Virginia adds seven new historic sites to state landmarks register

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Virginia's Board of Historic Resources approved seven new historic sites as state landmarks across the Commonwealth.

On Tuesday, March 24, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) announced that the State's Board of Historic Resources approved seven new locations to be added to the Virginia Landmarks Register (VLR) during its quarterly meeting on March 19.

The VLR is the official list in Virginia of places of historic, architectural, archaeological and cultural significance, according to the release.

The Board approved the following locations to be added to the VLR:

2108 Jefferson Ave.

Currently, the site is located in the East End community of the city of Newport News, home to Pearlie's Restaurant.

Since the 1920s, this site has been the location of various types of restaurants owned and operated by African Americans, including women. In 1962, it was listed in Virginia's "Negro Motorists Green Book" as Grant's Restaurant. The Green Book served as a guide to hotels, restaurants, service stations and other businesses that welcomed Black travelers during the Jim Crow era, per the release.

From 1939 to 1950, 2108 Jefferson Ave. was listed as The Tavern restaurant in the Green Book and is the only documented resource in Newport News that has remained the same since its listing in the Green Book.

The site was also designated a landmark under "The Negro Traveler's Green Book" in Virginia Multiple Property Documentation Form (MPD) was also approved by the Board of Historic Resources at the last meeting.

Ames-Old Farm

Located in the city of Suffolk, the site highlights the typical home of a yeoman in Virginia's Tidewater region during the early 19th century.

The farm features the original two and a half story main house that was built in 1815 in the Federal architecture style. Additionally, the farm features six agricultural outbuildings, which were all built in the mid to late 19th and early 20th century. The house also featured various expansions and changes in 1875 and from 1965 to 1985.

"The property’s evolution reflects its owners’ efforts to accommodate shifting domestic and agricultural needs at the turn of the 20th century," the release stated.

Henry Clay Elementary School

Located in the town of Ashland in Hanover County, the school was built in 1934 for white students with funds from the Public Works Administration and the Virginia Literary Fund.

The school was initially completed as a one-story building with 13 classes, and later expanded throughout the decades to include more classrooms, a library and a covered walkway to connect the school to the Ashland War Memorial Building.

Henry Clay Elementary closed its doors in the spring of 2024.

The Saunders House

Located in the town of Warrenton in Fauquier County, the house was built in 1870 for the Saunders family.

It was constructed in the Reconstruction period to protect the family's assets from creditors. The house was designed in the Italianate architectural style and the floor plan features qualities that were popular in Fauquier County.

Montvale High School

The school, located in Bedford County, was built in 1930 for white students and aimed to teach grades one through twelve.

Throughout the 20th century, rural schools were in small one or two-room buildings. The high school represented Virginia's efforts to improve education in rural areas during the Progressive Era.

"Designed in the Colonial Revival architectural style with Art Deco influences, the school’s consistent expansion from the 1930s to the 1960s demonstrates its increasing importance as a community educational center as well as a social hub in rural Bedford County during the 20th century," the release stated.

Randolph-Macon Woman's College Historic District

Located in the city of Lynchburg in the Rivermont neighborhood, it includes the 53-acre historic district campus.

The college was established in 1891, following the Civil War, and is one of the earliest and longest-running women's colleges in the South. The buildings on campus were built from 1891 to 1975 and were designed by well-known local and national architects and feature a wide range of architectural styles.

Fishburn Park Keeper's Cottage

Located within the city of Roanoke, the cottage was built between 1820 to 1850 and is one of the oldest surviving buildings in the city.

The cottage highlights the early 19th-century hewn-log farmhouse and features additional wings where one was built out of logs and the other out of timber frame. Both construction styles were common in southwest Virginia households.

The association of the "joinery technique" found in the cottage is what makes it unique to the region, per the release.

For more information, visit the Virginia DHR's website here.