By Kim Davis

Spring signals the transition to one of our area’s loveliest times of the year. Even now, early blooming daffodils, crocus, and snowdrops thrust their stems above the soil. It also heralds the return of Old Town Alexandria’s annual Garden Club of Virginia’s Historic Garden Week Tour. The leisurely walking tour is one of Virginia’s most beloved traditions, featuring historic homes and secluded gardens located along the tree-lined streets of the historic district. Organized by two local garden clubs, Hunting Creek Garden Club and The Garden Club of Alexandria, this year’s tour highlights five historic homes and two Garden Club of Virginia restoration projects: George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens and Green Spring Gardens.

Among the featured properties on tour, 317 South Saint Asaph Street stands out as a textbook example of the evolution of early Alexandria homes. According to the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), the ‘year of erection’ is ‘probably late 18th C,’ so the house likely dates from the later 1700s. The property today comprises a gracious late‑18th‑century flounder‑style dwelling and a humble one‑room structure tucked at the rear of the lot, reflecting layers of early residential use on the site. Like much of Old Town, the site’s history predates the present house, dating back to earlier colonial‑era landholdings that were later subdivided as Alexandria developed after 1749.

The property’s history dates to 1669, when King Charles II granted the land to Sir Richard Berkeley, then Governor of Virginia. It would be another century before a home was constructed. Sometime between about 1750 and 1770, a simple “flounder” house was built at the back of the property, with one room and a fireplace on the ground floor and a bedroom above, reached by a wooden ladder.

Flounder houses with narrow lots were common at the time. Built with a high, windowless rear wall, the single-sloped shed roof is simpler and cheaper to frame than more complex gabled or hipped roofs. They were often designed to skirt the period’s glass tax by minimizing the use of windows. Typically, one room deep, the Birch home is on a double lot and has a two‑story, cantilevered porch along the left side.

During this era, homeowners expanded Flounder houses, gradually transforming a modest single-sloped roof, which is simpler and cheaper to frame than the more complex gabled or hipped roofs. 317 South Saint Asaph demonstrates this early building pattern’s evolution.

The den, tucked between the kitchen and dining room, is the oldest room in the house. It includes the original fireplace and is believed to date between 1769 and 1771.  In 1820, what is now the dining room and living room were added. The stairs leading from the foyer are original to the 1800s addition. In 1860, a bay window was added to add light and update the façade to 19th‑century tastes. The original wood‑plank staircase survives as a tangible link to the home’s earliest days.

Like many early Alexandria properties, the home once relied on a separate outbuilding for its kitchen. The original kitchen was situated in the old smokehouse before it was eventually connected to the main structure. A new kitchen was constructed in 1980, adding modern functionality while leaving earlier spaces intact. Throughout, the original wooden floors, five working wood‑burning fireplaces, and early interior trim attest to the home’s 18th‑century origins.

The property’s architectural and historical significance is documented in the Library of Congress Historic American Buildings Survey, a recognition reserved for structures of particular interest and integrity. The house also falls within the Alexandria Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and appears in local preservation inventories as part of the city’s important stock of 18th‑century domestic architecture. Together, these designations underscore the home’s place in Old Town’s historic fabric.

For current owner Ruthi Birch, that sense of history is part of the home’s appeal. Twelve years ago, she and her husband, Ron, left their Georgetown home, circa 1840, after deciding it was too small.

“We were drawn to Alexandria’s walkable streets and historic charm,” Ruthi said. “When we discovered 317 South Saint Asaph, I never looked at another house. We were thrilled to have the opportunity to care for such a unique historic house and garden.”

Ruthi is a successful businesswoman, author, and speaker. She founded Ruthi Postow Staffing, a consulting and recruitment firm in Washington, D.C., serving many of the area’s top executives.  Her husband, Ron, left Columbia Law School after graduation and moved from New York to Alaska, where he held numerous positions, including District Attorney and Chief of Staff to Senator Ted Stevens, before starting his law firm, Birch Horton Bittner and Cherot.

Since selling her business to her son, Alex, Ruthi has been busy building her next career as a cartoonist and illustrator. Her work can be found on Instagram, Facebook, and http://www.RuthiBirch.com.

The light-filled kitchen is Ruthi’s workspace in the winter. Her computer sits on the counter where she creates cartoons. As soon as the weather warms, she will move her studio to the wrought iron table in the garden, where she and her adorable Wheaten terrier, Mr. Magoo, “live” till winter.

The garden is the showplace of the neighborhood, where apple-blossom trees, camellias, and roses bloom sequentially through spring and summer, and into the fall. The millstone patio in the garden, as well as the built-in cupboard in the dining room, were brought from an estate in Hanover County, Virginia, in the 1800s. Behind the back wall are two raised vegetable gardens and three parking spaces — a rarity in Old Town.

As visitors step through the front door of 317 South Saint Asaph during Historic Garden Week, they will see an example of a centuries-old historic home, revealing how Alexandria families have lived, worked, and entertained across three centuries. It offers a rare opportunity to see the city’s architectural history not as a moment in time, but as a living, evolving story that continues to unfold with each new generation of owners.

Old Town Alexandria’s Historic Garden Week Tour will be held on Saturday, April 18^th, from 10:00 a.m. to 4 p.m. Advance tickets are $55 online at gcvirginia.org and the Alexandria Visitor Center (211 King Street) and are $65 on tour day. The event includes five historic homes and complimentary refreshments at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 228 South Pitt Street, from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

A highlight of the tour is Hunting Creek Garden Club’s popular Spring Marketplace Boutique at the Atheneum, located at 201 Prince Street from 9:00 a.m. to 4 p.m. It features an array of vendors, including two beautiful new coffee table books by local authors showcasing the history and preservation of our city’s finest historic homes, Georgetown Paperie stationary and personalized gifts, Heidi Wynne sumptuous cashmere,  Charleston-based jewelry designer Janet Gregg’s classic, semi‑precious statement pieces,  independent jewelry designer Katherine Jones’s classic, handmade gemstone-designed necklaces, KT Bonacci hand-painted hats and bags featuring motifs and scenic, whimsical imagery, well known Alexandria jewelry designer Meg Carter’s beautiful hand-crafted jewelry, Scamps Toffee, a small-batch, buttery, boutique toffee, Virginia Donelson custom oil portraits, and much more.

About the Author: Kim Davis has resided in Alexandria since 1980.  Originally from Louisiana, she majored in Journalism, Advertising, and Public Relations at LSU, managing a myriad of clients throughout the years.  She and her husband, Randy, raised two children in Alexandria and now enjoy their four young granddaughters.  She has been active in numerous community activities throughout the years, serving as President of St. Stephens & St. Agnes’s Parent Association, President of the Parents’ Council of Washington, managing PR for the National Race for the Cure, and served on the board of the Center for Alexandria’s Children.  She is a member and former President of the Hunting Creek Garden Club, which biannually organizes the Garden Club of Virginia’s Historic Home and Garden Tour.