Very neat Blog on the Architectural History of 811-819 S. Cathedral Place, built in the 1880s.

Shafer's Row, 811-819 S. Cathedral Place (originally Floyd Ave)
- directly across the street from the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart.

Jessica Bankston, an independent marketing director here in Richmond, has created a great blog for her graduate level architectural history class at VCU. It focuses on her research of the row of houses located at 811-819 S. Cathedral Place. The buildings, often referred to as "Shafer's Row," were built in the 1880s by wealthy land developer John C. Shafer, a 19th century merchant whose house stood where VCU's Hibbs Hall stands today on Shafer Street (its where VCU got the name Shafer Court, the center of its Monroe Park Campus).

The blog is called "Uncovering 811-819 S. Cathedral Place, Richmond, VA: Chronicling discoveries on the historic row across from Cathedral of the Sacred Heart
 You may want see more of this site is as she documents her ongoing discoveries on the various architectural features of these houses - especially her research on the the decorative mill work and door hardware. She gets some tips on sources from her professor, Dr. Charles Brownell, head of VCU's Architectural History program (more on Dr. Brownell's annual Architectural Symposium in a upcoming blog entry). But most of what she has found has been by solid research - including contacting such local firms like the Siewers Lumber and Millwork company.

Jessica is a great example of the superior, hard working students who have worked with Dr. Brownell at VCU for nearly 20 years. Let's hope she posts her final paper on the site.

- Ray B.