CONTENT WARNING
Materials in the Library of Virginia’s collections contain historical terms, phrases, and images that are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and dehumanizing references to race, ethnicity, and nationality; enslaved or free status; physical and mental ability; and gender and sexual orientation.
Context
James H. Dooley was a Virginia politician and businessman in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. After the Civil War, he amassed a fortune by expanding railroad services. In 1869, he married Sallie May Dooley, a daughter of a prominent family who held romantic views of life in antebellum Virginia. In 1886, the Dooley’s acquired 100 acres of land along the James River where they planned to build their new estate. They hired architect, Edgerton Stewart Rogers, who designed the 12,000 square foot, 33-bedroom home in using a combination of Romanesque Revival and Queen Anne styles which gives Maymont House it’s unique appearance. They named their new home “May Mont” which combines Sallie Dooley’s maiden name, May, with the French word for hill “Mont”.
Maymont House was occupied by the family for 32 years and never had any other owners. Although no architectural drawings or early records of the construction of the house survive, ongoing research using the existing structure provides information about the unique features of the house. In 1925, after Mrs. Dooley’s death, the house was opened as a museum. The décor of the house is as Mrs. Dooly left it with the main parts of the house decorated in the finest of global fashions of the age and the lower half of the house presents as it was used as servants' quarters. Most the Dooley’s domestic servants were African Americans, and the quarters are segregated from the rest of the house with a separate entrance and staircase to access the main house.Although Mr. Dooley was abundantly wealthy, as illustrated by his lavish homes, he had no children. Much of his money went toward philanthropy, including the support of orphans. Maymont House and the surrounding grounds remain open to the public.
Citation: Maymont House, Prints and Photographs Collection, Library of Virginia.
Standards
Art: 4.1, 5.1
Suggested Questions
Preview Activity
Look at It: Look at the photograph of the Dooley mansion. From the photo, what specifically can you conclude about the wealth of the occupants? Be specific as you cite architectural and size components.
Post Activities
Think About It: Why was Maymont House opened as a musuem? What might be learned from visiting a home from the guilded age?
Food For Thought: A common design in high end homes of the age was to have the servants be invisible to those attending events or parties. This was accomplished by having the living areas sepreated from the servants areas. Why do you you think this was a desireable design consideration? Explain.