The Oakland home, that was built in 1838, is currently listed both as a Virginia Historical Landmark and as a National Historical Landmark. The historical home is the site of the Nelson County Musuem of Rural History.
In the basement level of the Nelson County Rural Musuem, there are exhibits about the geological history of Nelson and it’s human history. Nelsonite is the only rock, in the state of Virginia, that is named after a Virginia county.
In the basement, the Nelson County Rural Musuem has additional exhibits about the “Rural Free Delivery” system.
Upstairs there is an exhibit about the electrification of Nelson County. Both President Teddy Roosevelt and his cousin President Franklin Roosevelt’s pushed to electrify various parts of the United States.
Across from the rural electrification exhibit, the musuem has another exhibit on the devastating impact of Hurricane Camila’s landfall between August 19th and 20th in 1969. In a matter of five hours, about thirty inches of rain fell in Nelson county. Over 900 buildings were destroyed, over 100 bridges were destroyed, and 124 lives were lost making it one of the worst natural disasters in Virginia.
Newspaper articles from The Richmond Times Dispatch, and other Virginia newspapers, provided updates of the rescue efforts after the onset of the devastating floods.
In August 2019, fifty years after Hurricane Camille, church services were held, in Nelson County, to honor the victims who lost their lives.
Hamilton Historical Records 