Hanover Tavern and Court

Then went to Hanover - which contains both Hanover Court House and Hanover Tavern. The latter is another place Donalds would definitely have visited:

It was at the heart of Hanover society and we know that they lived just a few miles along the road at Page's or Hanover Town - again from the Virginia Gazette and a letter Robert Donald wrote to Washington - and a few miles the other way on the South Anna on Alexander's plantation.

There was a wedding going on in the tavern, but went in anyway - haven't come all this way etc. The tavern was interesting as during a lot of restoration work they had uncovered many period features from the colonial times, so once again I started wishing that walls can talk. Met Darshell who works there. Her family also used to be in Page's/Hanover Town and she had been researching their time there. This is taken in the garden of Hanover Tavern.

We may be the looking calm, but Darshell and I are sitting literally in the eye of the storm of history. The building over the other side of the road is Hanover Court House - the scene of Patrick Henry's "Give me Liberty" speech.

You can also just see a large memorial to the far left of the picture - and here is a detail below.

Hanover
To her Confederate Soldiers and to her Noble Women who loved them 1861-65. 

The area was the scene of many battles during the Civil War - in fact there was a battle at Hanover Court House.

That's the prison on the right hand side and the court house on the left hand side - both buildings were early 18th century, so both there for when the Donalds were in town.