About our rating systemIn 1886, Maj. James Henry Dooley, another of Richmond's many self-made millionaires, purchased a 100-acre dairy farm and built this 33-room Romanesque Revival-style mansion surrounded by beautifully landscaped grounds. Maymont is elaborately furnished with pieces from many periods chosen by the Dooleys -- Oriental carpets, an Art Nouveau swan-shaped bed, marble and bronze sculpture, porcelains, tapestries, and Tiffany vases. The Nature & Visitor Center has interactive exhibits interpreting the James River. There are outdoor animal habitats for birds, bison, beaver, deer, elk, and bear. At the Children's Farm, youngsters can feed chickens, piglets, goats, peacocks, cows, donkeys, and sheep. A collection of late-19th- and early-20th-century horse-drawn carriages is on display at the Carriage House. Carriage and hayrides are a weekend afternoon option during summer. You can see everything else on your own, but you must take a guided tour in order to visit Maymont House Museum's upstairs rooms.
