the Council determined that Greenspring windmill was to be the site of the building of the King's storehouse. Green Spring Plantation witnessed many historic events, including the beginnings of

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

in Virginia,

Bacon's Rebellion Bacon's Rebellion was an armed rebellion held by Virginia settlers that took place from 1676 to 1677. It was led by Nathaniel Bacon against Colonial Governor William Berkeley, after Berkeley refused Bacon's request to drive Native American ...

in 1676, the

Battle of Green Spring The Battle of Green Spring took place near Green Spring Plantation in James City County, Virginia during the American Revolutionary War. On July 6, 1781 United States Brigadier General "Mad" Anthony Wayne, leading the advance forces of the Ma ...

during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

in 1781, and the emancipation of its slaves in 1804, by the will of William Ludwell Lee, son of William Lee. In 1862, the property was also involved in the

Battle of Williamsburg The Battle of Williamsburg, also known as the Battle of Fort Magruder, took place on May 5, 1862, in York County, James City County, and Williamsburg, Virginia, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. It was the first pi ...

during the Peninsula Campaign of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

. A second mansion on the site was burned during the Civil War.

Preservation

In the 21st century, about of the original plantation are preserved by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

(NPS) as part of the

, which acquired the property in 1966. The site includes archaeological and architectural remnants of the manor house and ancillary structures. It was listed on 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 ...

on December 29, 1978. It has been argued by historian Virginia B. Price that numerous Virginia county courthouses, including Hanover, King William, and Nelson, are, “arguably, the Green Spring house’s architectural legacy.”

References

External links

Friends of Green Spring
a large interactive web site with streaming video and more than a dozen essays ("The voices of Green Spring")

* ttps://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/hh/item/va0615/ Greenspring, State Route 614 vicinity, Williamsburg, Williamsburg, VAat the

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 ...

(HABS)
Philip Ludwell III and Early American Orthodoxy , Ludwell.org

''Discourse and View of Virginia''

Green Spring Pathway to Freedom
{{DEFAULTSORT:Green Spring Plantation Protected areas of James City County, Virginia James River plantations Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Houses completed in 1645 National Register of Historic Places in James City County, Virginia Colonial National Historical Park Historic American Buildings Survey in Virginia Houses in James City County, Virginia Burned houses in the United States 1645 establishments in Virginia *

History

Preservation

See also

References

External links