1822 Tavern Site

Between 1822 and about 1900, a large and busy structure stood here as the Brentsville Tavern, also known as the Brentsville Hotel, near the Courthouse and Jail, with the Clerk’s Office also visible before the Civil War. When the county seat was moved to Brentsville in 1822, this tavern was likely the first structure built. Although it was first known as the Brentsville Tavern, it was advertised as The Brentsville Hotel in the Virginia Gazette on November 22, 1828. During the 1700s, taverns provided lodging, meals, and entertainment, while in the early 1800s some were expanded or built with specialized spaces such as ballrooms and private bed chambers, and these became known as hotels. In 2004, archaeologists from the University of Mary Washington’s Center for Historic Preservation excavated portions of the site and identified sections of the main building as well as numerous outbuilding sites and features, some still somewhat visible and others to be defined during future excavations.

Virginia · United States