Menokin loaned Colonial Williamsburg a piece of our woodwork collection- an 18th century stairway. It is now on display in the Pamela J. and James D. Penny Court, in the heart of the Dewitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum.
The Stairway
In 1930, Frances Benjamin Johnston photographed Menokin as part of a survey of historical sites for the Carnegie Survey of the Architecture of the South. Her images have been used by historians to piece the puzzle together of the original Menokin house and landscape for decades, and live in the Library of Congress archives (including online access.)
Stairwell as photographed by Francis Benjamin Johnston in 1930
One of these photos is the iconic winding stairway from the first floor to the second floor of the main house. This black and white photo gives us clues into the layout of the house, as well as decorative details by rumored architects such as William Buckland.
This same stairway (at least its surviving facades) is now on display via loan for an exhibit at the Pamela J. and James D. Penny Court, in the heart of the Dewitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum. Colonial Williamsburg. A perfect specimen of woodwork from this period of colonial architecture.
The photos here and below show Frances Benjamin Johnston’s photograph of the staircase and working in the field, juxtaposed with photos from the current exhibit at Colonial Williamsburg.
Learn more about the conservation of the staircase in “Conservation of the Menokin Stairway” by Christopher M. Swan.