You approach Virginia's oldest plantation along a manicured path that wends its way past a pair of brick storage barns and a matched set of trim, two-story buildings that together form what the guidebooks exalt as a rare Queen Anne-style courtyard, the only surviving example in the United States. Just ahead, rolling lawns and a canopy of pecan, willow oak and English walnut trees frame an imposing, multi-tiered manor house complete with porticoed dormer windows and a welcoming 3]-foot pineapple finial crowning its mansard roof. Pretty impressive, especially when you consider that this isn't even the front entrance to Shirley Plantation.

Back in Colonial times, when Shirley and the other sprawling plantation properties of eastern Virginia were controlled by a handful of rich and politically powerful families, travelers came calling at the front door, just steps up from the James River, the country's first commercial thoroughfare.

Today's visitors arrive by the carriage entrance, but not to worry. Even if some customs have changed, others have not. There is still plenty of Southern hospitality and history at Shirley and its neighboring riverfront estates in rural Charles City County. Many are open daily to the public and can be toured with ease along meandering state Route 5, also known as the John Tyler Memorial Highway, connecting the former Colonial capital, Williamsburg, with Richmond.

Prosperous Shirley Plantation was already more than a century old in the early 1720s when Elizabeth Hill, great-granddaughter of its second owner, wed John Carter, eldest son of Robert "King" Carter, Virginia's wealthiest planter. At about the same time, construction was begun on the property's cube-shaped, brick mansion. Over the next century, when Virginia's plantocracy lived a golden age powered by African slave labor and tobacco profits, Shirley became well known for its extraordinary hospitality, offering shelter and sustenance to dozens of river travelers a day. On major occasions, the guest list might include elite local families such as the Byrds, Harrisons and Tylers or an early U.S. president.

Centuries later, generations 10 and 11 of the Hill-Carter clan still occupy the upper stories of the largely unaltered manor house, but the history-rich first floor supplies more than enough to keep visitors entertained. On guided tours, they can explore the elegant parlor where Robert E. Lee's parents were married with both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson in attendance and marvel at the graceful contours of a cantilevered staircase where musicians once played Virginia reels for merrymakers in the spacious hallway below. Or they can examine the nearly two dozen signatures etched on dining-room window panes by Shirley brides bent on testing the mettle of their newly acquired diamond wedding rings.

Views from those same windows reveal distant fields where corn, soy, wheat and cotton crops are still cultivated, a living reminder of the 800-acre plantation's all-important agricultural underpinnings.

More than just a Southern belle, Shirley Plantation is every inch a Southern survivor not only of early occupations and numerous wars, but of economic reversals, family upheavals and the ravages of time. Its role as a reconnaissance post and supply center, for instance, helped Continental army forces in America's struggle for independence. A century later during the Civil War, Shirley's strategic location near the Confederate capital of Richmond again brought the estate into harm's way. In the historic summer of 1864, the plantation was converted into a field hospital for thousands of wounded Union soldiers who fought nearby in a bloody, six-day battle between George McClellan's Army of the Potomac and Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Berkeley Plantation

Nearby Berkeley Plantation has witnessed its own tumultuous share of early American history from a privileged position above three miles of riverfront acreage. An early band of intrepid English Colonists, who disembarked in 1619, are remembered today for celebrating one of America's first Thanksgivings and -- brewing its first batches of corn whiskey, before succumbing to Indian massacres. During its 18th-century heyday, Berkeley was home to the influential Harrison clan, which produced a succession of distinguished Colonial leaders and, during the 1800s, the ninth and 23rd presidents of the United States.

But later episodes of Berkeley's history proved equally remarkable in their own way. In 1905, 60 years after the Harrisons lost control of their already deteriorated ancestral home, it was purchased by John Jamieson, familiar with the property from his days as drummer boy for McClellan's Union forces. The next generation of Jamiesons set about restoring the estate to its former glory, and today, more than a half-century later, the Berkeley Plantation that visitors view is much as it was in the days when the Colony's early leaders came to plot or party. First-floor rooms are fitted out with original hand-carved woodwork and period furniture that includes family portraits and mirrors backed by finely crushed diamonds.

The Jamiesons also resurrected 10 acres of formal gardens originally excavated by slaves before the Revolution. They include five terraces shaded by more than 1,000 crape myrtles, magnolias and tulip poplars planted by the Jamiesons over more than half a century. Walkways wind past a maze of sculpted boxwood hedges and to quiet corners where garden seats invite meditation.

Nearby notables

Other plantations on the north shore of the James River include:

* Carter's Grove, once the property of Robert "King" Carter, is owned and operated today by Colonial Williamsburg. It features a fine brick mansion and extensive gardens that are open to the public. Visitors also can see the archaeological remains of Wolstenholm Towne, an early English settlement destroyed in the Powhatan Indian uprising of 1622. The entrance to Carter's Grove is on U.S. Route 60 at Pocahontas Trail, six miles east of Williamsburg. It is open from March through November and for the Christmas season; admission charged.

* Westover Plantation was once the residence of William Byrd II, the author, diarist and founder of Richmond and Petersburg. His 4,000-volume library, housed apart from the classic Georgian manor house, fell victim to Civil War battles, and the estate was eventually sold by a debt-ridden heir. The Fisher family purchased the property in the 19th century and has lived there for four generations. Visitors can stroll the gardens with their magnificent tulip poplars and admire commanding views onto the James, but must wait for Historic Garden Week in April to see its beautiful interior. Gardens and outbuildings are open daily; admission charged.

* Evelynton Plantation was part of William Byrd's sprawling Westover and passed through several hands before its purchase in 1847 by Edmund Ruffin Jr., son of the renowned agronomist whose innovative fertilization methods revived tobacco-depleted soil along the James River. The manor house, destroyed during the Civil War, was rebuilt in 1936 and remains the home of the Ruffin family. The Georgian Revival mansion and its groomed gardens are open for tours daily except on major holidays;

admission charged.

* Sherwood Forest Plantation claims the distinction of having been owned by two U.S. chief executives. William Henry Harrison, the ninth president, inherited the plantation in the late 18th century. His successor, John Tyler, purchased the property in 1842, and since then, it has been owned continuously by his descendants. Restored in the mid-1970s, it boasts America's longest frame house, including a 68-foot-long ballroom. Gardens, lawns and woodlands are planted with 80 varieties of trees that include a rare gingko brought to Tyler by Capt. Matthew Perry from the Orient in the 1850s. This year, the plantation opens a little-known Civil War fort where 1,100 African-American Union soldiers, outnumbered more than two-to-one, repulsed Confederate cavalrymen in 1864. Tours offered daily year-round except major holidays; admission charged.

When you go ...

Getting there: To get to Shirley Plantation, take Interstate 95 south to Interstate 295 south. Follow 295 to exit 22A, which is Virginia Route 5. Take Route 5 for 10 miles, following signs for Shirley Plantation, which is located on the right. The other plantations, with the exception of Carter's Grove, are located east of Shirley Plantation along Route 5. To get to Carter's Grove, continue on Route 5 into Williamsburg and pick up U.S Route 60 south. Carter's Grove is located on Route 60 past Busch Gardens.

Where to stay

* North Bend Plantation Bed & Breakfast: A Greek Revival residence built in 1819. The 250-acre property now includes a swimming pool; rooms with private baths cost $115 to $135 per night including a country breakfast and complimentary dessert at the local tavern. Located off Route 5 at 12200 Weyanoke Road, Charles City, Va. 23030. For information, call 804-829-5176.

* Edgewood Plantation, 4800 John Tyler Highway, Charles City; rates range from $148 to $188; call 804-829-2962.

* Piney Grove at Southall's Plantation, 16920 Southall Plantation Lane, Charles City; rates range from $125 to $160, and packages are available; call 804-829-2480.

Companion reading

* "Plantation Homes of the James River," by Bruce Roberts, University of North Carolina Press, provides interesting historical commentary about the James River and its unique riverfront residences.

* "The Guide to Historic Virginians" (write for a copy at P.O. Box 4232, Richmond, Va., 23220-4232) is filled with facts on events, historic sites, museums, gardens, expeditions and more.

African-American history

* In 1619, the first Africans arrived as indentured servants to work tobacco farms along the James River, some 20 years before slavery became institutionalized in the new Colony. The Jamestown Gallery at Jamestown Settlement (757-253-7301) presents exhibits highlighting those times.

* The town of Hampton boasts the Hampton University Museum, the country's oldest African-American museum, with displays of African, African-American and Native American art, and Little England Chapel, Virginia's only known African-American missionary chapel and a National Historic Landmark.

* In Newport News, visitors can tour the Newsome House and Cultural Center, the turn-of-the-century home of J. Thomas Newsome, the first African-American lawyer to practice before the Virginia Supreme Court.

Information

* Shirley Plantation: 501 Shirley Plantation Road, Charles City, Va. 23030. Open daily except Christmas; admission $8.50 for adults, $5.50 ages 13-21, $4.50 ages 6-12; children under 6 free; call 800-232-1613.

* Berkeley Plantation: 12602 Harrison Landing Road, Charles City, Va. 23030. Open daily except Christmas; admission $8.50 for adults, $6.50 ages 13-16, $4 ages 6-12; call 804-829-6018.

* Carter's Grove: Contact Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, P.O. Box 1776, Williamsburg, Va. 23187-1776; admission is $17 for adults, $10 for ages 6-12; call 800-HISTORY.

* Westover Plantation: 7000 Westover Road, Charles City, Va. 23030; $2 donation; call 804-829-2882.

* Evelynton Plantation: 6701 John Tyler Memorial Highway, Charles City, Va. 23030; admission $7.50 for adults, $5.50 ages 13-21, $3.50 ages 6-12; children under 6 free; call 800-473-5075.

* Sherwood Forest Plantation: 14501 John Tyler Memorial Highway, Charles City, Va. 23030; admission $8.50 for adults, $5.50 for ages 6-21; children under 6 free; call 804-829-5377.

* Virginia Tourism Corp., Box B72, 901 East Byrd St., Richmond, Va. 23219; call 800-932-5827.

* Discounts: A combination pass for Shirley, Berkeley, Evelynton and Sherwood Forest plantations is available for $20. Passes can be bought at each plantation and are good for one visit to each; call 800-704-5423.

Pub Date: 7/26/98