Clik here to view.
The Yankee Who Died for Virginia
Jonathan Taylor Mann A few years ago I became intrigued by the story of Jonathan Taylor Mann and had the good fortune to be able to contact his great great grandson, Jim Mann, who shared...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Murder in Old Lexington
William George White Just recently I learned for the first time about the story of Tom Blackburn, a VMI cadet who was slain in downtown Lexington in 1854. Given the prominence of the persons...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Schools of Spotsylvania
School at Glenburnie, the farm of John Henry Biscoe, 1897 One hundred years ago, long before the consolidation of the county's school district, Spotsylvania's landscape was dotted with one and two...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Five Sisters
Isabella Stringfellow Recently the existence of an album of rare photographs was brought to my attention by an alert reader of Spotsylvania Memory. This album had been acquired by its present owner...
View ArticleClik here to view.
"Death has broken life's silver chain"
Julia Kale Alexander This is the second in a series I am writing about people whose portraits appear in an album that recently surfaced in the Fredericksburg area. Julia Anton Kale was born at...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Louisa and Joshua
Marie Louisa Kale Taylor Recently an album containing rare photographs was discovered in the Fredericksburg area. Because I had written about a number of the people whose portraits are contained in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Considering Mr. Row
George Washington Estes Row Today I write my 100th essay for Spotsylvania Memory. It is fitting, therefore, that I choose as my subject the life of my great grandfather, George Washington Estes...
View ArticleClik here to view.
"The horses are actually starving to death"
George Washington Estes Row Thanks to the diligent efforts of James Duffy and Deborah Humphries, a cache of my family's papers was recently discovered in Spotsylvania. Some of this material dates...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Faces at Middletown
National Park Service display at Middletown, Virginia Not long ago the National Park Service's Cedar Creek and Belle Grove site put out the word that their new museum was looking for photographs of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Images once lost, now found
Absalom Row During the past week a number of photographs--some of which have not been seen by any living person until now--have been discovered by Spotsylvania Memory. In an earlier post I had...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Images once lost, now found-Part 2
Nannie Row Nannie Row (1831-1889), known to many as "Aunt Nan," was the only sister of my great grandfather who never married. Like her mother, Nannie lived her entire life at Greenfield, my...
View ArticleClik here to view.
"To The Troopers of Spotsylvania"
George Washington Estes Row (right) During his service in the Confederate cavalry, George Washington Estes Row (1843-1883) served as a courier for at least three different generals. In 1862 he was...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Journal of Absalom Row
The slaves of Absalom Row, spring 1825 During a research trip to Spotsylvania earlier this month, a family artifact that had been hidden away for decades was rediscovered. It is a leather bound...
View ArticleClik here to view.
"My dear daughter"
Lizzie Houston One of the advantages of being a daughter of George Washington Houston was that your father could afford to send you to board at the Ann Smith Academy in Lexington. This exclusive...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Of squirrels slain, and a brother lost
Sunshine, as it looked in the 1950s Most of us who are parents have had the experience of teaching our children to write notes to relatives, thanking them for a gift received or to share some...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The mystery house
This photograph taken in 1966 in (I assume) Spotsylvania was recently discovered in my family's archive. If any of my readers recognizes this place and who may have owned it, please write and let me...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Thomas Addison Harris
Thomas Addison Harris* Soldier, farmer, public servant, twice a husband and eight times a father, Thomas A. Harris was a resourceful man of many dimensions and I take pride in presenting his life's...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Captain John Row
John Sanders Row, at right. (Virginia Historical Society) Earlier this year I submitted an article to the Orange County Historical Society about my cousin John Row. I have always been fond of old...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Greenfield
Mabel Row, about 1899 "A tiny principality, far away from everywhere, but sufficient unto itself." This was how Greenfield was remembered by Mabel Row Wakeman (1879-1974) when she shared her...
View ArticleClik here to view.
George Row's horse
George Washington Estes Row (right) When historical fact collides with family legend, the results can be unsettling. But the truth that emerges from that impact is always welcomed here in this...
View Article