Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 09/15/1992
NRHP Listing Date 11/12/1992
NRHP Reference Number 92001579
Tobacconist, merchant, and railroad investor Samuel Miller (1792-1869) rose from poverty to become one of the wealthiest men in the antebellum South. A recluse, he resided in this unpretentious ca. 1826 frame house on the outskirts of Lynchburg and quietly amassed his fortune. During the Battle of Lynchburg (June 1864), a cavalry skirmish took place here, and Union troops pillaged Miller’s home. Upon entering, they encountered an elderly, bedridden but defiant Samuel Miller who had successfully hidden his important financial papers. Considered a miser during his lifetime, but a generous philanthropist after death, Miller bequeathed both funds and land to the city of Lynchburg. His educational endowments today help support the University of Virginia and two institutions that bear his name: The Miller School of Albemarle and the Miller Home for Girls of Lynchburg.
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 26, 2021
