About Stratton Hall | Stratton Hall 1794

Dr. James Stratton (1755-1812) studied to be a doctor, served as a surgeon’s assistant during the Revolutionary War and, when he returned, began his own successful medical practice. Stratton began purchasing the parcels of land on which he would build Stratton Hall during George Washington’s first term as president. The house was built during Washington’s second term in office and in the first decade of the American Republic. The house was completed in 1794.

One of Stratton’s children, Charles Creighton Stratton (1796-1859), trained as a lawyer and served as a U. S. Congressman from New Jersey. He also was the state’s first governor to be popularly elected by the people. To date, he is the only person from Gloucester County to have served as the state’s governor.

The property left the ownership of the Stratton family in 1869 when James D. Gibbs, a Philadelphia businessman, purchased it for use as a summer retreat for his family. The Gibbses made several Victorian modifications to the building, including the construction of a covered verandah, which has since been removed, and the replacement of the original front windows with tall French doors that opened onto the verandah. After Charles Gibbs, James’ son, died in the 1930s, the property changed hands several times. We purchased the property in 1984.

Stratton Hall, a brick structure built on a fieldstone foundation, is a blend of Federal and Georgian styles of architecture. The north facade features a decorative pattern of glazed header bricks. The house has a typically Georgian center hall plan. The Federal elements include a front door framed with columns and pediments topped with an arched fanlight window, slender arched dormer windows with beautifully carved moldings, delicately carved fireplace surrounds and mantels, ceiling medallions and crown moldings. The structure retains many other original features including windows, doors, wood floors, and plaster walls.