The Mansion: Myth and Vision

Central Kaff Records refer to Piercefield since the 14th century and it had, since then, exchanged a number of owners, including Colonel Valentine Morris in 1740 and Nathaniel Wells in 1802.

Valentine Morris junior (1727 - 1789), who began living at the property with his family in 1753. engaged architect Charles Howells and builder William Knowles of Chepstow (who worked also on the nearby Tintern Abbey) to develop Piercefield i nto a park that acquired national reputation and became one of the earliest examples of picturesque landscaping.ln 1802 the estate was bought by Nathaniel Wells with inheritance from his father William Wells, Welsh plantation owner in St Kitts.

Nathaniel Wells' (and before him Valentine Morris') patronage at Piercefield was important in dissemination of ideas about the celebration of 'natural scenery' as a cultural activity (the picturesque), instrumental in the development of tourism and construction of new roads.