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This building is a provincial interpretation of the Greek Revival. The columns sit on a high basement and are of an elongated Tuscan order, with capitals of three abacus courses in a descending order of circumference. The small lunette window in the pediment, the high basement, and the ascending central stairs recall the original configuration of James Madison's Montpelier, near Orange. Constructed as a private school, the Washington Academy—which accounts for its “public” appearance—became a residence ten years later and subsequently acquired the wings.