Berkeley

Upon arrival, check in at the gift shop for tour information. Be sure to enjoy a walk through the extensive terraced gardens leading to the James River.

About Berkeley

National Historic Landmark, National Register of Historic Places, Virginia Landmarks Register

One of America’s most historic estates, Berkeley was originally settled in 1619 as Berkeley Hundred and settlers observed our nation’s first official Thanksgiving here. The settlement was wiped out in an uprising of Native Americans in 1622. The property was purchased by the Harrison family in 1691. The present mansion, built in 1726 by Benjamin Harrison IV, is among the earliest of the great Georgian plantation dwellings that were the hubs of colonial Virginia’s economic, cultural and social life. Berkeley was the birthplace of Harrison’s son Benjamin Harrison V, signer of the Declaration of Independence. William Henry Harrison, ninth president of the United States, was born at Berkeley on February 9, 1773. The house was pillaged by Benedict Arnold during the Revolutionary War. During the Civil War, the property was occupied by the Army of the Potomac under Major General George B. McClellan, and General Daniel Butterfield composed “Taps.” John Jamieson, who was then a drummer-boy with McClellan’s forces, purchased Berkeley in 1907 and his descendants own it today.