camellia x vernalis 'yuletide' seems like a good fit.

Yuletide is beautiful, but is probably not going to be the hardiest for this area. I would suggest you do some research on hardy varieties. Camellia Forest Nursery's website is a good place to start. Then once you find a variety you like (blooming period, flower color, form, etc.), try to find it locally at a Merrifield, or American Plant. Then tend to carry the hardy varieties.

Is your spot full sun, or part sun? What exposure?

Japonicas will do well with morning shade, afternoon dappled shade to full sun and some wind protection. Sasanquas will take a bit more sun than japonicas. Strong morning sun is the worst for either.

Thanks, Jeff. I did have a Yuletide and Dave in nova got it right - wasn't hardy enough. The first freeze would invariably come before the first blooms, killing the ebuds.

Dave, the sun exposure should be good. It's all morning shade with varying degrees of afternoon direct and dappled sun. It's along side my house, so the exposure varies a bit but it should work.

I'll take a look at the Camellia Forest Nursery website for form, which is the biggest consideration.

thanks both

something about the camellia forest website is confusing to me. they list zones 7 and 7a rather than 7a and 7b. am i to assume they mean 7 to indicate the upper portion of zone 7 and 7a for the lower (or vice versa)?
anyway, if they are accurate about hardiness into upper zone 7, some of the cultivars listed at their link below have attributes that you want for form and height. you might also like 'la peppermint'. the one i had sported both solid and striped individual flowers of rose-form double on an upright shrub.
they recommend 'jacks' for a shrub that will remain small for many years.

Here is a link that might be useful: camellia forest japonicas for zone 7

I'm in Annapolis. You might try 'Kanjiro.' Old sansanqua cultivar, quite hardy in our area and the buds/blooms are very cold tolerant - in my garden, mature buds/open blooms seem to do fine (mimimal damage) through temps in the mid- 20's, and when the winter does settle in, a few days of warmish weather will bring on a new crop of flowers. It's located pretty close to the house on the northeast corner, gets bright shade throughout the morning and early afternoon and a little direct late-afternoon sun. Plant descriptions will say it grows anywhere from 10 to 20 feet tall and 4 to 8 feet wide, but it's relatively slow-growing; mine is currently between 6 and 7 feet tall and about 3 feet wide, and has been that way for the last 6 years with no pruning. Flowers are deep rose red, single to semi-double, nice deep green (almost blue-green) foliage. It usually starts blooming for me just before Thanksgiving and will bloom on and off through February.

Even though it's an old cultivar, it's usually pretty available because it's one of the most common rootstocks for grafting.

- Steve

A 20' one might be something like 40 years old. I've seen camellias here you could almost use as summer shade trees. Japanese photos show huge ones. Many rhododendrons and dwarf/slow-growing conifers also make large shrubs, even trees given enough time. That's why you read large dimensions given for shrubs you are used to seeing much smaller. If they are lucky some of those little ones will be big one day, too.