When Jefferson with his great fervor for originality died, Virginia architecture seemed to lose its original character. For many years afterwards, Virginia tended to follow the architecture fashion of the nation rather than to create any particular architectural characteristics of its own. Following the War between the States and its resulting poverty, many of the skills of the earlier craftsmen seemed to disappear. There was a lack of artistic brickwork and handcarved woodwork; imitation and copying of designs throughout the nation seemed to dominate the architectural scene. The influence of much of the foreign architecture of this period seemed to crowd the American scene and to stifle American originality. Experimentation, not often beautiful in appearance or graceful in lines, resulted in an era of architecture with mediocre dwellings and a lack of symmetry and of balanced proportions in design.
Near the close of the Nineteenth Century, an event occurred which influenced American architecture to a great extent. When the Chicago World's Fair was held in 1893, visitors suddenly became reminiscent about the numerous reconstructed American architectural designs of colonial buildings: the rich-looking red brick buildings with graceful, tall white columns and with porticos and pediments. Architects in the United States as well as the American public in general found a new interest in the construction designs, techniques and materials of the Colonial Era. Several visits were made to Virginia and other southern states in an attempt to rediscover the true Colonial style which still has so much to offer in the way of beauty, simplicity and grandeur.
As in the other states, Virginia architects have been busy recently drawing up plans to meet the ever-increasing demand for private dwellings as well as for public buildings. Some of the structures in Virginia which have received nationwide attention are the five-sided, five-floored Pentagon Building in Arlington with 17½ miles of corridors, the Iwo Jima Memorials—one at Quantico and one in Arlington County—and numerous houses, apartment buildings, schools, churches and business establishments.
The greatest architectural restoration project in the United States is the Restoration of Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. Intense, careful research has made this restoration authentic and appealing to the American public. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. made the project possible through financial backing and, to date, over 400 colonial public buildings, homes, shops and taverns have been restored or reconstructed on a 216 acre section of land. Many of the restored buildings—the Capitol, the Governor's Palace, the George Wythe House, the Raleigh Tavern, the Public Gaol, the Ludwell-Paradise House, the Brush-Everard House and the Magazine and Guardhouse—are now furnished properly according to the Eighteenth Century style. Additional atmosphere is created by the colorful, colonial costumes worn by the guides themselves. The restoration continues, and visitors from various parts of the world, as well as from all of the fifty states, delight in viewing authentic colonial architecture. The Williamsburg Project has had, and will continue to have, a definite influence upon American architecture.
In retrospect, Virginia is usually accredited professionally with two distinct types of individual architecture: the Colonial type brought directly from England and adapted to American surroundings (with a slight variation in Early Colonial and Late Colonial due to the results of the European Renaissance) and the Jeffersonian type distinguished by the creativeness and superb artistic traits of Thomas Jefferson.
Music and Drama
Music—The early Jamestown settlers left no record of their music. They apparently sang the same songs current in England at the time of their departure and probably made up verses pertaining to their environment as time passed. There is evidence that unusual instruments were occasionally used. Even though organs were very expensive in colonial days, by 1700 the Episcopal Church at Port Royal owned the first pipe organ brought to America from Europe. By 1755, the Bruton Parish Church at Williamsburg had also received one.
The wealthy inhabitants usually paid instrumentalists, often foreign musicians, to play at various social functions. String players were particularly popular, not only for chamber music concerts but also for private balls. In 1788, Francis Hopkinson, considered by many historians as the first American composer, dedicated his most ambitious published work, "Seven Songs," for the harpsichord or forte piano to George Washington, his personal friend. Although Washington himself did not play an instrument he was an active patron of the arts including music. The harpsichord which he bought for Nellie Custis is still at Mount Vernon. Hopkinson also had written in 1778 a musical manuscript called "Toast" commemorating Washington's position as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army. After Hopkinson had made improvements on the harpsichord, he contacted Thomas Jefferson, beseeching him to acquaint craftsmen with his new, musical instrumental idea. Jefferson was a great devotee to music and was considered by many as an accomplished violin player as was Patrick Henry before him.
The musical talents of the Negroes are usually associated with Southern music. From time to time, collections of slave songs, plantation and cabin songs and religious spirituals have been published by William F. Allen, Lucy M. Garrison, Charles P. Ware, Natalie Burlin and Thomas Fenner. The Hampton Singers from Hampton Institute still preserve the musical beauty of such Negro Spirituals as "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot," "Go Down Moses," "Deep River," "Steal Away to Jesus" and "O'er the Crossing." Reverend James P. Carrell of Harrisonburg and Lebanon published two spiritual song books: "Songs of Zion" and "Virginia Harmony." James A. Bland, a Negro originally from South Carolina but educated in Washington, wrote the song: "Carry Me Back to Ole Virginny." This song was adopted by the legislature as the official state song in 1940. Two other famous songs written by Bland were "Dem Golden Slippers" and "In the Evening by the Moonlight."
Musical publishers and choral groups also encouraged active participation in the musical field. Joseph Funk, a German immigrant, came to Singer's Glen near Harrisonburg near the beginning of the Nineteenth Century. He established a singing school where he taught vocal music and published "Choral Music," a collection of German songs. Aldine Kieffer, a grandson of Funk, created a monthly musical publication, "Musical Millions," consisting of rural music and musical hints for singing schools. Kieffer wrote the words and B. C. Unseld the music to a song which became very popular in the rural areas of the South: "Twilight Is Falling." In 1883, Theodore Presser of Lynchburg founded the well-known music publication for music teachers and pianists called "The Etude." Scholars and music lovers in various parts of the world have enjoyed the contents of this publication. F. Flaxington Harker was a Scotsman who came to America and served as an outstanding choral director in Richmond. He composed organ compositions, choruses, sacred and secular songs, anthems and cantatas. A collection of Virginia Folklore Songs, called "The Traditional Ballads of Virginia," has been compiled by Arthur Kyle Davis, Jr. and C. Alphonso Smith.