Virginia Military Institute Historic District

Sixty acres of the Virginia Military Institute campus in Lexington, Virginia, form this district, which centers on the parade ground and the buildings around it. Most are neo-Gothic, with battlemented parapets repeated across the campus. The Barracks began with Alexander Jackson Davis's 1850-51 design, was damaged in the Civil War, and was later reworked by Isaac Rose and Bertram Goodhue. Davis also designed the Commandant's and Superintendent's Quarters, both moved back from the parade ground in 1914. Faculty housing in the "hyphen" area links the campus with Washington and Lee University, and the district includes Stono, the home of builder John Jordan. The Institute opened in 1839 with two faculty and 23 cadets, was modeled on West Point, and was the earliest of the state-supported military colleges. Its cadets fought at New Market in 1864, and its graduates included General of the Army George C. Marshall. The district boundary also takes in buildings of lesser rank that keep a compatible scale and design.