William Barnett House
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
The William Barnett House. It remains a private residence.
William Barnett House front facade
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Built on a limestone foundation, the house is a wooden structure with a tin roof. Throughout the nineteenth century, additions increased the size of the house from a log cabin to a longer, larger house with a porch. Architecturally, the house is notable for incorporating the many additions in the regional vernacular style.
While the early history of the Barnett House site is in question, it is known that between 1849 and 1877 the Barnett Family lived in the house. A canal survey from 1827 shows two structures on the site, which may be part of the currently extant house. The oldest part of the house is a two-story log cabin section. Additional sections continued to augment the house throughout the nineteenth century, and a two-story ornamental porch spans the entire front of the house.
In 1877, Erastus H. Taylor purchased the building, and between 1885 and 1890 made renovations and additions to the structure. Taylor's descendants continued living in the home into the twentieth century. The Works Progress Administration surveyed the building in 1937. Some time before then, the kitchen of the property moved. The evolution of the house as expressed in the vernacular architecture led to its inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. The house is privately owned.
Sources
Worsham, Gibson. "Barnett, William, House", National Register of Historic Places. 11-13-89. Accessed October 31st, 2019. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41678820
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:William_Barnett_House.JPG
https://www.dhr.virginia.gov/historic-registers/060-0472/