Saved from Demolition by Local Citizens

Dodona Manor is bound on its east and northeast side by residences dating from the late-18th to the early-20th centuries, and on the south and southeast sides by mid-to-late 20th-century retail development. To the west are former residences converted to office use that pre-date Marshall's arrival at Dodona Manor, and therefore contribute to the Marshall-era viewshed that extends west from the front porch of the museum.

The property's close proximity to adjacent commercial development in Leesburg made it an attractive site for redevelopment. By the 1980s a plan to destroy the Marshall house and redevelop the property into commercial townhouse offices was submitted to the Town of Leesburg. The prospect of this fate befalling the beloved home of one of America's most honored heroes inspired B. Powell Harrison, a prominent Leesburg citizen, to establish the George C. Marshall Home Preservation Fund and serve its director.

The late B. Powell Harrison, prominent Leesburg citizen who galvinized local support to save Dodona Manor from demolition. Harrison helped raise millions to restore Marshall's home.

To save the property, the non-profit organization raised monies from public and private sources, particularly from the European Marshall Plan countries where Marshall is still well known. This funding, in conjunction with a significant reduction in the sale price of the property from the Winn family, enabled the Marshall Home Preservation Fund to purchase the property in 1995.

That same year, Dodona Manor was placed in Leesburg's Old and Historic District. In the following year, 1996, the property was designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service.

A Part of the Community: Then and Now

View of Dodona Manor on the Knoll overloooking Leesburg Photo courtesy of the Thomas Balch Library.

Frank McCarthy, formerly Assistant Secretary of the General Staff, visiting the Marshalls at Dodona in 1956.

Dodona Manor has always been an integral part of the Leesburg community. During the 19th and early 20th centuries the house was known as Oak Hill, and denoted the entrance to the town from its prominent position along a major east-west thoroughfare that bisects Leesburg.

Prior to 1860, major alterations to the structure constitute the building one sees today. During the Civil War, the enlarged residence served as a girl's school. In the early 20th-century, the residence was occupied by Yvon Pike, descendant of Zebulon Pike, who sold the property to Northcutt Ely, Executive Assistant to Secretary of the Interior Ray Lyman Wilbur, in the Hoover administration.

When Dodona Manor was purchased by the Marshalls in 1941, the property was already a well-known local landmark. As the home of Leesburg's most prominent citizen, Dodona Manor continued in the focus of the community as the arrivals and departures of General Marshall, his wife, Katherine, and their guests were duly noted in the local newspapers.

Today, Dodona Manor is situated in a park-like setting of trees and gardens on a knoll overlooking Leesburg. In its unique location on East Market Street, the museum contributes to the character and viability of the town's historic center, uniting the business and cultural interests of this vibrant region with the international community of Washington D.C. and the 16 nations of the Marshall Plan.

View of Dodona Manor from East Market Street. The bronze statue of Marshall in his civilian clothing once stood on the grounds of the Leesburg Courthouse. Today the statue makes an inviting entrance to Dodona Manor and is enjoyed by Leesburg residents and visitors alike.