Harmony Hall Presentation Part 5

Maral Kalbian, an architectural historian with twenty one years of experience documenting the historic buildings of the Shenandoah Valley, and Margaret Peters, former historian with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, present their findings on Harmony Hall. Harmony Hall, also know as Fort Bowman, was built around 1753 and was the residence of George Bowman, son-in-law of Jost Hite. The building has stood through many important events in the Valley, such as the growth of agriculture, the Battle of Cedar Creek, the rise of tourism, and the construction of Interstate 81. The research focused on the residents of the house as well as its initial settlement and construction, using photographs, interviews with past residents and researchers, and court documents. The project was made possible with a grant from the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities.

In this section Kalbian discusses the evolution of the house through the twentieth century, focusing heavily on how the house looked during the HABS survey conducted in 1970-71 by the University of Virginia versus the extensive remodeling that was done by the O'Connell family shortly thereafter.

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