Established in 1823, the Virginia Theological Seminary acquired
a sizable amount of its current property off Quaker Lane four
years later. In 1857, the Episcopal educational institution
announced plans to build a new structure on this site and
advertised in local papers and the Southern Churchman
publication for proposals. The new building was to be three
stories high, with a prayer hall that could hold at least 100
people, a kitchen, pantry, large dining room, and at least 24
rooms for students. The announcement also noted the building
would “stand upon an eminence 256 feet above the Potomac River,
overlooking the cities of Washington and Alexandria.” This
location might explain the additional request that the plan
“embrace a tower, cupola, or spire, arranged for a clock, and a
place for observation.” A Vermont-born architect, Norris G.
Starkweather, designed the new building, which featured semi-
circular arched windows and doors, corner buttresses, rounded
arch openings, and a central tower with a domed cup