Fred Miller, a 57-year-old Air Force veteran, unknowingly bought the former plantation house of Sharswood in southern Virginia, where his ancestors were enslaved. The article reports on how Miller's family used the house for frequent gatherings, and he discovered its dark history while renovating it. According to the family, there are at least 100 cousins living in a close-knit community in Virginia, which motivated Miller to find a large property to accommodate them. The story is based on an original article published by Joe Heim in the Washington Post in 2022.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-07,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
This is an updated version of a story first published on May 15, 2022.
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This → update → May
The original video can be viewed here.
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video → view → ?
Producer's note: As a 60 Minutes producer, sometimes you read about a story that you just have to pursue.
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you → read → that
That was the case for me when I read Joe Heim's story in the Washington Post about the Miller family in southern Virginia, and their purchase of the home they came to know was called Sharswood.
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they → read → home
I would like to encourage 60 Minutes viewers to read Joe Heim's article from 2022.
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I → like → 2022
Just off the side of the road sat a grand white house called Sharswood, silently holding secrets from the past, waiting for a new owner to uncover them.
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owner → sit → them
Sounds like the opening line of a southern gothic novel, but as we first reported in 2022, this story is about a real family.
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story → sound → family
And a man who found himself at the center of far more than he had bargained for.
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he → find → more
The man is Fred Miller, then a 57-year-old Air Force veteran who was looking to buy property in his Virginia hometown for his large extended family's frequent get-togethers.
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who → look → togethers
He had never heard the name Sharswood, and yet this old house would lead him on a journey of discovery, with surprises and revelations that seem both impossible and inevitable all at once.
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that → hear → surprises
These are the gentle hills of Pittsylvania County, Virginia -- quiet, rural farm country near the North Carolina border that once produced more tobacco than any county in the state.
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that → produce → state
Hey, we're gonna gather up in this room here mainly..
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we → go → room
Fred Miller grew up here in a close family that likes getting together regularly for birthdays, fish fry's, and as his cousin Adam Miller told us, just about anything.
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cousin → grow → us
We play games, and we do, like, (LAUGH) a lotta food competitions.
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we → play → competitions
I hear the food is mainly cake.
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food → hear → ?
Fred's cousin, Tonya Miller Pope, and his sister, Debra Coles, told us it's a big family.
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it → tell → us
So no wonder Fred needed to find--
Fred Miller: -- a huge place.
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Fred → need → ?
Fred lived in California, where he worked as a civil engineer for the Air Force, but he visited the family in Virginia often.
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he → live → Virginia
One day, out of the blue, my sister called me and told me about a big house up the road for sale.
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sister → call → sale
Karen Dixon-Rexroth, Fred's baby sister, had spotted it.
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Rexroth → spot → it
Me and my mom was ridin' past the house and I saw the for sale sign.
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I → ridin → sign
I said, "Oh, my goodness.
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I → say → ?
We have to get this house."
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We → have → house
I call Fred.
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I → call → Fred
He's like, "What house?" I said, "You know the house.
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You → say → house
The-- the scary house," I call it.
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I → call → it
They'd passed it every day as kids on their way to school.
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They → pass → school
What did you know about Sharswood?
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you → know → Sharswood
Just knew it was-- saw the house--
Tonya Miller Pope: A big house.
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it → know → house--
He was debating, "Should we put in a bid for it?"
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we → debate → it
I said, "Yes.
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I → say → ?
Let's do it."
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's → let → it
Did she twist your arm?
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she → twist → arm
It took all the twisting she could do.
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she → take → twisting
'Cause I-- I d-- I didn't want to buy it--
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I → want → ?
But thinking his bid would be rejected anyway, he made an offer of just above the $220,000 asking price.
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he → think → price
Why did you think they weren't going to accept the offer?
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they → think → offer
Well, I mean, I'm-- initially, me, I thought that because I was Black that they would never-- surely, they would never sell this house to someone that's Black.
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that → mean → someone
So for us to be able to own this thing, I thought it would never happen.
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it → own → thing
So guess what happened?
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what → guess → ?
…and 233 more, not listed.
