Stranica 62 [62]
OCR
UPPER BRANDON Sears PPER BRANDON, so called in contradistinction to wa the older plantation of which it was once a part, 4a) lies also on the south side of James River. The family seat of the Harrisons, is very lovely, winding at times along the brink of the river, and again through woodland dense in shade and greenery. Although several generations junior to its venerable sisters, Brandon, Shirley and Westover, a hundred years have come and gone since the spacious foundations for the house at Upper Brandon were laid on the fertile slope, one hundred and fifty yards back from the river. Built by William Byrd Harrison, son of Benjamin Harrison, of Brandon, its general plan is somewhat like that of the older place, though the lines are a trifle more massive, and the wings have two stories. ‘Lhe situation of the dwelling commands one of the best river sites, and the park which surrounds it is heavily shaded by many trees. Conspicuous among the latter are the willow oaks, which have made such prodigious growth that now they rear their tall tops above the highest gables. Still other trees upon the lawn are beech, poplar and magnolia. Box lines the walks leading from the front of the house to the old terraced garden, where they end in a serpentine, now somewhat difhcult to trace. ‘his design, the only one of the kind in America, is said to be one of the oldest andi rarest to be found in England. Within many of its sinuous curves jonquils and grape hyacinths are naturalized, giving in spring an effect both beautiful and interesting. This dwarf boxwood found a genial home in the soil of Upper Brandon and, during the past centuries, has made such notable growth that now it is the glory of the place. The garden itself, which suffered greatly from 1862 to 1865, 139]
