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Built circa 1750 by Arthur Smith IV, founder of Smithfield, the
Windsor Castle manor house with some of its dependencies and its
surrounding 186 acres are all that is left of the original 1450
acre land grant of 1637. Six generations of the Smith family owned
Windsor Castle, and only two other families have owned it since.
The bluff, overlooking the juncture of the Pagan River and
Cypress Creek and on which Windsor Castle sits today, was once
appropriately called "King of All Places." The manor
house, measuring over 7000 square feet, reflects a charming blend
of 18th century four-over-four Tidewater Virginia colonial
architecture and the later addition (1840) of Greek Revival
updating. The interior features large formal rooms with 12.5 ft.
ceilings, original quarter-sawn random width floors, and, on the
main floor and in the basement are the traditional wide center
passages with oversized double doors at each end - Tidewater
Virginia air conditioning!
Complimenting the manor house are a number of historic
dependencies, most notably: on the left, facing the creek, the
original detached kitchen, the smoke house, and the large granary;
and on the right are the corn crib and the manager's office. Some
of these dependencies date from the mid-eighteenth century, some
from the early to mid-nineteenth century. |
