Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 01/15/1995
NRHP Listing Date 05/23/1996
DHR's Virginia Board of Historic Resources easement
NRHP Reference Number 96000579
Its setting and layers of historic associations place Soldier’s Rest among Clarke County’s premier landmarks. George Washington visited the farm in 1748 while surveying for Lord Fairfax. The present house was built ca. 1780 for William and Rebecca Morton. Revolutionary War hero Gen. Daniel Morgan owned the property briefly in 1800, a fact that has made Soldier’s Rest the subject of much local lore. In the 1810s it was purchased by War of 1812 veteran Col. Griffin Taylor, who probably gave the place its present name. An interesting and unusual survivor of the lower Shenandoah Valley’s early domestic architecture, the exterior has changed little since it was sketched by James E. Taylor, an illustrator accompanying Union general Philip Sheridan during the Civil War. The interior of Soldier’s Rest has undergone various modifications but preserves much early trim and hardware. Especially notable are the delicate Federal stair and the individually detailed dining room mantel.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: March 8, 2023
