Trip to Lynchburg Abounds with Treasures
by Helen Fitzpatrick

A good day trip from Roanoke is to head down Virginia 460 East. A recent journey on this road was pure delight! Beautiful trees line the median strips, and when you emerge into real highway, colorful homes dot the hillsides that I remembered as fields.

Upon approaching Bedford, I looked for the mama and baby rhinoceros duo that sit by the side of the road on the right-hand side. Do you remember when they were kidnapped? Fortunately, the culprit returned them, and this touch of Africa and Asia is right there as they lift their snouts in the air. A fun sight!

The D-Day Memorial loomed high on a hill to the left, as we took the Bedford bypass. It continues to dominate the view and is well worth a trip in itself.

On to Lynchburg, by stately homes graced by long green lawns and white fences (interesting to note is that instead of wooden fences, most are now made of plastic). Fortunately, there still is plenty of open space, and views are spectacular. Cows and horses munch contentedly in the fields, which add to the rural setting.

In Lynchburg, we headed for the Riverfront Area, where much restoration is taking place. There is an attractive Art Space Gallery in the old Craddock-Terry shoe factory . . . my artist son says it is really good . . . and I loved the HUGE bugs that some artist made and tacked to a building nearby that used to manufacture insecticides.

We cut off Rivermont Avenue, following signs to Point of Honor. I’d wanted to visit there for years, and it was not disappointing. This historic home is located on a promontory high above the James River and in an area of architecturally fascinating houses.

Point of Honor is a mansion in the Federal style, having been built in 1815 by Dr. George Cabell. He was a well known, popular physician at that time. He bought 865 acres of land on which to build his home, but much of the land is now gone.

The entry to the house is through a gatehouse, now housing a gift shop and ticket booth. We wound our way up an ancient walkway to the handsome home and were lucky that a tour group had just left, giving us a guide all to ourselves. What impressed me first was the wide original wood flooring, and the whale oil chandelier hung in the foyer. Over the huge front doors is an arched fanlight window.

The front parlor is decorated with colorful French wallpaper, which depicts all the important buildings in Paris. The mantle here, and those in the rest of the house, is hand-carved. Huge bay windows in the front give a wonderful view of the James River.

The dining room table features dishes of the food that would have been served in the 1800s. As in so many historic homes, the kitchen was located outside the house, and the food brought in from there.

The other room in the front of the house was the master bedroom. It has authentic furniture from the era. Apparently it was used as a gathering spot for the family, as games and sewing materials were displayed. Each room in the house was heated with fireplaces, built from brick made on the premises.

The upstairs is sparsely furnished, but in keeping with the times. Dr. Cabell had his medical office up there and the area now features a medical bag including many of the drugs that were used then. Cabell was Patrick Henry’s doctor and attended him at his death. He also wrote often to his friend and neighbor, Thomas Jefferson.

When Dr. and Mrs. Cabell died, the home was left to his son and his wife. When they died, it belonged to Judge William Daniel and subsequent members of his family.

Point of Honor became the antebellum home of Col. John S. Langhorne, whose granddaughters included Nancy, Lady Astor, the first woman to be elected to the British Parliament, and Mrs. Charles Dana Gibson, the famous original “Gibson Girl.” So, the place is “chockfull” of Virginia history.

It is a grand half-day trip from Roanoke. You’ll find it interesting, I’m sure.

Point of Honor is open daily 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Its phone number is 434-847-1459. For more information, visit http://www.pointofhonor.org.

Helen Fitzpatrick is a Roanoke freelance writer and mother of Eric, Broaddus and Bev Fitzpatrick.