Overview

June 8th, 1818 was the day Abner Gibson purchased outright Lots 51 and 52 from Burr Powell, son of Town founder Leven Powell, for $141.52. Abner Gibson, a lawyer and manufacturer of wagons and wagon wheels, was one of twenty-one heads of families listed in the 1810 census. The west brick portion was built in 1820 by Richard Cochran who also built the Baptist parsonage, Vine Hill (now The Chronicle of the Horse), and the Luck House among others. Early in 1856, Johns Parish vestrymen purchased lots 51 and 52 'with the brick dwelling thereon situated' for $1,200. They stipulated that this tract could also be used 'as a place for Public Worship or as a Burial Place,' which might explain the unexplicable noises and sightings reported by local Town folks and guests. William Benton, builder of Oak Hill, Benton, New Lisbon and Benton Bridge on Route 626, built the east side of the Parsonage in 1858. Johns Parish continued to own the Episcopal Parsonage until 1987 when it was sold to the present owner who created the Middleburg Country Inn in 1990.