The Wigwam is a landmark home, of

Cape Cod style Cape Cod style was a style of lighthouse architecture that originated on Cape Cod in Massachusetts during the early 1800s, and which became predominant to the West Coast, where numerous well-preserved examples still exist. In such lighthouses ...

, built in 1790, close to the

Appomattox River The Appomattox River is a tributary of the James River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 in central and eastern Virginia, named for the ...

near

Lodore ''Lodore'', also published under the title ''The Beautiful Widow'', is the penultimate novel by Romantic novelist Mary Shelley, completed in 1833 and published in 1835. Plot and themes In ''Lodore'', Shelley focused her theme of power and res ...

on Rt. 637 (Giles Road), in

Amelia County, Virginia Amelia County is a county located just southwest of Richmond in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. The county is located in Central Virginia and is included in the Greater Richmond Region. Its county seat is Amelia Court House. Am ...

. Governor

William Branch Giles William Branch Giles (August 12, 1762December 4, 1830) was an American statesman, long-term United States Senate, Senator from Virginia, and the List of governors of Virginia, 24th Governor of Virginia. He served in the United States House of R ...

(1762-1830) built the house and made it his home until his death, and it later became a home of the

Harrison family The Harrison family of Virginia has a history in American politics, public service, and religious ministry, beginning in the Colony of Virginia during the 1600s. Family members include a Founding Father of the United States, Benjamin Harrison V, ...

. an
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History

The original 18th-century building included only the back section, with the more formal front being added in 1818. There is some information that the front section was originally relocated from the John Royall estate, called Caxamelalea. However, experts from Williamsburg have refuted this based upon their inspection of the house. It has 18 rooms and at one time had 5 full baths. There are 4 chimneys, which serve 13 fireplaces, and 65 windows, 17 of which are dormers. One room in the basement appears to have been used to hold Yankee prisoners in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

; the room has a barred window and evidence of

shackle A shackle (or shacklebolt), also known as a gyve, is a U-shaped piece of metal secured with a clevis pin or Bolt (fastener), bolt across the opening, or a hinged metal loop secured with a quick-release locking pin mechanism. The term also appl ...

s on the wall. In 1832, Giles' son conveyed the property to William Henry Harrison, cousin of the president by that name. Harrison, with his wife Lucy (née Powers), raised six children there, and established a school for boys in the home, named Amelia Academy. The Christian school was run principally to prepare its students for entrance to the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

Charlottesville Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in Virginia, United States. It is the seat of government of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Quee ...

. The school's 1859–1860 flyer indicated a census of 25 pupils, and the school's board members included

John Hartwell Cocke Brigadier general (United States), Brigadier-General John Hartwell Cocke II (September 19, 1780 – June 24, 1866) was an American military officer, planter and businessman. During the War of 1812, Cocke served in the Virginia militia. After his ...

. In his final years running the school, William Henry was assisted by his eldest son, J. Hartwell Harrison. Two days before Christmas in 1881, William Henry, inconsolable and confused after the death of wife Lucy in Richmond that October, set out on horseback in the snow, supposing to visit her for Christmas. Hours later, his horse returned to the Wigwam without him, and he was discovered at a nearby intersection, having suffered a fatal heart attack. His burial in Richmond next to Lucy was arranged by Christmas, and the Wigwam passed to his son Hartwell. Hartwell eventually phased out the school there and made the Wigwam his home with wife Anna (née Carrington) and their six children. He farmed the property and became the area's local Baptist minister. The devastating effects of the

Panic of 1893 The Panic of 1893 was an economic depression in the United States. It began in February 1893 and officially ended eight months later. The Panic of 1896 followed. It was the most serious economic depression in history until the Great Depression of ...

resulted in Hartwell’s mortgage default in 1896, and the family's eviction from the home by the mortgage holder, his brother-in-law Lewis Harvie Blair. The family, including 4 children aged 7 to 17, had just finished putting in that year’s crops. In the mid-1900s, the property was owned and renovated by Hartwell's son, Robert C. Harrison. The Wigwam was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1969. In the late-1990s, the home and farm underwent major renovations by new ownership.

Notes

{{reflist Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Houses in Amelia County, Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Amelia County, Virginia Houses completed in 1790