HAPPY RETREAT

Designated by PAWV in 2010 as Endangered, is to be saved by a joint Public-Private effort.

Friends of Happy Retreat (FOHR) and the City of Charles Town have announced a plan for the acquisition and restoration of Happy Retreat, the 1780 home of Charles Washington, brother of George Washington and founder of Charles Town.  The City has agreed to purchase 10 acres of the 12.2 acre property.  FOHR will purchase the house and 2.2 acres surrounding it.  The total purchase price of the property will be $775,000.

Of that, FOHR will pay $425,000 and the City will pay $350,000.  Closing on the sale will take place by the end of June.   The Preservation Alliance of West Virginia included Happy Retreat on its Endangered Property List in 2010.

​FOHR plans to restore the house to be used as center for culture and history.  It will showcase the role George Washington and the Washington family played in the early settlement of what is now Jefferson County. The City will include the 10 acre portion it is buying in a planned linear park along Evitts Run, which flows through the west end of Charles Town.  Walking trails will connect the two properties, and will include access to the gravesites of Charles Washington and his wife Mildred.

FOHR launched its fundraising campaign at the end of January.   For further information, please visit http://www.happyretreat.org.