Mathews Manor

Mathews Manor. A Substantial Structure. , Newport News was a small community located in Warwick County until late in the 19th century. Established as a town in 1880, it was incorporated as a city in 1886. , Warwick County and the eight original Virginia shires formed by 1634, became extinct in 1952 when it was designated the city of Warwick. It merged with Newport News in 1958., Captain Samuel Mathews, Sr. (ca. 1590-1657), acquired more than 5,000 acres on the banks of the Warwick River near Deep Creek in 1625. Mathews was a prominent early settler who held several local. offices and served its governing, commanded its governing council. In 1635, Mathews led the councilors in revolt against Governor Sir John Harvey, who was deposed and sent back to England in shackles. Mathews and three other councilors were recalled to London to answer charges of treason. All four were acquitted, and Mathews returned to Virginia. His son, Samuel Mathews, Jr., continued the family’s active political service as a member of the house of Burgesses and the governor of the colony from 1656 until his death in January 1660., The main dwelling, completed about 1626, was a half-timbered, herringbone-pattern Flemish-bond brick, two-story Tudor cottage. The original structure had two main rooms on both floors with a central chimney, leaded glass windows, and a clay-tile roof. This was a substantial structure for colonial Virginia. Mathews Manor also contained a dairy, icehouse, tannery, blacksmith shop, and various other outbuildings. Moreover, Captain Mathews owned a distillery for manufacturing turpentine, tar, pitch, and other naval stores. The manor house was later enlarged with another wing and a stair tower. It burned about 1650. The Mathewses never rebuilt their grand home, and in 1720 the property was sold to the Digges family, who renamed it Denbigh Plantation. The Denbigh Plantation Archaeological Site is listed in the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places.