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| Student Assembly Building, 404 Jamestown Road |
Jamestown Road Houses - Williamsburg,
Virginia
Significance:
Jamestown Road is a historic and scenic route into Williamsburg, linking Duke
of Gloucester Street with both Jamestown and historic Route 5. It and Richmond
Road divide at the west end of Duke of Gloucester Street, as planned by Francis
Nicholson in 1699 and delineated on the Frenchman’s Map of 1782. The Jamestown
Road houses were built in the early 20th century, before the restoration of
Colonial Williamsburg. The neighborhood is illustrative of Williamsburg’s
continued life between the Revolution and the world‐famous restoration of the
18th‐century town. It provides a sense of scale and character between the large
institutional buildings on campus and the smaller‐scaled neighborhoods it
adjoins.
Threat:
Owned by the Commonwealth (the College of William and Mary), the houses are not
subject to City of Williamsburg zoning or architectural review regulations. The
threat is imminent; of the twelve houses, two have already been demolished.
Another nine or ten are proposed for demolition in the College Master Plan, as
approved by the College’s Board of Visitors in February 2015.
Solution:
The College is encouraged to continue its long history of working with the
City. Though not legally obligated to do so, we urge the College to consider
local guidelines and to utilize the existing structures in any number of ways,
including maintaining them as offices or as residences. State and national
historic register designations would also help underscore the significance of
the individual buildings and streetscape.
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| The Corner House, 402 Jamestown Road |
Update (7/30/15): In April
2015, a month before the listing debuted, local residents representing both the
Pollard Park and Chandler Court neighborhoods met with officials from the
College of William and Mary to discuss the future of the Jamestown Road houses with
regard to the Campus Master Plan. Since
the listing, the neighborhoods have continued to meet and have corresponded
back and forth by letter with representatives from the College. To date, the historic neighborhoods’ concerns
with the College Master Plan have been acknowledged but not decisively acted
upon. The neighborhoods have asked the
College to consider a moratorium on any future demolition of the wood-frame
houses along Jamestown Road but no commitments have been made. In the near term, the College faces the
challenge of finding suitable tenants for other properties it owns in the area,
like the Blank House located on Chandler Court.
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| The Hoke House, 218 Jamestown Road |
Selected Links:
http://www.dailypress.com/features/history/dp-nws-endangered-williamsburg-houses-20150518-story.html
Contact: For more information about local efforts, please contact Susan L. Buck at slbuck1@juno.com
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