Belle Grove Plantation

Belle Grove Plantation is a historic house museum and National Trust for Historic Preservation site located in the northern Shenandoah Valley near Middletown, Virginia. It was the home of Major Isaac Hite Jr. and his wife Nelly Conway Madison Hite, sister of President James Madison. The Hite family, descended from Shenandoah Valley pioneer Jost Hite, used enslaved labor to expand an original 483-acre grant into a prosperous 7,500-acre plantation growing wheat, raising livestock, and operating a large distillery and several mills. The Manor House, completed in 1797, was the centerpiece of the property and remains open for touring today. The Manor House was built with limestone quarried on the property and reflects design principles associated with Thomas Jefferson. It features intricate hand-carved woodwork and a restored interior. During the American Civil War, Belle Grove served as a headquarters for Union General Philip Sheridan during the 1864 Valley Campaign and stood at the center of the pivotal Battle of Cedar Creek on October 19, 1864. Today, Belle Grove is a National Trust for Historic Preservation site and the centerpiece of the Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park. It sits on 283 acres of the original 483-acre grant and showcases the Shenandoah Valley's mountain views. Visitors may tour the Manor House, an 1815 icehouse and smokehouse, a teaching garden designed by the Garden Club of Virginia, and the Beverley B. Shoemaker Welcome Center, which opened in 2019 in a restored 1918 bank barn. The site offers exhibits, educational programs, and events that interpret the history of the plantation, including the lives of the more than 270 enslaved people held by the Hite family between 1783 and 1851. Belle Grove is a nonprofit historic site, not a commercial plantation operation, and its mission centers on preservation and public education. Note: The Wikipedia entry for Belle Grove Plantation (Iberville Parish, Louisiana) describes a different, unrelated plantation that burned in 1952. This dossier concerns the active historic site in Virginia, which is the subject of the official website and the brand identity.

The history of Belle Grove begins with German immigration into the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. In 1732, Jost Hite, with his business partner Robert McKay and 16 families, journeyed to the northern Valley to settle on 140,000 acres obtained in two land grants. Isaac Hite Jr., grandson of Jost Hite, attended William and Mary College and served in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. In 1783, his father gave him and his bride Nelly Conway Madison, sister of future President James Madison, the 483 acres on which Belle Grove Manor House was later built. Construction began in 1794 and was completed in 1797. The grand mansion was built with limestone quarried on the property and faced the Valley Pike to display the owners' social and financial status. Isaac and Nelly Hite had three children, two of whom lived to adulthood. After Nelly's death in 1802, Major Hite married Ann Tunstall Maury, with whom he had ten children. In 1815, as the family grew, an addition was made at the west end of the original house to create the 100-foot facade as it stands today. The grain and livestock plantation continued to grow until Major Hite controlled 7,500 acres. Hite also owned a general store, a grist-mill, a saw-mill, and a distillery. Hite family records indicate that they enslaved more than 270 people at Belle Grove between 1783 and 1851. Among the first enslaved Africans whom the Hite family owned were 15 individuals deeded to them by James Madison Sr. They were Jerry, Jemmy, Sally, Milley, Eliza and her five children (Joanna, Diana, Demas, Pendar, Webster), and Truelove and her four children (Peggy, Priscilla, Henry, Katey). During the American Civil War, Belle Grove was used as a headquarters by Union General Philip Sheridan during the 1864 Valley Campaign and was at the very center of the pivotal Battle of Cedar Creek. After a surprise attack by Confederate General Jubal Early in the early hours of October 19, 1864, General Sheridan quickly regained the territory, securing the Valley for the Union and boosting President Abraham Lincoln's chances for re-election. The Brumback family owned Belle Grove from 1907 to 1929 and farmed the land and, for a time, operated an inn in the Belle Grove Manor House. One of their frequent inn guests, Francis Welles Hunnewell of Wellesley, Massachusetts, purchased the property in 1929 and restored the Manor House. Today, Belle Grove is a National Trust for Historic Preservation site and the centerpiece of the Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park. Situated on 283 acres of the original 483 acres, Belle Grove showcases the Shenandoah Valley's mountain views. Visitors may tour the Manor House, 1815 icehouse and smokehouse, and a teaching garden designed by the Garden Club of Virginia. In 2018, the site announced a $1.1 million gift from The Shoemaker Family Charitable Trust to create the Beverley B. Shoemaker Welcome Center, which opened on April 13, 2019, in a restored 1918 bank barn. The Welcome Center includes a museum shop, event space, exhibits, and visitor amenities. Belle Grove continues to operate as a nonprofit historic site offering educational programs and events. Note: The Wikipedia article for Belle Grove Plantation (Iberville Parish, Louisiana) describes a separate, unrelated plantation that was completed in 1857 and burned in 1952. That property is not the subject of this dossier.

• 2019

  Beverley B. Shoemaker Welcome Center opens in a restored 1918 bank barn.

• 2018

  Belle Grove announces a $1.1 million gift from The Shoemaker Family Charitable Trust for the Welcome Center project.

• 1929

  Francis Welles Hunnewell purchases the property and restores the Manor House.

• 1907

  Brumback family acquires Belle Grove and operates it until 1929.

• 1864

  Belle Grove serves as Union General Philip Sheridan's headquarters during the Valley Campaign and is at the center of the Battle of Cedar Creek.

• 1815

  West addition creates the 100-foot facade of the Manor House.

• 1802

  Nelly Madison Hite dies; Major Hite later marries Ann Tunstall Maury.

• 1797

  Manor House completed.

• 1794

  Construction begins on the Belle Grove Manor House.

• 1783

  Isaac Hite Jr. and Nelly Conway Madison receive 483 acres where Belle Grove Manor House is later built.

• 1732

  Jost Hite and 16 families settle 140,000 acres in the northern Shenandoah Valley.

Nonprofit historic site and museum interpreting Shenandoah Valley history, including the lives of enslaved people.

• Manor House tours

  Guided tours of the 1797 Federal-era Manor House with hand-carved woodwork and restored interior.

• Beverley B. Shoemaker Welcome Center

  Restored 1918 bank barn housing a museum shop, exhibits, event space, and visitor amenities.

• Teaching garden

  Garden designed by the Garden Club of Virginia.

• 1815 icehouse and smokehouse

  Historic outbuildings open for viewing.

1. 1Belle Grove Historic Plantation | Shenandoah Valley, Virginiabellegrove.org
2. 2Belle Grove Historybellegrove.org
3. 3Aboutbellegrove.org
4. 4Beverley B. Shoemaker Welcome Centerbellegrove.org
5. 5Belle Grove Plantation (Iberville Parish, Louisiana) - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
6. 6Belle Grove Plantationwikidata.org