Rockwood (Montpelier Station, Virginia)

James Madison's Montpelier, located in Orange County, Virginia, was the plantation house of the Madison family, including Founding Father and fourth president of the United States James Madison and his wife, Dolley. The 2,650-acre (1,070 ha) property is open seven days a week with the mission of engaging the public with the enduring legacy of Madison's most powerful idea: government by the people. Montpelier was declared a National Historic Landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. It was included in the Madison-Barbour Rural Historic District in 1991. In 1983, the last private owner of Montpelier, Marion duPont Scott, bequeathed the estate to the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP) has owned and operated the estate since 1984. In 2000, The Montpelier Foundation formed with the goal of transforming James Madison's historic estate into a dynamic cultural institution. From 2003 to 2008 the NTHP carried out a major restoration, in part to return the mansion to its original size of 22 rooms as it was during the years when it was occupied by James and Dolley Madison. Extensive interior and exterior work was done during the restoration. Archeological investigations in the 21st century revealed new information about African-American life at the plantation, and a gift from philanthropist David Rubenstein enabled the National Trust to restore the slave quarters in the South Yard and open a slavery exhibition, The Mere Distinction of Colour, in 2017. In June 2021, the Montpelier Foundation approved bylaws to share in governance of the estate with the Montpelier Descendants Committee, composed of descendants of those enslaved at the estate. After some controversy, the Montpelier Descendants Committee achieved parity within the Foundation, holding 14 of 25 seats on the board as of May 2022, including the chair.

Montpelier Station is an unincorporated community in Orange County, Virginia, United States. Montpelier Station is located along Virginia State Route 20 3.5 miles (5.6 km) west-southwest of Orange. Montpelier Station has a post office with ZIP code 22957.The community is home to a historic railroad depot, which opened in 1910 and became an exhibit at James Madison's Montpelier estate in 2010. Rockwood, a house listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is also located in Montpelier Station.

Greenwood is a historic home located near Orange, Orange County, Virginia. It was built about 1820, and is a two-story, three-bay, timber frame Federal style I-house with a side gable roof. It has a center-passage plan, a raised basement, and two exterior-end chimneys. The Greek Revival style front entry porch has brick piers supporting a one-story wooden porch with a gable roof and triangular pediment supported by square paired columns. A one-bay, single-pile timber-frame wing addition, built about 1850. Also on the property are a contributing outbuilding, well, and the grave of Mary Roberta Macon who died at age nine in 1847.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.

The Wreck at the Fat Nancy was one of the largest railroad disasters in Virginia's history. On the morning of July 12, 1888, the incident occurred when a trestle collapsed as a passenger train was atop it. Virginia Midland Railroad's Train 52—"The Piedmont Airline"—was crossing the 44-foot-high (13 m), 487-foot-long (148 m) trestle known as the "Fat Nancy" when it gave way, sending the train to the ground. By 1888, many states had experienced memorable wrecks with high death tolls. Though Virginia newspapers were full of reports of small train accidents, there were typically few deaths. The wreck at Fat Nancy was Virginia's first experience with a train crash that resulted in multiple deaths and large-scale injuries. Five passengers, one rail employee, one mail clerk, and one newsboy were killed and another mail clerk died from his injuries the following day. At least twenty-six were injured, though some reports list a higher number.The incident is named for the trestle, known as the "Fat Nancy" for the woman who served as the trestle watcher. The trestle's official name was Browning Trestle, for the owners of the property on which it sits, or Two-Runs trestle for the creek that ran below. A local African-American woman who waved to train conductors and occasionally received a shovelful of coal inspired locals to rename the trestle as Fat Nancy's trestle. The Baltimore Sun reported that the woman's actual name was Emily Jackson and described a woman of "great size and uncouth appearance."One of the deceased was Cornelius G. Cox, the civil engineer who had designed a culvert to replace the trestle, which was known to be unstable. After the collapse, the area was filled with earth and a granite culvert placed over the stream, per his design. One of the surviving passengers was former Confederate Lieutenant General James Longstreet, who was returning from the 25th reunion of the Battle of Gettysburg.The culvert that replaced the trestle still stands today, where it allows Laurel Creek to flow through. Tracks no longer cross the culvert—they're now to the south. The Virginia Department of Historic Resources erected a historical marker at the site of the wreck, along Virginia State Route 20, in 2007. A keystone at the top of the arched tunnel is marked "In memory of Cornelius Cox."

Williston is a historic home and farm complex located near Orange, Orange County, Virginia. It was built in 1867, and is a two-story, three-bay, Italianate style brick dwelling. The front facade features a tall portico with paired fluted polygonal columns set on pedestals. The interior features stenciled and painted murals on the dining room walls. Also on the property are the contributing smokehouse, hen house, servant's house, carriage house, granary and the foundation and lean-to of what was formerly a late-19th century barn.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.

Black Meadow (now known as "Wolftrap Farm") is a historic plantation house and farm complex located near Gordonsville, Orange County, Virginia. The house was built in 1856, and is a 1+1⁄2-story, three-bay, Greek Revival style dwelling with a front gable roof. It was renovated in 1916, with the addition of a two-story wood-frame ell and realignment of interior spaces. Also on the property are the contributing milk house (c. 1916), slave quarters (c. 1856), a dairy barn (c. 1943), a bent barn/stable (c. 1856), a multiuse barn/shed (c. 1856), and a tenant house (c. 1943).Black Meadow was one of the outlying farms owned and cultivated by James and Dolley Madison, whose Montpelier home lies just a few miles northwest. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.The farm, known since the mid-1970s as Wolftrap Farm, is now operated as a wedding and events venue and seven homes on the farm are available as vacation rentals.

Tetley is a historic home and farm complex located near Somerset, Orange County, Virginia. It was built about 1843, and is a two-story, five-bay, hipped-roof brick house on an English basement. The house has Federal and Greek Revival style design elements. The front facade features two-story, pedimented portico added in the early-20th century, along with a two-story west wing and polygonal bay. Also on the property are the contributing two ante bellum slave houses, a brick summer kitchen, and an unusual octagonal frame ice house.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

Mayhurst is an 1859 Italianate mansion in Orange, Virginia. It was built by the Willis family relatives of President James Madison as the plantation house for an estate comprising 2,500 acres (10 km2) of fields, pastures and forest. It was a scene of action in the Civil War. It is currently operated as an Inn.

Chestnut Hill is a historic home located at Orange, Orange County, Virginia. It was built about 1860, and is a two-story, frame dwelling in a combination of the Italianate and Greek Revival styles. A Second Empire style mansard roof was added in 1891. The front facade features a central, one-story, one-bay porch with a balustraded deck above and balustraded decks with the same scroll-sawn balusters across the front. The historic floor plan is a double-pile center-passage plan with two interior chimneys serving four fireplaces on each floor. The house was moved to a new location, 150 feet away from its original site, when threatened with demolition in 2003. Also on the property is a small, one-story, single-bay, 19th-century contributing shed.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.

St. Thomas Church is a historic Episcopal church located at Orange, Virginia, United States. It is a rectangular brick structure measuring 40 feet wide and 105 feet deep. The front facade features a recessed portico with two Doric columns flanked by two Doric pilasters. Atop the gable roof is a three-stage tower topped by an octagonal cupola. The original church building was built in 1833–1834, and measured approximately 40 feet wide and 65 feet deep. It was built by William B. Philips, a master mason employed by Thomas Jefferson during the construction of the University of Virginia. It was enlarged and improved in 1853, and enlarged again in 1912. In 1928, the rear addition was raised to a full two stories and a parish hall constructed. The original church is believed to have been based on the plans by Thomas Jefferson for Christ Church in Charlottesville, Virginia. That church was demolished in 1895.It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. It is located in the Orange Commercial Historic District.

The James Madison Museum located in Orange, Virginia is a museum dedicated to 4th president of the United States James Madison and his wife, Dolley Madison. Exhibits include original furniture used by James Madison, his personal items, portraits of the Madisons, and a statue.Due to Madison's reputation as a farmer, the museum also features a collection of antique farm tools. There is also a partially reconstructed 1733 house to demonstrate building practices.

Formerly called the Doctor Holladay House, the Holladay House in Orange, Virginia (c.a. 1830) is on the nationally recognized Journey Through Hallowed Ground. Named for Dr. Lewis Holladay, a prominent Virginia physician, the Holladay House has witnessed almost two centuries of American history. The building is historically significant because it is one of only a few antebellum structures still standing in Orange, Virginia. Since approximately 1830, the Holladay House has served as a mercantile store, a residence, a doctor’s office, and a Virginia bed and breakfast inn. In the early 20th century, a private schoolhouse for local children was also on the property. Only a handful of proprietors have owned the home, and the Holladay family was its steward for over 100 years. The Holladay House still boasts much of its original woodwork, including floors, mantels, doors and period antiques from the Holladay family. The Holladay House is one of the two oldest standing structures in historic downtown Orange, and is a contributing property to the Orange Commercial Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It has been a landmark on Main Street for generations.