Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Rosie Visits With Maxine In Danville.


 This past weekend,
the Hawthornes took a quick trip -
Mr. Hawthorne to his family reunion,
and I to Maxine's in Danville
for her retirement (from Averett University) luncheon.
Happy Retirement,  Dear Maxine!

The Ladies-Who-Lunch are lunching at the
This is one of the mansions 
on Danville's famed Millionaire's Row.
Main Street in Danville, Virginia,
showcases one of the pre-eminent collections
of Edwardian and Victorian architecture in the South.
It's an indication of the pride Danvillians took
in the affluence they enjoyed post Civil War.
In the late 1800s, the city flourished
from the tobacco and textile industries
and the executives/barons celebrated their prosperity
by building this impressive row of stately mansions,
featuring Georgian, French Renaissance Chateaux,
Romanesque Revival,  Italianate, American Picturesque,
Gothic Revival, New-Classical Revival, 
and Queen Anne architectural styles.

Thomas Benton Fitzgerald,
 Danville's foremost architect/builder of that era,
built this house for tobacconist, Robert Lawson, in 1881.
Lawson only lived here for three years,
dying in 1884.
The house exchanged hands several times,
eventually being bequeathed in 1904 to W.D. and May Overbey,
a well-known couple on the Danville scene.
During this time,
the home saw many lavish entertainments.

In 1972, Dudley Overbey,
acting on behalf of his mother,
obtained a a permit for demolition of this historic home.
This was mere hours before the public hearing and ultimate passage
There were rumors swirling that a service station
was going to replace the house.
Overbey never exercised the permit
and the following month,
he sold the house to John and Doris DeAlba.
The DeAlbas saved the home and
completed a 5-year restoration.
The current owner and quite able cook, Cindy Castle,
continues the restoration
and operates the inn as a Bed & Breakfast
and entertainment site for lunches, dinners,
teas, and private parties.

Maxine enjoyed a private luncheon..

Enjoy the pictures.













 Interesting side note:
Notice the iron fence,
one of the few iron fences remaining in the city.
It is not original.
Mrs. Overbey donated the original
to the war effort during World War I and later replaced it.

Mama Hawthorne lived next door.

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