Forest Hill/Springhill, Richmond, Virginia

On a perfect day, we went on a house tour of one of Richmond's other trolley suburbs, Forest Hill.

The tour started at a park that is the site of 'The Stone House', believed to be the oldest stone residence in Richmond. From 1890 to 1932, the 100-acre-plus estate served as Forest Hill Park and as a depot for the electric trolley, with a carousel, penny arcade, boathouse, swimming area and golf course.

Part of the area, Springhill, was recently named an official Old & Historic District. The area has a wide variety of architectural styles, including Italianate, Victorian, Arts&Crafts, and 1950s cottages. The neighborhood as a whole has fantastic landscaping and countless huge old trees.

This area is maybe a 20 minute bike ride from our house, but across the river. It is semi-close, but an entirely separate part of city. Other similarly-aged neighborhoods in the the city, in addition to where we are located, include Barton Heights and Highland Park. None of the others are as quite as wholesome as Forest Hill...

Not all of the houses below were on the tour. Also, we were forbidden from taking any pictures inside the houses.

1203 W. 41st Street
"A stately Tudor revival home that once served as a boarding house. The new owners gutted almost the entire house while attempting to salvage its original architectural elegance."

Church of Christ in Forest Hill
1208 W. 41st Street
Built in 1898 as a 1-room schoolhouse.

1200 W. 43rd Street
1890 Victorian Gothic, one of the oldest homes in Forest Hill.

This house was very interesting on the inside & had a ginourmas yard.

1003 Taylor Ave.
"The owners purchased this Arts and Crafts bungalow a year after Hurricane Isabel, but the property looked as though the storm had just blown through."