This 1762 Virginia House Was Dismantled and Moved Piece by Piece to George Washington’s Estate

A Virginia farmhouse that spent its first 184 years in Sussex County now sits on the Potomac River, just downstream from George Washington‘s Mount Vernon—and it’s recently found a buyer.

Known as Carlby, the five-bedroom house measures 2,992 square feet on 2.18 acres at 4509 Carlby Lane in Alexandria and is listed for $3,799,000. Now marked as “contingent,” the home is listed with Andrea Courduvelis and Diane G. Murphy of TTR Sotheby’s International Realty.

It dates to 1762, when it stood in Sussex County and went by the Mitchell House. In 1946, Carl W. Porter, Fairfax County’s director of public works and a retired Navy captain, bought it and had it dismantled before it was carted north to waterfront land that had once been part of Washington’s Mount Vernon estate. He and his wife, Beatrice, renamed it Carlby.

“Carl Porter bought the house where it was in Sussex County, took it apart piece by piece, labeled each piece and put it back together on the property it sits on today,” Courduvelis says. “The property has stayed within the family for three generations.”

The listing describes Carlby as the boyhood home of Gen. Winfield Scott, who served in the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, and the Civil War. The attribution traces to a 1976 study by historian Barbara Spann, prepared for the Fairfax County History Commission. Courduvelis points to the wide solid-wood staircase, where she says Scott wrote his name.

The floor plan follows the conventions of its era, built front to back with an emphasis on symmetry.

“What is now considered the rear entrance was originally the home’s primary entrance, as visitors commonly arrived by water or horseback,” Courduvelis says. “From today’s front door, you can see straight through the house to the Potomac River. This is a design that was characteristic of the time period, but is unique today.”

Inside are wide-plank pine floors, original solid-wood paneling painted in period colors, 12-foot ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows, and fireplaces throughout. A custom chandelier in the dining room was designed by Porter, copied from one at Gunston Hall—a landmark estate for 18th-century design, once owned by Virginia founding father George Mason.

The kitchen was renovated in the 1990s, when the second generation of the family moved in, and remains the only interior space that departs from the original structure.

“Together, these elements give Carlby a warmth, authenticity, and sense of history that simply cannot be re-created in a newly built home,” Courduvelis says.

The grounds include 151 feet of water frontage and a pier, plus a detached double garage, a historic smokehouse, and a shed. Courduvelis says buyers respond first to the seclusion, and then to the view.

“Many have commented on how it feels like you are stepping back in time the moment you turn into the private driveway,” she says. “The expansive waterfront views are extraordinary and create an incredible sense of peace and tranquility.”

The sellers even have a name for the sunsets: Carlby Therapy.

Larissa Runkle is a seasoned real estate writer, lifestyle journalist, and marketing strategist with over a decade of experience and 2,000+ published articles. Her work covering housing, personal finance, and lifestyle has appeared in major publications like Bankrate, MarketWatch, Yahoo Finance, and New York Post. In 2023, she launched a boutique copywriting studio to partner with land developers and top brokerages, creating strategic content that builds lasting brand authority. When she isn’t writing, Larissa enjoys the outdoors from her home in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, where she lives with her husband, son, and German shepherd, Yoko.