Varina Farms

Varina Farms, also known as Varina Plantation, Varina Farms Plantation, or Varina on the James, is a historic property on the James River in Henrico County, Virginia. The site lies roughly 10 miles south of Richmond and across the river from Henricus, the early Virginia settlement established by Thomas Dale in 1611. Its origins date to the early seventeenth century, when English colonist John Rolfe established a tobacco plantation there after introducing a commercially successful strain of Nicotiana tabacum to the Virginia colony. Rolfe named the estate Varina, apparently after the Spanish tobacco variety known as Verinas. The property is closely connected with the history of John Rolfe and Pocahontas, also known as Rebecca. After their marriage in Jamestown in 1614, they lived at Varina for approximately two years. Their son, Thomas Rolfe, was born there in 1615. The family later traveled to England, where Pocahontas died in 1617. Rolfe returned to Virginia and continued managing the plantation until his presumed death around the time of the 1622 attacks on English settlements. Following the decline of Henricus after the 1622 conflict, Varina became the center of a settlement that served as the seat of Henrico County. The settlement included a church, courthouse, and other colonial buildings, although the precise locations of many of them are no longer known. In the seventeenth century the large estate was divided among several owners and family interests, including descendants of the Rolfe family and other Virginia landholders. Portions were later acquired by the Randolph family. Thomas Mann Randolph Jr., who served as Virginia's fourteenth governor and was married to Martha Jefferson, daughter of Thomas Jefferson, operated part of the property as a profitable plantation. The Randolph interests sold the plantation in 1825 to Pleasant Aiken of Petersburg. His son, Albert M. Aiken, commissioned the present two-story Classical Revival-style residence, constructed between 1853 and 1855. During the Civil War, the property was known as Aiken's Landing and became one of two major locations in the South for prisoner exchanges. Approximately 6,000 Union and Confederate soldiers were exchanged there on August 3, 1862. In 1864, Union forces under General Benjamin Butler occupied the property, used the house and cabin for headquarters-related purposes, and built a pontoon bridge nearby during operations connected with the approach to Richmond. The house still bears damage attributed to cannon fire and bullets. After the war, the plantation passed through several owners. James H. Caldwell acquired it in 1876, and the property was later purchased by Wilmer N. Stoneman Sr. in 1910. By the late twentieth century, it remained a privately owned working farm. In 1977, an 820-acre historic portion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Varina Plantation. The nominated area included the principal house, an antebellum brick barn, sheds, and other contributing resources, while the broader farm covered approximately 2,200 acres. Modern infrastructure altered the historic landscape when construction of the Varina-Enon Bridge began in the late 1980s. The cable-stayed Interstate 295 bridge opened in July 1990 and bisected the property. Archaeological investigations have identified evidence of prehistoric activity and artifacts dating from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Researchers have also located evidence of a colonial structure northeast of the main house and have considered possible locations for former churches, a glebe house, a courthouse, a ferry landing, and Cocke's Ordinary. In 2023 and 2024, Henrico County reached agreements with members of the Stoneman family to purchase the site. The county completed the acquisition in 2024 for historic and environmental preservation. The reported expenditure of $18.55 million represented the largest land-preservation investment in Henrico County's history. Varina Farms is therefore best understood not as a conventional consumer brand, but as a historic agricultural landscape, archaeological resource, and preservation property whose significance derives from colonial Virginia, the history of tobacco, the legacy of Pocahontas and John Rolfe, the Civil War, and the development of Henrico County.

Varina Farms began as an early Virginia plantation established by John Rolfe around 1612, shortly after he introduced a tobacco strain that proved more commercially attractive in Europe than tobacco varieties then growing naturally in Virginia. The plantation was situated on the James River, near the developing English settlements of Jamestown and Henricus. Rolfe named it Varina, a name associated with Spanish tobacco. The estate became the home of Rolfe and Pocahontas after their 1614 marriage and the birthplace of their son, Thomas Rolfe, in 1615. Their stay ended when the family traveled to England, where Pocahontas died in 1617. Rolfe later returned to Virginia and managed the plantation until his presumed death around the period of the 1622 attacks on English settlements. The plantation subsequently gave its name to the settlement of Varina, which became an important local center after Henricus declined. Varina served as the seat of Henrico County, and colonial institutions including a church and courthouse were established in or near the settlement. The original estate was divided during the seventeenth century. Ownership interests included members of the Rolfe family, Colonel John Bolling, Nathaniel Bacon, and later the Randolph family. Thomas Mann Randolph Jr., a Virginia governor and son-in-law of Thomas Jefferson, operated a portion of the property as a productive plantation. In 1825 the Randolph interests sold the property to Pleasant Aiken. His son, Albert M. Aiken, oversaw construction of the present brick residence from 1853 to 1855. The building is a two-story Classical Revival structure facing the James River, with a separated east-side kitchen connected by a long hyphen. Its river-facing elevation includes French doors and an Ionic porch. The roof was altered after a 1911 storm, and the porch was rebuilt after a tornado in 1941. During the Civil War the property was called Aiken's Landing and served as a major prisoner-exchange location. Approximately 6,000 soldiers were exchanged there in August 1862. Union troops later occupied the plantation during General Benjamin Butler's 1864 operations. The main house and a cabin were used in connection with Butler's headquarters, and Union forces constructed a pontoon bridge nearby. Combat damaged the residence, leaving projectile marks on its western wall. The site is near the multi-site Richmond National Battlefield Park. Ownership changed several times after the war. James H. Caldwell bought the plantation in 1876, and Wilmer N. Stoneman Sr. acquired it in 1910. The Stoneman family retained the property for much of the twentieth century, when it continued to function as a privately owned working farm. In 1977, an 820-acre historic section was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The wider farm was described as encompassing approximately 2,200 acres and included the historic house, an antebellum brick barn, sheds, and other agricultural resources. The construction of the Varina-Enon Bridge in the late 1980s and its opening in 1990 changed the property's physical setting by dividing the farm. Archaeological work has documented prehistoric use and recovered artifacts from the colonial period. Investigators have also identified evidence of an early structure northeast of the main residence and possible locations associated with the former Varina settlement, including a church, glebe house, courthouse, ferry terminus, and roadside ordinary. Henrico County negotiated the acquisition of Varina Farms from the Stoneman family in 2023 and 2024. The completed purchase transferred the property to county ownership for historic and environmental preservation. The reported $18.55 million transaction marked a major change in the site's institutional status, from a largely private farm to a publicly held preservation resource. Its present importance encompasses agricultural history, early colonial settlement, Indigenous and prehistoric archaeology, the histories of John Rolfe and Pocahontas, Civil War military activity, and the conservation of a James River landscape.

• 2024

  Henrico County completes preservation acquisition

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  The county acquired Varina Farms from the Stoneman family for historic and environmental preservation.

• 1990

  Varina-Enon Bridge opens

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  The Interstate 295 bridge across the James River opened after bisecting the property during construction.

• 1977

  Historic acreage receives national recognition

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  An 820-acre portion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Varina Plantation.

• 1910

  The Stoneman family acquires Varina

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  Wilmer N. Stoneman Sr. purchased the plantation, beginning the family's long ownership period.

• 1876

  James H. Caldwell acquires the plantation

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  Caldwell purchased the property from members of the Aiken family.

• 1862

  Aiken's Landing hosts a major prisoner exchange

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  Approximately 6,000 Union and Confederate soldiers were exchanged at the site on August 3.

• 1853

  Construction of the present residence begins

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  Albert M. Aiken commissioned the brick Classical Revival residence, completed around 1855.

• 1825

  The Randolph family sells the plantation

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  The Randolph interests sold the property to Pleasant Aiken of Petersburg.

• 1622

  Varina becomes a local colonial center

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  After the decline of Henricus, the settlement of Varina expanded in importance and later served as the seat of Henrico County.

• 1615

  Thomas Rolfe is born at Varina

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  The son of John Rolfe and Pocahontas, Thomas Rolfe, was born at the plantation.

• 1614

  Rolfe and Pocahontas make Varina their home

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  After their marriage in Jamestown, John Rolfe and Pocahontas lived at Varina for approximately two years.

• 1612

  John Rolfe establishes Varina plantation

  [1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  John Rolfe established a plantation near the James River and named it Varina, linking the estate to the tobacco economy of early Virginia.

A historic Virginia plantation and agricultural landscape positioned today primarily as a public preservation, environmental, archaeological, and heritage resource rather than as a consumer product brand.

• Historic architecture · 1853

  Historic plantation residence

  The principal residence is a two-story common-bond brick building constructed between 1853 and 1855 for Albert M. Aiken. Designed in a Classical Revival manner, it faces the James River and includes a separated kitchen connected by a long hyphen. Its river elevation has French doors and an Ionic porch, which was rebuilt after a 1941 tornado. The house also retains physical evidence of Civil War damage.

• Historic farm · 1612

  Varina Farms agricultural landscape

  The broader property encompasses approximately 2,200 acres, including the 820-acre historic area recognized by the National Register. It contains agricultural land, historic outbuildings, an antebellum brick barn, sheds, riverfront landscape, and archaeological resources. The property functioned as a privately owned working farm into the modern period before county acquisition for preservation.

• Military heritage site · 1862

  Aiken's Landing Civil War site

  During the Civil War, Varina was known as Aiken's Landing and served as one of the South's principal prisoner-exchange locations. The site hosted a large exchange in August 1862 and was occupied by Union forces in 1864. It is part of the historical landscape associated with military movements around Richmond.

• Archaeological heritage

  Varina archaeological resources

  Archaeological investigations have identified evidence of prehistoric activity and recovered artifacts from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Evidence of a colonial structure has been found northeast of the main house, while other possible resources include former church, courthouse, glebe, ferry, and commercial-site locations.

• 2024

  Henrico County purchases Varina FarmsM&A

  Background

  The Stoneman family property was considered significant for its colonial, agricultural, Civil War, archaeological, and environmental resources.

  Action taken

  Henrico County completed the acquisition of the site for public historic and environmental preservation.

  Aftermath

  The property moved from long-term private family ownership to county ownership. The reported total expenditure was $18.55 million.

  Acquisition expenditure. $18.55 million (2023–2024 acquisition agreements and 2024 completion)

  Source

• 2024

  Henrico County agrees to acquire Varina Farms for preservation[1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  M&A · Other

  Henrico County completed the purchase of the historic property from the Stoneman family for historic and environmental preservation. The transaction was reported as an $18.55 million investment and the largest land-preservation expenditure in county history.

• 1990

  Varina-Enon Bridge opens across the James River[1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The Interstate 295 cable-stayed bridge opened to traffic after construction that divided the Varina Farms property.

• 1977

  Varina Farms added to the National Register of Historic Places[1]Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  An 820-acre portion of the property was listed under the name Varina Plantation. The listed area included two contributing buildings and another contributing site.

1. 1Varina Farmsen.wikipedia.org