Colross
Encyclopedia
Colross was an early 19th-century Mason family estate on Oronoco Street in Old Town Alexandria
, Virginia
. Colross was the Alexandria residence of Thomson Francis Mason
(1785 – 21 December 1838), a grandson of George Mason
. The Colross mansion was relocated to Princeton
, New Jersey
, restored, and currently serves as the administrative building of Princeton Day School
.
by John Potts, a prominent Alexandria merchant. He began construction of a brick mansion on the property in 1800. Potts ran into financial difficulties and put the unfinishe house up for sale in 1801. The property was purchased in December 1803 for $9,000 by Jonathan Swift, a merchant and Freemason. Swift presided over the Alexandria City Council from 1822 through 1823. Swift referred to his estate as “Belle Air” and “Grasshopper Hall.” His wife, two daughters, and three sons lived at the mansion. As Alexandria expanded, Colross evolved from a rural plantation into an urban estate. (Between 1791 and 1847, the city of Alexandria was a part of Alexandria County within the District of Columbia.)
After Swift's death in 1824, the estate was purchased and renamed Colross by Thomson Francis Mason
, a prominent jurist
, lawyer, councilman, judge of the Criminal Court of the District of Columbia, and Mayor of Alexandria between 1827 and 1830. Mason made Colross his chief homestead and made substantial modifications and additions to the mansion at Colross. Huntley
in Fairfax County
, Virginia
remained his secondary country residence. After Mason's death in 1838, his son Arthur "Pen" Pendleton Mason (1835–1893) inherited the Colross estate. During the American Civil War
, Colross was seized by Union
authorities. Local tradition has it that several Union deserters were executed against a brick wall on the estate.
William Smoot, a lumber merchant and Alexandria mayor in the 1880s, resided at Colross with his family between 1885 and 1917. In 1917, another lumber merchant, William Hoge, acquired ownership of the mansion. In a fashion similar to that of nearby Abingdon
, Colross's property underwent industrialization with the construction of a warehouse complex and other supporting buildings associated with Alexandria Hay & Grain. Colross's mansion become a storage facility within a lumber yard operated by another planing mill
owner. Both the mansion and the adjacent warehouses suffered considerable damage from a 1927 tornado.
Between 1929 and 1932, John Munn purchased the mansion and shipped the structure brick by brick to New Jersey
, where it was restored. Following Munn’s death in 1956, Colross became the main building of the Princeton Day School
, which it remains to this day. Colross's remaining brick foundation was buried for over a half-century beneath a slab of reinforced concrete. After the mansion's relocation, its site was the location of, among other structures, a large 50-truck garage, Andy's Car Wash, a Dominion Virginia Power substation
, and the Hennage Creative Printers facility.
While few artifacts were recovered, historians said the dig offered a clearer view of early 19th-century life at Colross. Discoveries included: an underground domed brick cistern
that served as a water purification
system and evidence that slaves lived in outbuildings on the Colross estate. Archaeologists also discovered Colross's original basement floor, laid in a herringbone bond. Evidence of the estate's exterior walls was unearthed along with the foundations of the estate's smokehouse
, stables, and burial vault. In the northwestern portion of the property, the foundation of what is believed to be a
rectangular burial vault also was uncovered. There were no remains of burials discovered. All interments were presumably removed in the early 20th century. (Thomson Francis Mason was originally interred in 1838, along with two of his daughters, at the Colross graveyard until subsequent residents had their remains reinterred at Christ Church
Episcopal Cemetery in Alexandria.)
According to the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership, 79 condominium buyers walked away due to the construction delay.
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. Colross was the Alexandria residence of Thomson Francis Mason
Thomson Francis Mason
Thomson Francis Mason was a prominent jurist, lawyer, councilman, judge, and the mayor of Alexandria, District of Columbia between 1827 and 1830.-Early life and education:...
(1785 – 21 December 1838), a grandson of George Mason
George Mason
George Mason IV was an American Patriot, statesman and a delegate from Virginia to the U.S. Constitutional Convention...
. The Colross mansion was relocated to Princeton
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, restored, and currently serves as the administrative building of Princeton Day School
Princeton Day School
Princeton Day School is a private coeducational day school located in Princeton Township, New Jersey, serving students in grades pre kindergarten - 12. The largest division is the Upper School , with an enrollment of approximately 400...
.
History
The Colross property was developed as a plantationPlantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
by John Potts, a prominent Alexandria merchant. He began construction of a brick mansion on the property in 1800. Potts ran into financial difficulties and put the unfinishe house up for sale in 1801. The property was purchased in December 1803 for $9,000 by Jonathan Swift, a merchant and Freemason. Swift presided over the Alexandria City Council from 1822 through 1823. Swift referred to his estate as “Belle Air” and “Grasshopper Hall.” His wife, two daughters, and three sons lived at the mansion. As Alexandria expanded, Colross evolved from a rural plantation into an urban estate. (Between 1791 and 1847, the city of Alexandria was a part of Alexandria County within the District of Columbia.)
After Swift's death in 1824, the estate was purchased and renamed Colross by Thomson Francis Mason
Thomson Francis Mason
Thomson Francis Mason was a prominent jurist, lawyer, councilman, judge, and the mayor of Alexandria, District of Columbia between 1827 and 1830.-Early life and education:...
, a prominent jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
, lawyer, councilman, judge of the Criminal Court of the District of Columbia, and Mayor of Alexandria between 1827 and 1830. Mason made Colross his chief homestead and made substantial modifications and additions to the mansion at Colross. Huntley
Huntley (plantation)
Huntley is an early 19th-century Federal-style plantation manor in the Hybla Valley area of Fairfax County, Virginia., on a hill overlooking Huntley Meadows Park to the south. The estate is best known as the country residence of Thomson Francis Mason , grandson of George Mason of nearby Gunston Hall...
in Fairfax County
Fairfax County, Virginia
Fairfax County is a county in Virginia, in the United States. Per the 2010 Census, the population of the county is 1,081,726, making it the most populous jurisdiction in the Commonwealth of Virginia, with 13.5% of Virginia's population...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
remained his secondary country residence. After Mason's death in 1838, his son Arthur "Pen" Pendleton Mason (1835–1893) inherited the Colross estate. During the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, Colross was seized by Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
authorities. Local tradition has it that several Union deserters were executed against a brick wall on the estate.
William Smoot, a lumber merchant and Alexandria mayor in the 1880s, resided at Colross with his family between 1885 and 1917. In 1917, another lumber merchant, William Hoge, acquired ownership of the mansion. In a fashion similar to that of nearby Abingdon
Abingdon (plantation)
Abingdon was an 18th- and 19th-century plantation that the prominent Alexander, Custis, Stuart, and Hunter families owned. The plantation's site is now located in Arlington County in the U.S...
, Colross's property underwent industrialization with the construction of a warehouse complex and other supporting buildings associated with Alexandria Hay & Grain. Colross's mansion become a storage facility within a lumber yard operated by another planing mill
Planing mill
A planing mill is a facility that takes cut and seasoned boards from a sawmill and turns them into finished dimensional lumber. Machines used in the mill include the planer and matcher, the molding machines, and varieties of saws...
owner. Both the mansion and the adjacent warehouses suffered considerable damage from a 1927 tornado.
Between 1929 and 1932, John Munn purchased the mansion and shipped the structure brick by brick to New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, where it was restored. Following Munn’s death in 1956, Colross became the main building of the Princeton Day School
Princeton Day School
Princeton Day School is a private coeducational day school located in Princeton Township, New Jersey, serving students in grades pre kindergarten - 12. The largest division is the Upper School , with an enrollment of approximately 400...
, which it remains to this day. Colross's remaining brick foundation was buried for over a half-century beneath a slab of reinforced concrete. After the mansion's relocation, its site was the location of, among other structures, a large 50-truck garage, Andy's Car Wash, a Dominion Virginia Power substation
Electrical substation
A substation is a part of an electrical generation, transmission, and distribution system. Substations transform voltage from high to low, or the reverse, or perform any of several other important functions...
, and the Hennage Creative Printers facility.
Archeological excavation
The former Colross property, which is bounded by North Fayette, Oronoco, Henry, and Pendleton streets, was purchased in 2003 by real estate development company Diamond Properties with plans to build Monarch Condominium, a mixed-use mid-rise luxury condominium project. In 2005, Diamond Properties was forced to halt its construction to allow for an archaeological excavation of the Colross site due to Alexandria's Archaeological Protection Code requirement. At the behest of the city of Alexandria, the excavation of the Colross archaeological site began between March and June 2005. Diamond Properties paid R. Christopher Goodwin & Associates Inc., a cultural resource management firm, approximately $100,000 to explore the site for historical artifacts and ensure that all burial plots had been removed.While few artifacts were recovered, historians said the dig offered a clearer view of early 19th-century life at Colross. Discoveries included: an underground domed brick cistern
Cistern
A cistern is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by their waterproof linings...
that served as a water purification
Water purification
Water purification is the process of removing undesirable chemicals, materials, and biological contaminants from contaminated water. The goal is to produce water fit for a specific purpose...
system and evidence that slaves lived in outbuildings on the Colross estate. Archaeologists also discovered Colross's original basement floor, laid in a herringbone bond. Evidence of the estate's exterior walls was unearthed along with the foundations of the estate's smokehouse
Smokehouse
A smokehouse is a building where meat or fish is cured with smoke. The finished product might be stored in the building, sometimes for a year or more.-History:...
, stables, and burial vault. In the northwestern portion of the property, the foundation of what is believed to be a
rectangular burial vault also was uncovered. There were no remains of burials discovered. All interments were presumably removed in the early 20th century. (Thomson Francis Mason was originally interred in 1838, along with two of his daughters, at the Colross graveyard until subsequent residents had their remains reinterred at Christ Church
Christ Church (Alexandria, Virginia)
Christ Church in Alexandria, Virginia, is an Episcopal church built from 1767 to 1773 by John Carlyle.The church was designed by James Wren in the colonial style, and frequented by such notables as George Washington, Robert E. Lee, and Philip Richard Fendall I...
Episcopal Cemetery in Alexandria.)
According to the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership, 79 condominium buyers walked away due to the construction delay.
Events
- Sarah Elizabeth Mason (1819–1907), daughter of Thomson Francis MasonThomson Francis MasonThomson Francis Mason was a prominent jurist, lawyer, councilman, judge, and the mayor of Alexandria, District of Columbia between 1827 and 1830.-Early life and education:...
and Elizabeth Clapham Price, married St. George Tucker Campbell at Colross on 17 November 1841. - A funeral for Mrs. Virginia King, wife of Dr. Benjamin King, was held at Colross at noon on 31 December 1850. Mrs. King was a sister of Mrs. Judge Mason.
- Virginia Mason (1830–1919), daughter of Thomson Francis Mason and Elizabeth Clapham Price, married William Hathorn Stewart Davidge at Colross on 1 February 1853.