Just 90 minutes drive west of the nation’s capital, within the shadow of Massanutten Mountain in the George Washington National Forest sits the historic Abraham Beydler House [pron bye-dler], built circa 1790, and on the National Register of Historic Places. The original manor house is of the Federal architectural style, constructed of stone and brick made on the property, incorporating foundations built from stacked fieldstones of limestone and slate. The manor house, and related structures, have become known as Valhalla Farm, consisting of the original house plus ‘ell’addition dating to the mid 1800’s, a smokehouse and artists studio . The interior of the main house retains original horsehair plaster walls, while the floors are heart-of-pine planks with sawdust caulking between the planks. All of the doors are of six-panel design, consisting of two-inch thick planks, with many of the doors still with their original hardware. A boxed staircase connects the first-floor dining room with the upstairs.
