The New Nation
Birthstone of the Nation
Thomas Nelson House
Thomas Nelson House
This stately mansion sits on a bluff in Yorktown, Virginia, and was built around 1730. It was constructed of English-made bricks, previously used as ships’ ballast. Aquia stone from Government Island was used for decorative trim. During the Revolutionary War, Thomas Nelson, Jr., lived in the house that was built by his grandfather. Nelson, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, war-time governor of Virginia, and General of the Virginia Militia, had troops fire on his own home when he realized that Cornwallis had taken over the structure. Cannonballs can be found embedded in the brick walls.
