Cooperative Living March 2022 - 9

HOLIDA HABITATS
One in a series of holiday-inspired
destinations in co-op country.
This month: St. Patrick's Day
The plantation
estate, Bremo,
is considered
to be Neilson's
masterpiece.
Hard Luck
of the Irish
by Gregg MacDonald, Staff Writer
John Neilson of Albemarle
County helped to define
Virginia architecture
U
l
nited Irishman John Neilson,
buried in Charlottesville, Va.,
lived a hard but charmed life.
Born in 1770 in Ballycarry, Ireland,
Neilson escaped death after British
Redcoats hanged his 15-year-old brother
in their family's front yard. An older
brother drowned at sea while being
exiled to theWest Indies with Neilson,
who escaped a similar fate.
exiled to theWest Indies with Neilson,
the West ndies with
Somehow, Neilson survived
wandering through the North American
wilderness ofthe late 18th century alone
and penniless, slowlymaking his way,
mostly on foot, to Philadelphia.
After being naturalized as a U.S.
citizen in 1804, he moved to Virginia,
befriended two U.S. presidents and
made a name for himselfas a master
carpenter, draftsman and architect.
INDEPENDENT STREAK
Today, his work is well-known in
Albemarle, Fluvanna and Orange
counties.
" The United Irishmen were an Irish
political organization formed in 1791
who, spurred on by the American and
French revolutions, hoped to gain Irish
independence from British forces, "
says Kevin Donleavy ofCharlottesville.
" Neilson and his two brothers were
actively involved and all three were
captured. The British were notoriously
utal in their dealings with this group. "
co-opliving.com
brut
in heir
dea
with
"
eilson,
Donleavy is a longtime member of
Clann Mohr, an academic group of
Charlottesville-based researchers who
specialize in Irish American history.
He says he's likely the most
knowledgeable person still living in
America when it comes to John Neilson,
and authored a pamphlet about him.
" As a young man, he was apprenticed
to Irish architect James Hunter before
h
hitect
fe
Hu
being banished for life from Ireland, and
then when he came to Virginia and took
up residence in Albemarle County, he
Virginia and took
marle
befriended both Thomas Jefferson and
as
ia, "
JamesMadison and helped to build their
oma
to build their
respective homes,Monticello and
Montpelier, as well as some parts ofthe
University of Virginia, " Donleavy says.
Gardiner Hallock, vice president for
the
ice president for
architecture, collections and facilities for
ha
tions
Monticello, says Neilson had a profound
effect onMonticello's first renovation
period between 1804 and 1809.
eilson
's
804
" Neilson was a master house-joiner
and architectural woodworker who
master house-joiner
woodworker
who
did some ofthe exterior and most of
the interior woodwork you see today, "
he says.
terior
work
o
plan
da , "
Neilson is also credited with helping
edited
to build Bremo, a plantatiion estate
in Fluvanna County that is privately
owned and considered by many to be
his masterpiece. Built near theJames
on est
unty that is privately
idered bymany to be
the
River, Bremo was added to the National
Register ofHistoric Placeslaces in 1969
as added to the National
oric
in 1969
March 2022 ● Cooperative Living ●
7
and most
ofound
st renovation
Bremo Plantation
and designated a National Historic
Landmark in 1971 for its significance as
an example of Jeffersonian architecture.
" It's such a great example that many
people to this day still think Thomas
Jefferson built Bremo, " says Tricia
Johnson, executive director of the
Fluvanna Historical Society.
In 1999, Donleavy and Clann
Mohr decided that Neilson and his
contributions to Virginia should be
honored.
" We knew that he was buried in
Charlottesville's Maplewood Cemetery
in 1827, but no one knew exactly where,
so we dedicated a tombstone in a section
of the cemetery that not only is one of
the oldest but is also located where many
other early Irish residents were buried, "
he says.
" Although Neilson could never
return to his native Ireland, he could,
at least symbolically, rest among his
own people again - for eternity. " 
PHOTO BY GREGG MACDONALD
GREGG MACDONALD
PHOTO COURTESY LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
http://www.co-opliving.com
Cooperative Living March 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Cooperative Living March 2022
