October 22, 2020 / Joanne Yeck

Buckingham County’s Norvell House Revisited, Part II

Norvell House, 2020. Courtesy Jeremy Winfrey.

Need to catch up? Click here: Buckingham County’s Norvell House Revisited, Part I

Seven years after I first inquired about this house, its history has significantly expanded. In June of 2020, Slate River Ramblings follower Jeremy Winfrey contacted me, writing:

I have been steadily working on the Norvell family properties of the 19th century and have stumbled upon an undeniable fact…. This house was NOT built by the Norvell family and I am presently working on a report which entails the ownership of the property over the years, going back to 1800.

It seems to me, the brick portion of the home was probably built by John Wilmerton Chambers around 1838, when he purchased the property from the affluent land owner Hardin Lewis.

The present owner believes the brick section of the home was built about this time. John W. Chambers probably lived here for about eight years and then, in 1845, moved to Tennessee immediately following his marriage to Mariah Ayres.

I was particularly excited to learn this new information about the probable original builder. John W. Chambers (1815-1877) was the brother of my ancestor, Elizabeth Holman (Chambers) Saunders. Once in Tennessee, he and Mariah (a.k.a. Maria Ann) reared at least ten children.

Coming Next: Buckingham County’s Norvell House Revisited, Part III