By Lori Hinterleiter Kimball
If you are a frequent driver on Lovettsville Road, you might have noticed a stone and frame house and a sunken stone springhouse along the side of the road at the new Downey Mill planned community. You might have seen them when you drove by one day this spring and been surprised that they were gone the next time you passed by. The historic house that had stood for over two centuries was gone in a flash.
The farm had been owned by two early Lovettsville farming families, first the Frys and later the Sanbowers. The 2-and-a-half story, 3 bay stone house was built between 1800 and 1820, possibly during Peter Fry Sr’s ownership.[1] The stone springhouse was probably constructed at the same time. Fry purchased several parcels in the late 1790s and early 1800s, and it is not clear if they contained existing structures at the time of his purchases. In August 1795, Peter purchased a 63-acre parcel from the Earl of Tankerville and a 108-acre tract in 1796. He also bought a 15 ¼ acre wood lot on the west side of Catoctin Mountain, and a small quarter-acre lot.[2]
Like many other homes in the Lovettsville area from that period, the dwelling was constructed of stone on a solid stone foundation with an excavated basement. It had a rectangular footprint and was oriented east. Large, squared stones (called quoins) were incorporated into each of the four corners, and stone chimneys stood at each gable end. In addition to the springhouse, outbuildings included a smoke house, bank barn, animal barn, corn crib, modern vehicle sheds, and a poultry shed – all laid out in a linear plan near the house.[3]
The interior had a central hall with an open staircase that rose in two stages, and two rooms on either side of the hall. Each room had a large fireplace; the original mantels remained but the fireplaces had been sealed.[4]
According to a descendant’s family tree on Ancestry.com, Peter Fry Sr. was born in Frederick County, Maryland, in August 1766 to Hans “Jacob” Fry (1711-1785) and Maria Magdalena Harman (1720-1800). Both parents were born in Germany. Peter married a woman named Christina (also recorded as Christiana), and they had at least 10 children.[5] Three years after Christina died in 1809, Peter married Margretha (Margaret) Schwenk.[6]
Peter died in 1839 without a will which prompted his widow Margaret and children to file a chancery suit at the county court requesting an equitable division of his land.[7] The bill of complaint in the lawsuit stated that Peter owned about 171 acres of undivided farmland, a 15-acre wood lot on the mountain, and a quarter-acre lot with a house and other improvements.
The land was surveyed and divided between his heirs as shown in the deed plat below. Grandson Philip Fry (son of Peter’s deceased son John) received Lot 1 of 15 ½ acres south of present-day Lovettsville Road, widow Margaret received 33 ¾ acres (her dower allotment) that spanned the road, and other grandchildren received Lot 2 of 18 ½ acres that was mostly south of the road.[8] Portions of these parcels comprise the present-day Downey Farm development.
The inventory and appraisal of Peter’s personal estate, taken on 11 November 1839, was a long list of farm and household items, suggesting a farm family of comfortable means. Because enslaved people were legally personal property, the inventory included four enslaved people: a man named Harry valued at $600, a boy named George valued at $700, and a woman and her child valued at $500.[9] The inventory was the only estate record. No evidence of a sale was found; therefore, it is assumed the enslaved people remained with the Fry family.
The day after Christmas in 1840, Henry Houck, the sheriff in Frederick County, Maryland, placed an ad in Leesburg’s Genius of Liberty newspaper announcing that a freedom-seeking enslaved man named George Holland had been captured and was in the county jail. George was 18 or 20 years old, said he was from Loudoun County, and “belonged” to Peter Fry.[10] This must have been the boy named George recorded in Fry’s estate.
The timing of George’s attempted escape to freedom is not unusual. The end of the year was often filled with anxiety and fear for enslaved people because it was the time when they were hired out for the new year or worse, sold. An equally stressful time was after the enslaver’s death as the family paid off debts or settled into new living arrangements. In George’s case, either circumstance might have compelled him to leave. Unfortunately, George was captured and probably returned to Fry’s estate.
Starting in 1841, grandson Philip Fry began to acquire the interests of family members in Lot 2 and the dower lot.[11] His grandmother Margaret was living in his household in the 1850 Census; it appears that Philip was buying the various rights to her property because he was living on it.[12] Margaret died in 1851, and Philip acquired the remaining rights to her dower property in 1862. By this time, he owned lots 1, 2 and the dower lot of the original division, totaling approximately 67 ¾ acres.
In 1870, Philip put his land in trust with Peter A. Fry to secure a $1,500 note he owed to neighbor John Wire. Philip defaulted on the agreement, and Peter put the land up for auction in 1879. George M. Sanbower was the high bidder at $53.30 per acre.[13] Like the Fry family, the Sanbowers were large farming families with deep roots in the Lovettsville area.
George held the land until 1883 when he conveyed it to his nephew Eli Sanbower and Eli’s wife Rebecca.[14] George, who never married, continued to live on the property until his death on March 31, 1899. He is buried in St. James Reformed Cemetery in Lovettsville.[15]
The two-story, frame addition was built perpendicular to and the rear of the stone house during Eli and Rebecca’s ownership, sometime between 1890 and 1900.[16] They probably expanded the house as their family grew. The addition featured “wood German siding, a full-width front porch with Tuscan columns, and a two-story enclosed porch on the rear.”[17]
Eli and Rebecca had 5 sons: Charles E. Sanbower, Harry Morris Sanbower, Erva M. Sanbower, Henry R. Sanbower, and Verna E. Sanbower. The land descended to these heirs who put it in trust in 1914 to secure an unpaid note of $630 that Eli owed to Samuel W. George at the time of his death. The deed referred to a stone and frame dwelling, a frame barn and corn house and other outbuildings.[18]
Ten years later, the debt hadn’t been paid, and Samuel W. George demanded that the land be sold. It was auctioned in front of the Lovettsville post office on Saturday, November 24, 1923, and Verna and Bessie (Everheart) Sanbower were the highest bidders at $101.00 per acre. Verna was the son of Eli and Rebecca.[19]
Verna and Bessie had a joint will that left the Sanbower home farm to their son Reginald V., various properties to other children, and allotments of money to certain children. There were rigid guidelines for the disposition of land if children didn’t want it, but no lots could be sold outside of the designated families.[20] Two years later the children filed a deed to divide the land “in order to settle the problems in the joint will.” The land division created new tracts out of the former Fry parcels, and the acreage south of Lovettsville Road became lot 6 of 53.09 acres.[21] The Sanbowers sold Lot 6 in 2015, and that purchaser sold it to Carrington Builders in 2018.[22]
Once Carrington purchased the property, it was clear that the historic farm would be subdivided and developed. Subdivision plans were recorded with the county in 2020.[23] The 53.11-acre parcel was subdivided into 9 lots, with the largest lot of 15 acres containing the historic house, springhouse and four frame farm buildings. Four outbuildings were designated to be removed, but the historic house, springhouse, and two other farm buildings were not labeled for removal. The assumption could be made that the buildings were intended to be saved. Perhaps the developer hoped to sell the 15-acre parcel to someone who wanted to restore or renovate the historic dwelling.
Two things should be noted. First, just because a building is designated for saving doesn’t mean the developer plans to preserve or restore it. Preserving it means repairing damage, conducting regular maintenance, and ensuring the structure does not deteriorate further. This rarely happens when a historic building is on a parcel that is subdivided for development and on which new homes are built.
Second, it should be noted that preliminary subdivision plans contain both specific and illustrative elements. Streets, drain fields, and lot lines are examples of specific information. The streets have to be built where they’re shown on the plans, or another application has to be submitted and approved for the changes. By contrast, the location of a house, for example, is for illustration of where it might be built but not necessarily in that exact location.
The county requires a Phase I Archaeological Survey for subdivision applications, and they should cover areas that will be disturbed as a result of the development process. In this case, the farm buildings slated for demolition would be classified as an “area of disturbance” because they were to be removed but not the historic house and springhouse. In other words, the house and springhouse were not required to be part of the Phase I Survey. The study was done in 2019, but it did not address the impact of removing the historic farm buildings nor did it address the farm site’s eligibility for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. The developer was asked to update the survey.
In early 2022, Carrington Builders submitted a demolition application to demolish 6 buildings on the property, all described as barns.[24] More specifically, they were a bank barn, likely built around the time of the original stone house; a mid- to late-19th century corn crib; an early 20th century livestock barn; and two vehicle sheds and a poultry shed of unknown construction dates.[25]
New homes sprouted on the former farm, but the historic house and springhouse remained. They were visible to everyone who drove by on Lovettsville Road. At one point in early 2023, the Lovettsville Historical Society was contacted by someone who was interested in purchasing the 15-acre parcel and restoring the house. The Society was able to provide a bit of history and deed research, but the Society heard nothing more from the inquiry.
Fast forward to early 2024 when Carrington submitted a demolition application to the county for removal of the historic house, springhouse, and a frame, mid-1800s smokehouse.[26] State law mandates that a property owner has the right to demolish a structure on their property as long as it doesn’t violate any zoning ordinance or other restriction on the property. The county couldn’t deny the application, but the preservation team in the Department of Planning and Zoning requested permission to access the site and photograph the buildings before demolition. Fortunately, they were able to do so.
The Fry-Sanbower House is one example of many historic buildings that have been lost to development in the county. Even though Loudoun has more tools in its “preservation toolbox” than most counties in Virginia, there is little that can be done to save a structure if the property owner doesn’t want to. Even a listing on the National Register of Historic Places, which is an honorary designation, cannot prevent a building’s demolition. The exception is for structures in a county or town-designated historic district with a zoning overlay and architectural review board with regulatory authority. Loudoun has seven county historic districts; the closest two are Waterford and Taylorstown.[27]
[1] The Architectural Survey Form filed with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (VDHR 053-5496) provides the estimated date range for the stone house’s construction. This author’s deed research indicates Peter Fry Sr. owned contiguous land north and south of present-day Lovettsville Road with the road running through it.
[2] Loudoun County Deed Books W:133 and W:411 from the Earl of Tankerville; Deed Book 2O:11 for the wood lot purchased from Samuel Clapham; and DB 3Z:38 for the quarter-acre lot purchased from Samuel & Susannah Sackman.
[3] Virginia Department of Historic Resources, Architectural Survey Form, DHR ID 053-5496
[4] Ibid.
[5] https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/40932409/person/28025910378/facts. Their children included: Susanna Frey (1787-1852), Jacob Frey (1789-1839), Peter Frey Jr. (1790-??), Andrew “Sam” Fry (1790-1854), Catharina Fry 1793-??), Johannes Fry (1796-1797), John Fry (1798-1829), Peter Fry (1800-1879),
Elizabeth Fry (1803-1828), and William Fry (1806-1879). Additional proof of Peter and Christina/Christiana’s marriage can be found in Loudoun County Deed Book 2E:126 when Christiana was recorded as a grantor along with Peter for the sale of 176.75 acres to John Slater.
[6] https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/40932409/person/28025910378/facts. Margaret is recorded in the family tree as Anna Margretha Schwenck (b. 1770).
[7] Loudoun County Chancery Cause 1840-045 (old case number M6867), heirs of Peter Fry vs. Margaret Fry and others. Peter Fry Sr’s heirs were his widow Margaret and children Susan (Wire), Andrew, Catharine (wife of Henry Goodhart), Peter and William and grandchildren Mary (wife of Samuel Tritipo), Christiana (wife of Levin Coffin), Margaret Fry, Sarah Fry, John Tritipo and Eliza Tritipo, and Philip Fry. Mary Tritipo, Christiana Coffin, Margaret Fry and Sarah Fry were the children of Peter’s deceased son Jacob. John Tritipo and Eliza Tritipo were the children of his daughter Elizabeth Tritipo. Philip Fry was the sole surviving child of another son, John Fry. Viewed on the Library of Virginia website at Virginia Memory, Chancery Records: https://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/chancery/
[8] The grandchildren who received Lot 2 were Samuel and Mary Tritipo, Leven and Christiana Coffin, Margaret Fry, and Sarah Fry
[9] Loudoun County Will Book Z:162. The inventory was ordered on 11 November 1839, and it was recorded at the courthouse on 11 March 1840.
[10] VirginiaChronicle.com, an online collection at the Library of Virginia. The Genius of Liberty, Volumes 24 and 25. The advertisement was published on 26 December 1840, 9 January 1841, and 16 January 1841. The newspaper was published in Leesburg, Virginia.
[11] Loudoun County Deed Books 4Q:77, 4Q:78, 4Q:259, 4Q:262, 4T:42, 4T:44, 4W:72, 4Y:190, 5A:28, 5G:166, 5K:369, 5L:232, 5N:42, 5Q:108, 5S:301, 5S:470, and 5U:406.
[12] 1850 Federal Census, Loudoun County, Virginia.
[13] Loudoun County Deed Book 6A:36 for use of the land as collateral with Peter Fry’s trustee. Loudoun County Deed Book 6Q:117 for the transfer to Sanbower. Philip was a bachelor while acquiring more land and eventually having the parcel sold at auction in 1879. Four years later at age 58, Philip married Elizabeth C. Arnold, 37-year-old daughter of John and Betsy Arnold. Virginia, U.S., Select Marriages, 1785-1940.
[14] Loudoun County Deed Book 7E:153. Rebecca’s maiden name was Simmons, and she was raised in Pendleton County, Virginia (now West Virginia). 1850 and 1860 Federal census for Pendleton County, Virginia, Dry Run Post Office.
[15] Genealogical Abstracts from The Brunswick Herald, Brunswick, Maryland: 6 January 1899 to 26 December by Patricia B. Duncan. Willow Bend Books. 2005. The obituary listed his full name of George Michael Sanbower.
[16] Virginia Department of Historic Resources, Architectural Survey Form, DHR ID 053-5496.
[17] Ibid.
[18] Loudoun County Deed Book 8W:39.
[19] Loudoun County Deed Book 9S:4.
[20] Loudoun County Will Book 107:577. Written 18 January 1973 and submitted to the county court for probate on 4 January 1983.
[21] Loudoun County Deed Book 856:1915.
[22] Loudoun County Instruments #20151117-0076449 and #20181203-0069415 respectively.
[23] Loudoun County Instrument #20201217-0124777 for the Preliminary/Record Plat for Downey Farm.
[24] Loudoun County document Z20505760101 40207 Lovettsville Rd Demo.
[25] Loudoun County Memorandum from Wil Milone, Planner II, Community Planning to Robert Williams, Project Manager, Building and Development, dated 25 March 2024. Document #ZONR-2024-010915 Carrington CP Referral.
[26] Ibid.