places front entrance to claymont court show map of west virginia show map of the us nearest city charles town west virginia coordinates 39 16 2 n 77 54 14 w 39.26722 n 77.90389 w 39.26722 ; 77.90389 coordinates 39 16 2 n 77 54 14 w 39.26722 n 77.90389 w 39.26722 ; 77.90389 built 1840 architect unknown architectural style georgian nrhp reference 73001908 added to nrhp july 25 1973 1 claymont court or simply claymont is a georgian style brick mansion the grandest of several built near charles town west virginia for members of the washington family . the current house was built in 1840 by bushrod corbin washington grand nephew of george washington to replace a house that was originally built in 1820 but burned in 1838 . the house was purchased in 1899 by author frank stockton who lived there until his death in 1902 . in 1943 claymont was bought by industrialist r.j. funkhouser who at the same time bought nearby blakeley another washington house . in 1974 it was purchased by john g. bennett for the purpose of an intentional community . it is currently used as a retreat center by the claymont society for continuous education . 2 contents 1 washington family era 2 owners after the washington family 3 current use 4 gallery 5 citations 6 see also 7 references 8 external links washington family era edit in the 1700s the 300 acre 1.2 km2 plot of land on which claymont stands was owned by john augustine washington the brother of george washington . george washington had established the bullskin plantation the first property he ever owned a few miles southwest of the claymont property . in 1811 george washington s grand nephew bushrod corbin washington inherited this land at the age of 21 . bushrod built a thirty four room mansion here using ninety slaves . bushrod s brother john augustine washington iii subsequently built the blakeley mansion 600 yards away facing claymont . the two brothers married daughters from the blackburn family and started their own families directly across from each other in the blackeley and claymont mansions . bushrod finished building claymont in 1820 for 30 000 ; a massive sum at the time that became known as bushrod s folly . after completion it was the largest house in the area . with later additions to the home it would become the largest house in west virginia at 16 000 square feet 1 500 m2 with 59 rooms and 25 fireplaces . claymont may also be the northern most example of the virginia plantation style mansion with wings courtyards and dependencies . claymont burned down in 1838 during bushrod s first week working in richmond as an assemblyman in the virginia house of delegates . the central part of the mansion was completely rebuilt and the remainder restored . it is thought the fire started in the fireplace of the mansion s basement kitchen . bushrod died in 1851 leaving claymont to his son thomas blackburn washington . thomas died in 1854 leaving the estate to his eldest son bushrod corbin ii . the civil war was devastating to the washington family many of whom had taken refuge at claymont . during the war two of the young men of the house including thomas blackburn washington s youngest son james washington were officers in the confederate army under john singleton mosby . both of the boys were captured in claymont court during christmas furlough holiday leave by union army troops led by george custer who had been a roommate of one of the boys at west point military academy . the washington boys were taken to a union prison camp where they both died . as punishment to claymont estate for harboring guerrillas general sheridan ordered all of the cattle driven off the land except for one milch cow and every fence surrounding the estate s clay mound farm burned down . after the civil war the reconstructionist government demanded payment of back taxes for all of the years that the washington family had paid taxes to the confederacy rather than the union . the washington family could not pay and by 1871 the family was forced to sell claymont estate for the modest sum of 10 000 a third of what it cost to build . most of the family then moved to washington state . after the washingtons vacated claymont the property changed hands a number of times . the mansion and larger estate was actually uninhabited for a few years at a time and subsequently the property began to deteriorate and the farming operations halted . claymont operated as a self sustaining farm differing from plantations further in the american south . claymont produced almost everything the inhabitants used . the property was farmed and maintained by nearly a hundred slaves as well as a couple dozen free workers . because of claymont s size it was an expensive operation to keep up and later owners of the property would not have the resources or dedication to keep the estate operational . owners after the washington family edit after the washingtons vacated there were a number of successive owners of claymont 1871 1886 clement march 1886 1889 charles dawson dawson hired william a. bates an architect from new york to redesign the mansion enlarging it significantly . both the ballroom wing and the dining room wings were enlarged to their current size of 32x36 feet . a second story was added to both wings which included bedrooms and bathrooms . 1889 1906 frank r. stockton stockton was a popular author at the time and wrote three books while residing at claymont . he is best known for his short story the lady or the tiger 1906 1943 col. s.j. murphy murphy rebuilt and refined claymont s old gardens with the help of conklyn brothers landscape architects and hydraulic engineers of charles town . the gardens gained a 235 foot 72 m pergola and large fountain . 1943 1972 raymond j. funkhouser funkhouser was a west virginia industrialist who was interested in purchasing and restoring the old washington homes of jefferson county . he bought cedar lawn blakeley and claymont and combined them into one 7 000 acre 28 km2 property the estates are all contiguous . claymont became the private residence of mr. funkhouser . the grounds and gardens were meticulously tended during this period . 1972 1975 j. glenn brown brown was the owner of blakeley mansion and the son of dupont executive j. thompson brown . he and his family lived at blakeley from 1954 1979 . he sold claymont along with 418 acres to the claymont society in 1975 . the deed of sale included easement restrictions that preserved the property from development . 1975 present the claymont society for continuous education led by john g. bennett an english philosopher and scientist claymont was purchased by bennett s non profit . today the claymont society for continuous education continues as a non profit focused on lifelong learning and principles of sustainability . current use edit of the eight remaining washington family homes in jefferson county claymont is considered the grandest . at 16 000 square feet 1 500 m2 it is also the largest . in 1973 claymont was added to the national register of historic places a us government list of buildings and structures deemed worthy of preservation . today claymont operates as a non profit retreat center run by the claymont society for continuous education whose members focus on the systematic philosophical and psychological teachings of john g. bennett . while mr. bennett was alive claymont operated as a nine month fourth way school focused on his specific teachings which dealt with techniques of self reflection self development and spirituality a systems discipline called systematics and achieving a sustainable relationship with nature . after bennett s death in december 1974 the nine month basic course project continued for a few years under the direction of bennett s students but was eventually discontinued and claymont opened its doors as a retreat center for many different spiritual groups healthcare professionals meditation groups environmental groups professional dancers and many more . it maintains a strong focus on organic farming buying local and sustainability . claymont even hosts wwoofers to work on the grounds and help with local agriculture in exchange for free food and lodging . the mansion proper acts as a retreat center having been retrofitted with showers hot water electricity natural gas and even wifi . a nearby 450 foot 140 m cattle barn has been converted into a conference center . besides the mansion proper much of the estate grounds are currently maintained including the front and rear mansion lawns . the old gardens however which were damaged in a storm have proven too difficult to maintain and are currently unusable . the claymont society for continuous education in addition to hosting various retreat groups also advocates heavily for claymont court s continuing physical restoration . claymont has received grant money for restoration through the 1772 foundation save america s treasures jefferson county commission and individual donations . the claymont society works in tandem with the national park trust to lobby for continuing preservation grants . among recent restorations the mansion has a completely rebuilt second floor veranda new support beams for the main ballroom and new window seals and gutter systems . the mansion can still be considered under restoration though it is fully operational with all utilities . gallery edit a wedding rehearsal on the rear terrace of the mansion foyer . the pine flooring of the house is of high tar content and thought to be termite resistant . a view of the main dining room the sun room of a newly restored dependency of the mansion a dependency of the mansion converted into a dormitory for retreat guests butterfly on the estate grounds a secret small staircase winds along from the kitchen to an upstairs parlor . it was used by the claymont staff . library parlor a dependency of the mansion with newly restored brick support beams and retrofitted with electricity the mansion has a fully operational industrial grade kitchen located in the basement . the original kitchen thought to have started the 1838 fire is now used as a pantry and washroom . the mansion shown with dependency off to the left citations edit national park service 2008 04 15 . national register information system . national register of historic places . national park service . ted mcgee june 26 1973 . national register of historic places nomination claymont pdf . national park service . see also edit cedar lawn harewood west virginia happy retreat references edit bushong millard k. 1941 . a history of jefferson county west virginia . jefferson publishing company . the claymont society for continuous education . claymont society for continuous education . retrieved 11 july 2011 . fairbairn charlotte j. 1946 . washington homes of jefferson county . whitney & white . external links edit official website historic american buildings survey habs no . wv 13 claymont summit point road charles town vicinity jefferson county wv 4 photos v t e the washington family first generation lawrence washington 1602 1653 second generation john washington third generation lawrence washington 1659 1698 fourth generation augustine washington fifth generation lawrence washington 1718 1752 augustine washington jr. george washington betty washington lewis samuel washington john augustine washington charles washington william washington sixth generation bushrod washington george steptoe washington lawrence augustine washington george william washington seventh generation john thornton augustine washington george corbin washington eighth generation lawrence berry washington lewis washington benjamin franklin washington william d. washington eugenia washington related coat of arms washington family residences abingdon arlington house beall air blakeley cedar lawn claymont court fairfield ferry farm george washington birthplace national monument happy retreat harewood kenmore mary washington house mount vernon richwood hall