{"nrhp_refnum":"92001272","name":"Ditchley","other_names":["DHR File No. 66-04"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"VA 607 N side, 2000 ft. E of jct. with VA 669","address_restricted":false,"city":"Kilmarnock","county":"Northumberland County","state":"VA","lat":37.73356111200005,"lon":-76.33538578540808,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1992-09-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Ditchley is a colonial Tidewater plantation house with about 156 acres of surrounding grounds, outbuildings and a family cemetery, on the Northern Neck in Northumberland County, Virginia. The brick mansion was built circa 1762 by Kendall Lee.","why_significant":"The nomination argues that Ditchley is an important example of Tidewater Virginia Georgian architecture, with a five-bay brick facade, low hipped roof, Flemish bond brickwork and an outstanding early stair. It follows the pattern of noted houses such as Wilton and the Wythe House. The property also carries long associations with the Lee and Ball families and with Jessie Ball duPont, who restored it in the 1930s.","narrative":"Ditchley is a colonial plantation on Virginia's Northern Neck, set between tidal creeks within sight of the Chesapeake Bay. Its centerpiece is a two-story brick mansion built around 1762 by Kendall Lee, with Flemish bond walls, a low hipped roof and matching five-bay fronts. Inside, an open-well stair is the most important original feature, alongside colonial, Federal and Greek Revival woodwork that later restoration has made hard to tell apart. A bedroom wing was added about 1850, and a kitchen wing came in the 1930s restoration led by Jessie Ball duPont. The grounds hold two early frame smokehouses, the site of the original kitchen and the Lee family cemetery, along with eleven later buildings. The property was patented in 1651 by Richard Lee and remained in Lee and Ball family hands for generations. It was listed for its architecture: no designer is known, but the house follows the pattern of refined mid-eighteenth-century Virginia houses such as Wilton and the Wythe House.","period_of_significance":"1762-1850","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Colonial: Georgian","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"The interior is described as maintained in excellent condition and essentially untouched since 1970. The house is still used as a single dwelling, and a trust maintains it for relatives of Mrs. duPont.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:00.357778-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/80/6822/41682280/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/92001272.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001272/6b2a0023d6-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001272/6b2a0023d6-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Unknown authorUnknown author","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ditchley,_State_Route_607,_Ditchley_(Northumberland_County,_Virginia).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Unknown authorUnknown author</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ditchley,_State_Route_607,_Ditchley_(Northumberland_County,_Virginia).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41682280","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ditchley_(Kilmarnock,_Virginia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14712239"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/northumberland-county/ditchley-92001272/"}