Blandome
Next: Rockbridge Historical Society🚶 3 min · approx.
Directions to next stop ↗This grand house at the top of Henry St was constructed in the Federal-style in the late 1820s for Jacob Fuller, a classical scholar and librarian at Washington College. John Randolph Tucker, a founder of Washington & Lee Law School, bought the property in 1872. He remodeled it in the Italianate style and named it Blandome. Harry Lee Walker, the co-owner of Walker and Wood Brothers Meat Market, and his wife Eliza Bannister Walker bought the house in 1917. In the summer they advertised their home as a vacation spot for Black travelers, with rooms in the house as well as cabins and cottages on the three-acre property. Closed to the public. You’ll find an article, slideshow, and video about Eliza Bannister Walker, a civic leader, social activist, and poet, on the RHS website. Franklin Tourist Home (9 Tucker St) – Owned by Zack and Arleana Franklin, this house near Blandome was regularly included in the Green Book. Famous musicians who played at Washington & Lee stayed here as did Black chauffeurs who dropped off their employers at the RE Lee Hotel. It served as a tourist home until 1952.
- Where
- 101 Tucker St, Lexington, VA 24450
About
Atop a hill at the eastern end of Henry Street, this grand home was built in the late 1820s by Jacob Fuller, a classical scholar and librarian at Washington College. John Randolph Tucker, a founder of Washington & Lee University Law School, purchased the Federal-style home in 1872. He remodeled it in the Italianate style and named it Blandome. Harry Lee Walker, a prominent black businessman, acquired the home in 1917. The home is on the National Historic Register.