{"id":22101,"date":"2021-02-26T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-02-26T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/snappingtheglobe.com\/?p=22101"},"modified":"2021-02-24T18:12:03","modified_gmt":"2021-02-24T23:12:03","slug":"the-eye-of-the-beholder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/snappingtheglobe.com\/?p=22101","title":{"rendered":"The Eye of the Beholder"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u00a92021 Snapping the Globe, L.L.C. All rights reserved.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just because ruin has befallen something doesn’t mean it isn’t still beautiful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Belmead on the James dates back to 1845 when renowned American architect Alexander Jackson Davis, designed it for an eventual Civil War Brigadier General, Colonal Philip St. George Cocke. The Gothic Revival style plantation home was was built by enslaved people and set on 2,265 of rolling acres in Virginia’s historic Powhatan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, here’s the part that the Catholic schoolgirl in me, gets excited…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1897, the Belmead was purchased by Mother Katharine Drexel, one of only two American-born Roman Catholic saints, and her sister, both nuns. The Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament transformed the plantation into two private schools, St. Francis de Sales, in a nearby Gothic towered building and St. Emma Agricultural and Industrial Institute on the Belmead property, both devoted to educating young African American and Native American students. Many distinguished students hailed from the two schools, including members of the world-class Tuskegee Airmen and Civil Rights leaders. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The school remained in operation until the 1970s. Most of the more than forty school buildings were destroyed, but three of the major historic structures still stand today. The Belmead mansion, a stone granary and St. Francis de Sales High School have fallen into disrepair, but one must always remember that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The photographer that set up the President’s Heads photo shoot that I had recently attended, John Plaschal, has an affinity for deterioration. Not only has he made a quite a name for himself by regularly attracting visitors to these presidential capitulums, he hosts weekend shoots at the historic sites of the Belmead and St. Francis de Sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The mansion is not ordinarily open to the general public, only through a partnership with John Plaschal photography, and it was truly a blessing to see it as in its current condition, it seems that its days may be numbered. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beginning my exploration in the basement, I made my way through its ominous, darkened hallways and rooms, noting the closed-off stairways and ferns growing from the floors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The main floor showcased many rooms including a kitchen, a sitting room and a library. Of particular fascination was the parlor, where a giant mirror lay in pieces on the floor in front of the fireplace. Though no one had been in the house since John’s last visit, it was considered odd that the mirror had fallen on its own from its secure place on the wall, its hook still in place. John explained that it is believed that the house is haunted by its original owner and they assumed that he may have been the cause. Though I never felt anything strange presences while in the building, I wouldn’t count the possibility out as with the case in many aged buildings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As I made my way up the circular staircase, I was struck by how sad this once grand estate felt. The busted doors, cracked walls and what remained of the outdated interior finishings depicted a mere shadow of its former self. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Once I had finished my tour of the home, I made my way to the outside to analyze its facade. The colorful, diamond-shaped etched and stained glass windows highlighted its walls and numerous chimneys graced its roofline. The rear of the building, with its covered entryway, was where I began my investigation, but it was the front of the mansion that was the most captivating with its gothic tower. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Next, I headed to the nearby cemetery, Memorial Circle and the overgrown water tower all nestled deep in the woods. Alone on the dirt road, surrounded by a dense thicket of trees, it was a bit creepy knowing that just down the way was the location where a Halloween haunted drive was being set up for a scary night’s festivities. I have watched enough horror movies to know that these types of locations are where things go awry! The Memorial Circle was extremely weird with random pieces of yard furniture and decaying statues were displayed amongst the natural landscape. I made quick work of photographing the area and walked briskly back to the Belmead, breathing a sigh of relief when I reached the crumbling amphitheater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Making my way back toward the house, I got into my car and drove past the front of the mansion towards the granary. Parking my car once again, I made my way around the granary and through the barn. There were some interesting old pieces of farm equipment and old gas pumps on the premises as well as old signs collecting dust inside of the barn. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Finally, I decided to head to the much anticipated St. Francis de Sales. As I was headed back to the main road, crossing an old bridge, I spied a cemetery on the left side of the road. Pulling over, I walked up the hill to explore the historic cemetery located there. Deeply moved, I wandered around amongst the rusting, simple white crosses that dotted the landscape. These were the graves of the people who created the Belmead plantation. Noting a plaque attached to a large boulder, I learned that these graves dated back as far as 1853 and contained both young and old. Their work of art was crumbling much the same as their grave markers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It was sad to see a once beautiful property aging very ungracefully, yet it was exciting to be able to be one of the few allowed to experience it and to be able to capture its fading beauty. Maybe with enough attention, helped along by John Plaschal, some historic society will be able to restore it once again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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For more pictures check out Facebook, Snapping the Globe and Instagram, @snappingtheglobe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Belmead on the James<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n