Richard and Olivia Lansdale hold daughter Margaret, oldest of their three children, at the family home Elmhurst. Lansdale ran the Sherwood Mill and was prominent in Democratic politics, serving as sheriff, county commissioner, and member of the House of Delegates in the 1920s and '30s. Olivia Lansdale once operated "Central," the telephone exchange.

Snow-clad Elmhurst has housed the Lansdale family for nearly a century. Next to it stood the landmark Sherwood Roller Mill which Richard H. Lansdale acquired in 1912. Son Thomas F. Lansdale, also a miller, joked in later years that he could boast of three things: He lived in the house he was born in (Elmhurst), he never drove a car to work -- and he took a nap every afternoon. At Elmhurst Pat Lansdale ran her successful flower business, choreographing floral decorations for many of the region's most prestigious events.