Walter Reed Birthplace, Belroi, Gloucester Courthouse, Virginia
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The Walter Reed Birthplace is a small two-room and loft frame house in Gloucester County, Virginia. It was built in the first half of the 19th century. Dr. Walter Reed was born here in September 1851.
Walter Reed’s father was a minister of the Gloucester Circuit of the Methodist Episcopal Church. When he came to Belroi in Gloucester County, the parsonage was not finished. The family stayed in this small white weatherboard sided cottage. As described by Walter Reed’s sister, Laura Reed Blincoe, it was a “small affair with one large room upstairs and a porch in front.” James, Walter Reed’s brother, simply described the cottage as “cozy” and “comfortable”.
The property was acquired by the Walter Reed Commission of the Medical Society of Virginia in 1926. The property was restored the following year. At this time, a room which had been added to the southeast side was removed. The main chimney was returned to its exterior location. The weatherboard, shingle roof and sash windows were replaced.
The house was given over to the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities in 1968. A further restoration occurred in 1970 when a new roof was added and the plasterwork replaced in the upstairs room. The restored house retains the basic form and much of the finished structure as it originally stood when Walter Reed was born here.
Walter Reed Birthplace, Belroi, Gloucester Courthouse, Virginia
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The property was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in September 1973.
