Valley View: A Greek Revival Farm on the South Branch Potomac River

Tucked away in the rolling hills of West Virginia, where Depot Valley joins the South Branch Potomac River, sits the Valley View property. Located about 1 mile (1.6 km) northwest of the town of Romney, the house sits atop a promontory known locally as the Yellow Banks. This mid-19th-century Greek Revival residence and farm overlooks the South Branch Potomac River valley and the surrounding landscape.

The property was part of the South Branch Survey of the Northern Neck Proprietary, a tract inherited by Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron, in 1719. In 1749, John Collins purchased the 425-acre lot, which was designated as Lot Number 20. Collins and his family settled the land that same year. By 1772, the property was acquired by the Parsons family, and James Parsons Jr. built the Valley View house in 1855.

After the Civil War, the Parsons' widow sold the farm to Charles Harmison. His wife, Elizabeth Harmison, named the farm Valley View, inspired by her childhood home, Western View, and the views of the South Branch Potomac River. The Mayhew family purchased the property in 1979. Today, Robert and Kim Mayhew have restored the historic residence and its surrounding grounds.

The Valley View property adjoins the Wappocomo farm to the northeast and the corporate limits of Romney to the east and south. The Mayhew family also owns agricultural land west of the house, bisected by the South Branch Valley Railroad. Nearby, the Mayhew family owns Valley View Island, which was part of Lot Number 19 of the Northern Neck Proprietary South Branch Survey. In 1749, the river flowed east of the island along the base of the Yellow Banks before its course changed to run around the west side of the island.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons