The Lynchburg Garden Club
Historic Garden Day
Lynchburg
Tuesday, April 21, 2026
America's Largest Open House
The beginning of Historic Garden Week dates to 1927, when a flower show organized by the Garden Club of Virginia raised an impressive $7,000 to save some of the trees planted by Thomas Jefferson on the lawn at Monticello.
Today, each spring Virginia welcomes visitors to over 250 of Virginia's most beautiful gardens, homes and historic landmarks during "America's Largest Open House." This 8-day statewide event provides visitors a unique opportunity to see unforgettable gardens at the peak of Virginia's springtime color, as well as beautiful houses sparkling with over 2,000 flower arrangements created by Garden Club of Virginia members.
Tour proceeds fund the restoration and preservation of Virginia’s historic gardens, and provide graduate-level research fellowships for building comprehensive and ongoing records of historic gardens and landscapes in the Commonwealth, and support the mission of the Garden Club.
Please mark you calendars now to join us on Tuesday, April 21, 2026.
General Information
LYNCHBURG’S HISTORIC GARDEN WEEK TOUR and gardens, showcasing the city’s Rivermont Historic District, as well as Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest, a National Historic Landmark and a Garden Club of Virginia restoration site, and the educational treasure of Camp Kum-Ba-Yah Nature Center. Just east of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Lynchburg tour combines
old world charm with new conservation and horticultural practices to inspire and delight.
TICKET INFORMATION
Ticket includes admission to four private homes, Camp Kum-Ba-Yah Nature Center, Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest and access to the gardens at the Places of Interest.
ADVANCE TICKETS: $50 per person.
Available online at VAGardenWeek.org. Tickets may also be purchased locally at The Farm Basket, George’s Seed, Feed & Grow, Overstreet Ace Hardware, Paisley’s, and Virginia Garden Supply.
DAY OF TICKETS: $60 per person day of tickets online or in person at Tour Headquarters and tour locations.
$15 single-site tickets sold at properties, cash or Venmo only.
$15 per child, 5–17 (online only).
Free for children under 5.
WALKING TOUR: There are designated drop-off locations at all tour locations for those with mobility issues, but the properties are not wheelchair or handicap-accessible.
FACILITIES: Camp Kum-Ba-Yah NatureCenter and Jefferson’s Poplar Forest.
SPECIAL ACTIVITIES OFFERED:
Gracefully situated on 19 acres, this stately English country house was built in 1933 for R.J. Cullen by Fred B. Fuqua Jr. and designed by New York architects Pruitt and Brown. Its blend of white clapboard, painted brick, gray stone, and a Buckingham slate roof creates a timeless façade. Inside, Colonial and Georgian influences shape the home’s gracious proportions. The wide, high-ceilinged entry hall opens to bright, spacious rooms ideal for family gatherings. The living room features a white Italian marble mantel and a bay window, while the dining room’s picture window overlooks an extended lawn, riding ring, and distant Blue Ridge Mountains. Paintings by local artists adorn the walls throughout the house. A renovated kitchen and adjoining sitting area offer inviting modern comfort. An attached guest cottage adjoins thoughtfully planned gardens linked by brick walkways. Mature magnolia, dogwood, and oak trees shade borders of boxwood, hydrangea, camellia, peony, hellebore, and fern —creating a landscape that reflects both structure and serenity.
1603 Langhorne Road
Country Estates
BETTY LYNN AND JOHN BLANKS, OWNERS
Street parking on Dorchester Court and Elk Street off Langhorne Road, walk to 1603 Langhorne Road.
1303 Langhorne Road
CLAUDIA AND TULANE PATTERSON, OWNERS
Street parking on or near Sunset Drive, walk to 1303 Langhorne Road.
Secluded behind gated stucco walls, this Spanish Mediterranean estate is an architectural treasure. The entrance drive circles a mosaic-tiled fountain, while a wisteria-covered arbor shades the tiled porch. An open porch wraps around the side of the house, offering views of the recently restored teahouse, fountain, and swimming pool. Built in 1921, the residence features distinctive Mediterranean details, including stuccoed masonry and a green-tiled roof, creating a harmonious ensemble. The grand entry hall, with arched French doors and black-and-white marble floors, has a vaulted ceiling and wrought-iron light fixtures. It opens into a living room where portraits of the owners’ parents by the late Scaisbrooke Langhorne Abbott hang. The library’s intricately carved mantel is one of five throughout the house. The expansive grounds, designed in 1922 by landscape architect George Burnap, whose work includes the White House gardens, remain lush. Original boxwoods and uncommon trees like European ash and ginkgo still flourish. Paintings by Mrs. Patterson, her great-grandmother, and local artists, along with a 1926 Steinway and an 1854 Knabe & Co. piano, complete this remarkable home. The property was last open for Historic Garden Week in 1993.
Built in 1933 for Mr. and Mrs. E.A.Watson, this distinguished
Colonial home was designed by the architectural firm Craighill
and Cardwell. The two-story house was constructed using stone
from Lynchburg’s old city jail, within the façade, porch piers, and
elevation showcasing the reclaimed material. The kitchen features
custom cabinetry, soapstone countertops, and a Paris-inspired
marble checkerboard inlay that repeats in the powder room and
sunroom. Brass hardware throughout the house was carefully
restored, and the family room’s cypress walls add warmth and
character. The addition includes a sunroom and a master suite
redesigned for modern comfort, while a bluestone patio and
outdoor living area extend into newly landscaped gardens lined
with hornbeam trees. An open, screened veranda offers another
inviting outdoor space. A highlight of the interior is a striking
two-story mural created by Mrs. Sydnor. Executed in the grisaille
technique, the monochromatic design draws inspiration from
Colonial and early American landscapes, depicting serene forest
scenes with birds and deer. The home’s art collection includes
works by local artists, among them the homeowner, reflecting a
deep appreciation for creativity and place.
3612 SUNSET DRIVE
SALLIE AND WALKER SYDNOR, OWNERS
Street parking on or near Sunset Drive, walk to 3612 Sunset Drive.
4310 GREENWAY PLACE
RIE AND EDDIE GODSEY, OWNERS
Park at Peakland United Methodist Church (4434 Boonsboro Road) and walk to 4310 Greenway Place.
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Completed in 1929 for Edwin B. Horner and designed by architect Penn Clark, this Colonial-style home remained in the Horner family for three generations before being purchased by the Godseys in 2017. A 1947 first-floor bedroom addition complements the original design, and renovations thoughtfully modernized the house while preserving its architectural integrity.
The limewashed brick façade, bluestone patios, and copper awning over the kitchen entry—sourced from New Orleans—highlight the home’s enduring charm. Inside, widened doorways and raised casings create a sense of openness from the central hall to the dining room and expanded kitchen. Original mantels and marble surrounds believed to have come from a downtown Lynchburg bank anchor the living and dining rooms. Art throughout features paintings by Annie Massie, Anne Harris Massie Winstead, and other local artists, as well as sketches by American Impressionist Bernhard Gutmann. Mature magnolia and Blue Atlas cedar trees, new garden borders, a shade garden, and a bronze, copper, and aluminum armillary by Swedish artisan Sune Rooth add structure and grace to the grounds.
Places of Interest
Free access (to the gardens) for Historic Garden Week ticket holders.
POINT OF HONOR: 112 Cabell Street. Overlooking the James River, the property features a landscape restored by the GCV,
including a circular stone drive, grove-like tree plantings, a demonstration apple orchard, a visitor terrace, and plantings.
pointofhonor.org
SWEET BRIAR HOUSE (Gardens Only): Route 29. The house is surrounded by a boxwood garden along with Daisy’s Garden,
both dating back to the 19th century. The GCV restored the front arrival court and expanded the original arboretum on
the front grounds with native and exotic trees. The heart of the college’s campus includes 21 buildings. sbc.edu
ANNE SPENCER HOUSE AND GARDEN: 1313 Pierce St. This Queen Anne-style house was home to noted Harlem
Renaissance poet Anne Spencer and is a two-time GCV’s Commonwealth Award winner. annespencermuseum.com
MILLER-CLAYTOR HOUSE AND GARDEN: 2200 Miller Claytor Lane. Lynchburg’s only remaining 18th-century townhouse
was initially located downtown and was moved to Riverside Park in 1936.
OLD CITY CEMETERY: 401 Taylor Street. An arboretum of historic plants with botanically labeled specimens, including
over 425 antique roses, medicinal herbs, a butterfly garden and pond, a shrub garden, antique daffodils, and hundreds
of native and ornamental trees. gravegarden.org
GARDEN CLUB OF VIRGINIA RESTORATION SITE SPECIAL ACTIVITIES
For details on event speakers at POPLAR FOREST or home and garden vendors and children’s activities at CAMP
KUM-BA-YAH NATURE CENTER, follow the Lynchburg tour on social media, or check the hosting clubs’ websites at
hillsidegardenclub.org and lynchburggardenclub.org.
Enjoy Sweet Briar College Farm wines and celebrate the College’s 125th Anniversary from 4 to 6 p.m. in DAISY’S GARDEN AT THE SWEET BRIAR HOUSE, located 12 miles north of Lynchburg.