Another part of Booth history lost

[L Verge]

When Booth and Herold reached the village of Port Royal, Virginia, they stopped briefly at the Brockenbrough-Peyton House, until Miss Sarah Peyton decided that it was not proper for her to be there alone with two strange men. The historic site still stands - barely.

When the Rockefeller Foundation was looking for a colonial town to restore, Port Royal was one that was in the running, along with Williamsburg and Annapolis. There were so many things in each town that were well-documented at that time, and I believe that those records are held at the College of William and Mary.

As for the Peyton house, it had a beautifully intricate entryway of hand-carved wooden panels. Sometime in the 1920s or 1930s, those panels were bought by a museum in Kansas City. Once on display as part of their decorative arts holdings, they have been packed away for years.

There have been desperate attempts made to sell the Peyton house to someone who would lovingly restore it. We had heard that the museum was willing to donate the panels back to someone who would do the restoration. However, forum member Art Loux has just sent word that the museum has sold the woodwork to a private collector. I've asked Art to supply his photo of the pieces that he took at the museum in the 1980s.