Stranica 238 [238]
Tee: UPPER) AMES
sand, two hundred and ninety-three acres. On November 24, 1828,
John Allen, executor and trustee of William Galt, deeded Point of
Fork to James Galt, a nephew of the first owner of that name.
The red brick house, with white marble trim, is of Georgian
design, and is still one of the handsomest in this part of Virginia.
It is said that the massive timber of which it is constructed was
selected with great care and allowed to season several years before
it was used. The floors are hardwood, the doors and banisters
of mahogany. In the wide hall, which runs the length of the house,
there is a graceful elliptical stairway with mahogany rails. Broad
entrance steps lead up to the porch, and this also extends the width
of the house for about sixty-five feet. This porch is upheld by
large white columns which extend up to the roof. Ihe present
owner has added many modern improvements and put in order the
terraced gardens and shrubbery for which Point of Fork was once
famous.
The gardens, which are large, were laid out with great care
and expense. They lie some distance from the house, and on both
sides, and many of their walks are bordered with Florentine orris.
They consist of six terraces, each of which is sixty feet wide and
one hundred and fifty feet long. There is a wide bed at the foot
of the last and the corners of each are rounded by paths leading
around them to the main walks. The latter, which range from one
to one hundred and fifty feet in width, extend along each side of
the terraces. On the other side are beds, thirty feet broad, running
with the walks the entire length of the garden. Both walks and
flower beds show the natural slope of the garden, which is very
gentle, as the terraces range only from four to five feet in height.
The exposure of all is southwest.
The soils on the various terraces are all different in character
and composition, some having been hauled from a distance, some
from the woodland, and still others from the rich lowgrounds, as
was frequently done in the best old Virginia gardens. The front
of the garden, which has the shape of a concave curve, opens upon
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