It is a contemporary of its neighbor, Claymont Court, built across Bullskin Run by John's brother, Bushrod Corbin Washington.

John Washington did not attempt to match the grandeur of Claymont Court, as he was in line to inherit Mount Vernon, and did so in 1829.

When it was originally built, Blakeley was a Federal style two-story brick house, three bays wide, with a western wing and a one-story portico.

Renovations in the 1940s changed it to a five-bay structure, with a new Doric two-story portico and an elliptical transom over the front door.

It was Funkhouser who, feeling that a Washington house should be more grand, and wishing to complement Claymont Court, added the two-story portico.