I had passed by a few weeks ago & the old church next door caught my attention, so I decided to put a pin in the area and return when I had a chance. Luckily I stumbled upon the Graffiti House. The docents are wonderful and extremely knowledgeable. I was greeted at the door with a smile and a warm handshake. There was also a mother-son duo playing civil war era music on the front porch.
When you first enter the house you watch a brief 15 minute film on the history of the area and after the conclusion of the film, you're taken on a tour of the house. On the day I visited there was a young man volunteering and he was the tour guide for the first room. He was an absolute DELIGHT!!!! He provided the weapons explanations and a little bit of background on the house. He was the sweetest young man and extremely knowledgeable!
After the weapons explanation, I proceeded upstairs with one of the other docents who explained about the history of the house and the "graffiti" on the walls. Downstairs, on one of the "new walls" there are several hundred signatures on the wall from descendants of people that were connected to the Brandy Station battles. It was a really neat way to include the community in a piece of history.
The house was in serious disrepair, it sat to rot for many years until it was purchased to be an office building and subsequently sold to the Brandy Station Foundation. There are some modifications and upgrades, but the house still has the original floors, staircase, as well as many other original attributes.
The house changed hands (Federal and Confederate) several times during the Civil War, so both sides are reflected throughout the house, as well as in the flags flown in the front.
The Graffiti House is free to visit and is a wonderful piece of history, especially is you are a history buff. They also host an event around Halloween that offers the public to stay overnight with the ghosts. I will definitely be returning for that. I felt someone touch my wrist while I was upstairs near the amputation station, so I think they want me to return. read more