On April 14, I had the privilege of taking some publication photos for Valley Homes and Style at the Happy Retreat home of Bill Gavin in Charles Town. You don’t get to go into many homes with so much history, but Bill was happy to share that the home’s wings were built by Mr. Charles Washington (brother of George Washington), and that the main home may have originally been built as well, but had since been razed and rebuilt in the early 1800’s by another owner of the home. With 12 foot ceilings in the main floor and eight foot ceilings in the upper floors, you can imagine I was enjoying the view.
One of my favorite rooms was the original dining room.
This exterior view would have been nicer if the weather had cooperated a little more. But I wasn’t complaining too much. 
Lastly a view in the living room(s) area. Originally the living room you can see on the other side of this picture was the dining area for guests. As with most early homes, the kitchen was not inside the house. The existing dining room was for family and close friends. Today, the room you can see the most of is used as a living area and the room beyond, for which there is a sliding door, is used as a reading room. Opened to their full volume, 20-30 people can mingle easily.
You can see more images of the home in the upcoming issue of Valley Homes and Style. The history alone is going to make you long for more.
Tony