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Upper Brandon plantation was part of an original land patent known as Brandon, granted to Captain John Martin, one of the founders of Jamestown. He was suceeded by several absentee owners, including the grandson of William Shakespeare, until the property was purchased by Benjamin Harrison II of Wakefield in 1712. In 1807, at the death of Benjamin Harrison III, the 7,000 acre property was divided between his two sons, with William Byrd Harrison inheriting the 3,555 acres that became Upper Brandon. He built the manor house in 1825 and developed the farm into a "model of modern agricultural management."(1) It remained in the Harrison family until 1948. |
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In 1985, a major corporation purchased the property, restored and furnished an 1820 manor house, constructed the conference center and began renewing the land's heritage by building a profitable, environmentally sound state-of-the-art farming operation. The farming methods have become a model for blending the best agricultural and wildlife management practices. Numerous state and national awards have recognized the success of these programs. |