Bolling Haxall House (Richmond, Virginia)

The Bolling Haxall House, an Italianate residence with eclectic influences of the early Victorian period, is considered to be among the finest surviving mansions of its age in Richmond. Bolling W. Haxall, owner of Richmond’s famous Haxall Flour Mills, some of the largest in the world at that time, commissioned the building, which dates from 1858. Not surprisingly, Haxall was one of the city’s wealthiest and most prominent businessmen before the Civil War. While the architect is unknown, credit for the design of the unusual building goes to Richmond builders George and John Gibson.

The elongated cupola, semicircular pediment over the central third story window, and heavy bracketed cornice are all characteristic features for this transitional period in architecture in the mid-1800s. Finely detailed cast iron window arches, balcony railings, and an exquisite locally made cast iron property fence–attributed by some sources to Richmonder George Lownes, others to William Cook–round out this impressive mansion. The two cast iron, horse-head hitching posts in the front of the house once stood on Capitol Street, where state legislators used them for their horses. The sidewalk in front of the house was originally paved in hexagonal bricks, which some people considered to be of ill omen. Nurses would lead their charges into the gutter rather than walk across the evil bricks.