On the banks of the James River, a group of 38 English settlers arrived at Berkeley Hundred on Dec. 4, 1619. The 8,000-acre site later became known as Berkeley Plantation and eventually the home of the Harrison family. In 1726, Benjamin Harrison IV built a Georgia-style three-story brick mansion overlooking the river. On Feb. 9, 1773, William Henry Harrison, the youngest child of Benjamin V and Elizabeth Bassett Harrison, was born at the house.
In the early 1900s, Malcolm and Grace Jamieson bought the house from his father John and restored the home. They ultimately opened the house to the public. In 1971, the home became a National Historic Landmark.
