Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 6, 1993 TAG: 9306040108
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: RANDY UDAVCAK SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: PEARISBURG LENGTH: Long
The distinction in the name is a "t."
It's a mistake that more than one visitor to the historic Andrew Johnston House in Pearisburg has made, confusing the original owner with the much-maligned 17th president of the United States.
After this initial clarification, however, the members of the Historical Society are eager to show that the house has a significance all its own in the nation's history.
Located on U.S. 460 in downtown Pearisburg, the three-story, red-brick structure was built by Giles County surveyor and businessman Andrew Johnston in 1829.
Next to the house is a small one-story building built in 1857 by his son, Dr. Harvey Green Johnston, for use as his office. During the Civil War the house earned its greatest claim to fame when the small office was commandeered by the 23rd Ohio Regiment of Union troops, led by Col. Rutherford B. Hayes and Maj. William B. McKinley - later the 19th and 23rd presidents of the United States.
The house was used by three generations of Johnstons and their families until the death in 1983 of Marjorie Johnston, the second wife of Dr. Harvey Green Johnston II.
Two years later, the Johnston heirs donated the property to the Giles County Historical Society, whose members created a $100,000 endowment fund to restore and maintain the property.
"I wanted to leave it in good hands," said Fowler W. Johnston of Roanoke, the great-grandson of Andrew Johnston. "I didn't want to see it torn down for a parking lot."
Johnston stressed that he and his nephews donated the house complete, without removing any of its original furniture. "Everything's just as it was when we walked out of it," he said.
This year, the house was finally given historic recognition; it was placed on both the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register.
In addition to the status, the National Register listing protects the house from federally funded projects, such as highways or housing projects.
But officials at the Virginia Department of Historic Resources said it is not protected from state projects or private development. Such protection would only be afforded by a county ordinance or by the owner of the property granting an easement to the state.
Andrew Johnston, born in 1771 and one of eight children of a Scottish immigrant, created the survey maps of Pearisburg's original 53 acres around the turn of the 19th century. He and his brother, David, were the town's first merchants, running a general store and a tannery.
In 1831, Johnston signed an agreement allowing the town to pipe water from a spring on his property. In exchange, the town agreed that the Johnston house was never to receive a water bill.
The town still uses the spring 162 years later and the Historical Society still does not get a water bill.
The Johnston house was the first home in Pearisburg to receive electricity. In 1924 it became the first to install a telephone.
Its number was "1."
The most noteworthy piece of the estate's lore came during the Civil War when future presidents Hayes, then 39, and McKinley, then 19, led a band of Union soldiers to take over the town. They used Dr. Johnston's small office building as a headquarters for four days.
Settling in on May 7, 1862, after a long march from Princeton, W.Va., Hayes made several notes in his diary about the southern town he found himself in. He described Pearisburg as a "neat, pretty village with the most magnificent surrounding country both as regards scenery and cultivation."
His entries the next day continued: "[I] Find more intelligence and culture here than anywhere else in Virginia."
Hayes began to get a little nervous when expected reinforcements had not yet arrived, however. On May 10, Union forces were awakened at 4 a.m. by a Confederate attack. After a brief battle, four Confederate regiments with several pieces of artillery drove the Union forces 5 1/2 miles out of town.
The house itself is a massive structure of handmade brick, with 22-inch-thick foundation walls. First-floor rooms feature 10-foot ceilings and 18-inch thick walls; second-floor rooms are slightly smaller, with 9-foot-6-inch ceilings and walls 14 inches thick.
Architecturally, the house is classified as Colonial Georgian, though some aberrant features and various modifications and additions throughout the years give it an enigmatic character.
The front portico, for example, is supported by one square and one fluted ionic column on each side.
Inside, some remodeling is evident, though many important details survive, such as the original pine floor in the north bedroom, still secured with its original handmade square nails.
Many pieces of the original furniture remain in surprisingly good condition, complimented by reproductions and a few donated articles.
In the dining room is the original china closet that almost reaches the ceiling and houses the Johnstons' set of pink English china. The cherry dining room table can be lengthened with two end tables that fit into either side.
Some of the oldest pieces of furniture in the house are Victorian end tables and washstands made with thick marble tops; a wishbone dresser with a tilting, swiveling mirror; and an immense cherry wardrobe called a clothes press. Arranged throughout the house are trunks, books and other original articles.
The doctor's office now houses the Historical Society's library and research activities. It contains genealogical and historical records in the form of books, letters, diaries, articles and other materials.
The office is staffed by four volunteers and, like the house, is open to the public every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
A small garage in back recently was converted into a small museum for donated historical articles not directly related to the Johnston House. The garage also houses special exhibits throughout the year.
Member Ruth Blevins said the Historical Society has been using the interest from the endowment for maintenance and repairs to the house, and tackling small renovation projects as funds permit. Recently, the society repaired the roof over the front porch and replaced the porch floor.
In the immediate future, the group plans to refurbish the roof over the back porch, but Blevins said the society also has more ambitious plans on the back burner. "We have dreams," she said.
One is to build a separate building to house the society's museum exhibits and research, thus freeing the doctor's office and the garage for restoration to their original form.
In the meantime, the all-volunteer staff is kept busy doing geneological research and planning special exhibits.
Every October the museum features a quilt exhibition, and in November it plans an exhibition of World War II-era articles.
Two other exhibits are planned for this summer, one of antique musical instruments and sheet music on June 19, and another of antique dolls sometime in July.
Times have changed, and the telephone number for the Andrew Johnston House is no longer "1." It's 921-1050, and that's the number to call on Thursdays for more information. Or you can call Tony Williams at 921-1540.
by CNB