The Ferrell Building- a Real Survivor

The Ferrell Building in Danville, Virginia is a real survivor. The three-story brick building was built on Main Street from 1877 to 1886 by tobacconist S. H. Holland. Housing numerous businesses over the years including the Gravely-Holland Insurance & Real Estate Company, the Empire Café, the Tuxedo Restaurant and the Ferrell Furniture retailer, the building did not fare well after the decline of downtown in the 1950s.

By 1991, the Danville Historical Society learned that the building’s owner was preparing to raze it for a parking lot. The Historical Society advanced $3,000 to secure it from destruction in hopes that the Commonwealth of Virginia would take possession of it under its revolving fund. After several years, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources turned over the Revolving Fund Program and all associated structures, including the Ferrell Building, to Preservation Virginia.

The building was eventually sold twice to well-intentioned buyers; however, both rehabilitation endeavors faltered and the building was becoming more and more in need of stabilization.

Even though the Ferrell Building is a contributing structure in the Downtown Danville Historic District, which is listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places, the city was not pleased with the building’s appearance and by 2010 began to hint at demolition.

Fortunately, the building was under a protective easement with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources that prevented demolition of the building. The easement also limited how the building’s exterior could be altered.

In 2010, the Winston-Salem based historic redevelopment firm, Rehab Builders, acquired the Ferrell Building and, with the assistance of the city, has turned an eyesore into one of downtown Danville’s brightest spots. Retail stores will eventually occupy the street level with apartments upstairs.

Recently, the City of Danville and the Danville Downtown Association hosted a mixer to allow the public to tour the Ferrell Historic Lofts. Everyone including City Council members and staff, the Mayor, the Chief of Police and people in the preservation and economic development communities were present to view the transformation.

“We believe this project is generating much of its public interest because the Ferrell building is truly a piece of the heart and history of downtown Danville.”

“The unique living spaces, attractive lease rates and location in the burgeoning River District create a fabulous downtown living environment,” said Patrick Reilly, co-owner of Ferrell Historic Lofts and project manager.

A visit to Greenway Court

I had the opportunity yesterday to join in a continuing discussion on the preservation of outbuildings from Greenway Court. These are all that remains of the complex built by Lord Fairfax in the mid-18th century as the 'headquarters' of his vast landholdings in Virginia. Among his surveyors were both George Washignton and Thomas Marshall (father of John). The stone building pictured here is the original land office, where transactions took place and records were stored in managing the vast holdings. Clarke County has courageously stepped forward and purchased easements of the land office, a powder house with a wonderful conical roof that was most likely used for long periods of time as a meat house, and a carriage house. The main house is lost and an 1830s house dominates the site now. It is all privately owned, but the county has easements on the buildings. They also have a General Assembly grant for their care but have yet to raise the money to match the grant. The meeting yesterday was to continue to explore ways to raise the money and then the best preservation strategy for the buildings and finally the best programming for their use as educational tools. The Lord Fairfax story is not widely told and hence not wildly known, but he was the only British peer to make his permanent residence here in Virginia (according to one historical account I read). His erudition and especially his library are said to have greatly influenced a young John Marshall, whose boyhood home (The Hollow) is relatively nearby. As you can tell form the photo, there is much to be done to stabilize and preserve the buildings and this is a conversation we will continue to participate in with members of the Easement Authority, the County and DHR. As always, stay tuned!

Corotoman Easements

One of our lesser known, and actually newest, property is Corotoman in Lancaster County. Now down to 6.3 acres, it was once the home seat of Robert 'King' Carter and the site of the mansion he built in the 1720s. Carter at his height owned more than 300,000 acres in the colony. The mansion burned in 1729, barely four years after its completion. The archaeological remains of the house and many outbuildings are still on the site. We purchased the property in 2000 to keep it from being further developed. The previous owners had given easements to the Commonwealth, but reserved the right for two subdivisions and residences to allow for their children to build there in the future. They choose not to, but the right remained and when the property was offered for sale, it was feared that another owner could build there if he so chose. We stepped in to by the site and have held it pretty much as it was for the last eight years. Ther is a1940's rental rsidence on the property that is leased.

We are now working with DHR to strenghten the existing easements by removing all right to subdivide. This process is similar to placing new easements and will take a bit of paperwork, but once done should provide complete protection for the site so that future researchers, when the time and circumstances are right, can continue the archaeological investigation of the site.

We are currently working with appraisers to determine the value implications of this measure and to see if there is the possibility of receiving and then syndicating tax credits that might result from our actions. As with many other intiiatives you have read about below, stay tuned - there's more to come!