Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 03/17/2004
NRHP Listing Date 06/02/2004
NRHP Reference Number 04000575
Monroe Hill, in the city of Charlottesville, is a complex that includes the main house, James Monroe’s law office, and two arcaded ranges constructed as student rooms. James Monroe built the one-and-one-half-story law office about 1790. Monroe constructed the earliest part of the main house and a kitchen (no longer extant) about the same time. John Perry, one of the builders of the University of Virginia, considerably enlarged the house after buying the property from Monroe in 1814. Three years later, Perry sold it to the university, and proctor Arthur P. Brockenbrough lived there. In 1848, with students crowding the university, the two arcaded one-story dormitory dependencies were added, with one connecting the main house to the law office. These dormitories housed state scholars (students given state grants to attend the university). Monroe Hill continues to be used for educational purposes as a residential college, now known as Brown College.
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: December 3, 2021
