Clarke County
Millwood and White Post
Two Clarke County villages on Route 50 and Route 340, built around an 18th-century mill and a signpost George Washington is said to have set.
Millwood and White Post are two villages a few miles apart in Clarke County, both small enough to drive through without noticing and both worth knowing about. They sit in the part of the county covered more broadly by the Berryville guide.
Millwood
A cluster of stone and frame buildings at the junction of Route 255 and Route 723, built around the Burwell-Morgan Mill — a grist mill from the 1780s, restored and run as a working museum by the Clarke County Historical Association, still grinding grain on public days. The mill is why the village is here.
White Post
A handful of houses and a garage around a crossroads south of Route 50, named for the signpost at its center, traditionally said to have been set by George Washington as a young surveyor to point the way to Lord Fairfax’s estate at Greenway Court. A white post still stands there and is maintained.
The land
Between and around the villages, Route 50 and the rural roads — Greenway, Bishop Meade — run through large farms, a great many of them under permanent conservation easement. The State Arboretum of Virginia at Blandy is nearby off Route 50. East, the land runs to the Shenandoah River and Berryville.
Almost nothing here is on public water and sewer.
Why so little comes up for sale
Clarke County has maintained some of the most restrictive rural zoning in Virginia for decades, with large minimum lot sizes outside the towns, and much of the remaining land is under easement. Very little new housing gets built, by design. The market is correspondingly small and slow, and comparables are thin enough that each sale needs reading on its own terms.
What to read before buying land
- The conservation easement, recorded with the deed: what may be built, subdivided, or altered, permanently, whoever owns it.
- The water supply and its tested flow.
- The septic permit and the dwelling size it allows.
- Any land use taxation enrollment, and the roll-back cost of changing the use.
Schools
Clarke County Public Schools, a small division with one high school — Clarke County High School in Berryville. Confirm the current assignment for a specific address.
Getting around
Route 50 runs east to Upperville and Middleburg, west to Winchester; Route 340 north to Berryville and south to Front Royal. Winchester is about fifteen minutes, I-81 about twenty. No rail, no bus.
Buying or selling here
Buyers should expect a long search and a careful purchase, and should spend their time on the easement and the water rather than on comparables. Sellers have scarcity working for them in a county that will never build much more, and a listing with the easement, survey, well test, and septic permit ready reaches the small pool of serious buyers rather than filtering them out.
Communities in Millwood and White Post
- Millwood village
- A small cluster of stone and frame buildings around the Burwell-Morgan Mill, at the junction of Route 255 and Route 723.
- White Post village
- A handful of houses and a garage around the crossroads south of Route 50, named for the signpost at its center.
- Route 50 corridor
- The highway frontage between the two villages, with farms, larger parcels, and the Blandy arboretum nearby.
- Shenandoah River east
- Farmland and river-frontage parcels toward the river and Berryville.
- Greenway and Bishop Meade Road
- Rural roads with large farms, many under conservation easement.
Schools
Clarke County Public Schools serves both villages — a small division with a single high school, Clarke County High School in Berryville. Confirm the current attendance area for a specific address with Clarke County Public Schools.
Commuting
Route 50 runs east to Upperville and Middleburg and west to Winchester, and Route 340 north to Berryville and south to Front Royal. Winchester is about fifteen minutes and I-81 about twenty. There is no rail or bus service; Northern Virginia is a long drive east on Route 50 or Route 7.
Market
These are very small markets in a county that has deliberately limited development. The villages hold a handful of houses, mostly 18th and 19th-century, and the land around them trades in large farm parcels with conservation easements common. Almost nothing here is on public water and sewer. Values turn on acreage, easement terms, water, improvements, and view, and transactions are few enough each year that comparables have to be treated with care.
Common questions
What is the Burwell-Morgan Mill?
A grist mill at Millwood dating to the 1780s, restored and operated as a working museum by the Clarke County Historical Association, which still grinds grain on public days. It is the reason the village exists and the center of it.
Why is it called White Post?
For the signpost at the crossroads, traditionally said to have been set by George Washington as a young surveyor to point the way to Lord Fairfax's estate at Greenway Court. A white post still stands at the junction and is maintained.
Why is there so little for sale here?
Clarke County has maintained some of the most restrictive rural zoning in Virginia for decades, with large minimum lot sizes outside the towns, and a great deal of the land is under permanent conservation easement. Very little new housing is created, so the market is small and slow-moving by design.
What should I read before buying land here?
The conservation easement, if there is one. It is recorded with the deed, permanently sets what can be built, subdivided, or altered, and runs with the land regardless of who owns it. Then the water supply and its tested flow, the septic permit and the dwelling size it allows, and any land use taxation enrollment along with what a change of use would cost.
What schools serve the villages?
Clarke County Public Schools, a small division with one high school — Clarke County High School in Berryville. Confirm the current attendance area for a specific address with the division.
Current Millwood and White Post listings are available through my search site.
Last updated 2026-09-08.