A new and comprehensive gazetteer of Virginia, and the District of Columbia, Part 19

Author: Martin, Joseph. ed. cn; Brockenbrough, William Henry
Publication date: 1835
Publisher: Charlottesville, J. Martin
Number of Pages: 1278

USA > Washington DC > Washington DC > A new and comprehensive gazetteer of Virginia, and the District of Columbia > Part 19
USA > Virginia > A new and comprehensive gazetteer of Virginia, and the District of Columbia > Part 19

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MARYSVILLE, P. O. and Seat of Justice, 30 m's. S. E. of Lynch- burg, 96 m's. S. W. of R., and 187 from W. in lat. 37° 03', N. long. 1º 52' W. of W. C., situated on the main southern stage road, on a ridge between Little Roanoke and its tribu- tary Wardsfork, about 4 m's. from County Courts are held on the first their junction. The Public Square' Monday in every month ;- Quarterly

* This place, Bouldin's old store, is one of the oldest settlements in this county; the settlement was made by Col. Thomas Bouldin, who removed from Maryland, and settled here-within a few hundred yards of this place was buried the late Thomas T. Bouldin, deceased, here are buried also his father and grand father. flere also resides his mother, the sister of the late governor Tyler, netive and healthy at the advanced age of 82 years. Seldom does it occur in this country, that the same fami- ly reades at the same place for so long a time.

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EASTERN VIRGINIA-CHESTERFIELD.

in March, May, August and Novem- ber. JUDGE LEIGH, holds his Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery on the 16th of April and September.

KEYSVILLE, P. V. on the head of Meherrin river, 99 m's. S. W. of R. and 190 from W. It contains 7 dwel- ling houses, 1 mercantile store, a tav- ern, 2 wagon makers employing ma- ny hands, 2 blacksmiths, 1 boot and shoe factory, an excellent wool-card- ing machine on an extensive scale, and a cotton gin. Population 70.

RED HOUSE, P. O. 112 m's. S. W. of R., and 194 from W.

ROUGH CREEK CHURCH, P. O. 105 m's. S. W. of R., and 196 from W., situated 9 m's. W. of the C. H. between Cub creek, and its tributary Rough creek: at this place there are 2 stores, a Presbyterian church, a blacksmith and tailor, several private · dwellings, and a resident physician.

This has been, and still is in some measure, a favourite place of resort for the people of the upper end for political or social purposes.

ROANOKE BRIDGE, P. O. 89 m's. S. W. of R. and 180 from W., situated on the waters of L. Roanoke in a fer- tile and healthy district :- contains a store, a mill, and a blacksmith shop. WHEELER'S SPRING, P. O. 99 m's. from R., and 190 from W.

WYLIESBURG, P. O. 107 m's. from R., and 222 from W., situated on the road leading from the Double Bridges to Moseley's ferry, 18 m's. S. of the C. H. It contains at this time a store, a blacksmith, and a resident phy- sician. This is a place of meeting for the lower end, as Rough creek church is for the upper end of the county. The road leading by Char- lotte C. H., and Reed's mill to Clark's ferry, is the dividing line of these 2 divisions.

CHESTERFIELD.

CHESTERFIELD was created by the House of Burgesses in 1748, from a part of Henrico. It is bounded N. by the James which separates it from Henrico, and Charles City,-E. S. E. by the Appomattox, which separates it from Prince George,-S. and S. W. by the same river, separating it from Dinwiddie S. and Amelia S. W .- and W. N. W. by Powhatan. Extreme length from the junction of Appomattox with James, to the western angle 38 miles, mean breadth 12,-area 456 square imles. Lat. 37° 10' to 37° 31' N. and long. 0° 22' to 1º 05' W. of W. C .- The surface is broken, and the soil is poor except on the rivers .- The most profitable railroad in the world is in this county, from James river to the coal mines, a distance of 13 miles. We subjoin an account of these mines from the pen of a tra- veller :

"These coal mines are on the south side of James river, about twelve miles above the city of Richmond. "At this city the granite rock makes its appearance. It forms the bed of the river, and affords an inexhaustible water power. On the road to the Chesterfield mines, rocks are not seen until you get near the mines. The country is rolling, and has the aspect of barrenness and poverty-yet good husbandry would soon give to it fresh- ness and beauty .-- The elevation is gradual to the west, and as far as I could judge, the summit level, at the month of the Maidenhead mine, is about 300 feet above the tide water in James river.

" Within the circumference of about a mile square, there have been seve-

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EASTERN VIRGINIA-CHESTERFIELD.

ral mines opened and seven or eight are now wrought. The rock is not many feet below the surface, and is from two hundred and fifty to four hun- dred and fifty feet thick. The prevailing rock is a light grey coarse sand stone-rather hard and some of it sparkling with chrystalized quartz. This rock alternates with a bluish clay in a state of considerable compac ness, and with shell .-- Much of these last two are so filled with the sulphate.of iron, minutely disseminated, that they soon decompose in the atmosphere. There is no trace of the lime rock, nor as yet of the old red sand stone. It is doubtful, however, whether they have reached the bottom of the coal for- mation. At the bottom of one of the shafts, the floor upon which the coal rests is called granite -- but from the description of the rock, I concluded it must be the hardest of the seinite rocks.

"The coal here is bituminous. The basins appear to be small, and the colliers complain of the faults and troubles in thein. The coal seams are pofrom a few inches to several feet in thickness-one has been found nearly twenty feet thick. The dip rarely exceeds forty-five degrees. Wooldridge's mine is the deepest and the only one which has a steam engine to raise the coal and the water out of the pit. The others employ mules. The mines are worked day and night, except Sundays -- when the water is drawn as often as necessary to keep the works below from being flooded. Drifts are cut from the foot of the shafts, and some of those have been carried out seve- ral hundred yards. These are said to be from ten to twenty feet wide, and from five to twenty or thirty feet high. Mules are employed in the mines to draw the coal to the foot of the shafts. These are fed and stabled in the chambers of the mine. Nevertheless, they keep fat. And what is certainly not a little remarkable to a novice, these mines abound in rats. They go down, it seems, on the ropes, attracted into these tartarean abodes by the provisions and provender, which are sent down for the negroes and mules. The negroes prefer this to labor in the field.

" All these mines raise about two hundred tons of coal in each twenty- four hours. This coal is sent daily, (Sundays excepted,) in a team of se- venty to a hundred cars, over a fine rail-way thirteen miles, to the river,

"'I'here are several valuable coal mines on the north side of James river, in the western part of Henrico county. Coal has likewise been discovered in Goochland and Powhatan counties."

Chesterfield belongs to the seventh judicial circuit, and fourth district. Population in 1820, 18,003 -- in 1830, 18,637. Taxes paid in 1833, $5231 31-in 1834, on lots $292 31-land, $2572 88-on 5266 slaves, $1316 50 -- 3134 horses, $188 64-12 studs, $390 00 -- 123 coaches, $291 35-2 stages, $6 00 -- 16 carryalls, $52 00 -- 234 gigs, $133 40. Total, 85252 08. Amount expended in educating poor children in 1832, $601 65-in 1833, $561 64.

TOWNS, VILLAGES, POST OFFICES, &c.

BELLONA ARSENAL, a United States military post, situated on beau- tiful elevated ground, on the south side of James river, 14 ms. above Rich- mond, 135 from W. and 2 south of Bellona P. O., Henrico county. It [which time it has been garrisoned by a company of U. S. Artillery. It has been a depot for a considerable quan- tity of military stores, and during a great portion of the time since its con- struction, a number of artificers have was established in 1816-17, since been employed in repairing and fabri-

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cating small arms and other muni-| The Lynchburg stage passes every tions of war. Immediately adjacent day in the week. to the Arsenal, is Bellona Foundry, HATCHERSVILLE, P. O. 11 ms. from R. and 133 from W. owned by Major John Clarke, who for a number of years past has been casting cannon,-under an annual contract with the government .- The guns made at this place are said to be unsurpassed in quality by any made in the United States. In consequence of the continuous expense and incon- venience of transportation to and from the arsenal-of the extreme difficulty arising from its isolated location, of obtaining and retaining the mechanics necessary for an arsenal of construc- tion-of the unsafe condition of the property at a point, where from its contiguity to the coal pits, a greater number of negroes could be collected in a few hours, than at any other place in the commonwealth, and of the re- puted unhealthiness of the place,-an order has lately been issued for aban- doning the post and removing the troops and property to Fort Monroe at Old Point Comfort.

COLESVILLE, P. O. 36 ms. S. W. of R. and 158 from W. in the S. W. angle of the county.

GOODSBRIDGE, P. O. 38 ms. S. W. ture in 1829, commenced work in

of R. and 160 from W.

HALLSBORO', P. V. 17 ms. from R. and 139 from W .- situated on the Buckingham road leading from Rich- mond to. Lynchburg, 15 ms. from Scottsville in Powhatan county,-in a healthy and pleasant neighborhood. The soil in the vicinity is rather poor, and most adapted to the culture of oats and corn .- It contains several dwelling houses, 1 large Baptist meet- ing house, (called " Bethel,") a large, comfortable, and convenient tavern, a mercantile store, and a common school.

MANCHESTER, P. V. 123 ms. from W. and 1 from R,-pleasantly situ- ated on the margin of James river, opposite to Richmond, to which it is united by Mayo's bridge across the rapids. It contains about 360 houses, 2 houses of worship, 1 Methodist and the other Baptist, 2 common schools, 6 grocery stores, 1 cotton seed oil mill, 1 cotton factory, with a capital of $70,000, 8 tobacco manufactories, 1 poor asylum, and 1 merchant mill. The principal mechanical pursuits are, house-carpentry, cabinet making, (to considerable extent, ) coach making, blacksmith's work, &c. Population 1500 persons; of whom two are at- torneys, and three physicians.

The Chesterfield and Manchester Rail Road connects the strata of bitu- minous coal on James river, with its tide water, at Manchester ;- It extends 133 miles in a single track, with se- veral turn-outs, and 1} mile branch- road's to the coal beds .- The compa- ny was incorporated by the Legisla-

January, 1830, and was opened for use in July, 1831. This road was so profitable as to afford a dividend of TEN PER CENT. to the stockholders in the first six months ;- A result which has not been equalled by any improvement in the United States, perhaps in the world. The cost of the road was $8,000 per mile; and including wagons, horses, &c. the whole disbursement of the company has been about $140,000: or $10,370 per mile.

VADENSBURG, P. O. 20 ms. S. of R. and 142 from W.

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EASTERN VIRGINIA-CULPEPER.

CULPEPER.

CULPEPER Was created by the Legislature in 122 from a part of Orange. It is bounded N. and N. E. by the North Fork of Rappahannock river, which separates it from Fauquier N. and Stafford E. N. E .- E. and S. E. by the Rapid Ann river, which separates it from Spottsylvania E. and Orange S. E .- S. and S. W. by Orange,-W. and N. W. by the new county of Rappahannock .- We give its dimensions as they existed prior to the separation of Rappahannock, and expecting to receive information of the extent of the latter by the time it comes to press, by reference to that county, the present extent of Culpeper may be ascertained. Length of the old county from the junction of Rapid Ann and Rappahannock to its north- ern angle in the Blue Ridge 42 miles,-mean, breadth 16, and area 672 square miles; extending in lat. from 38° 15' N. and long. from 0° 35' to 1º 20' W. of W. C .- We do not as yet know precisely to what lat. and long. the eastern boundary of Rappahannock extends. Besides its two boundary streams, Culpeper is watered by a number of creeks and rivers flowing N. E. into the Rappahannock, S. E. into the Rapid Ann; but the former being much longer, indicates the general slope of the county to be in that direc- tion, the chief of them is Aestham river which rises in Madison and crosses Culpeper; and next in importance, Mountain preek, which rises near the Madison line, flows nearly parallel to Hazel, branchof Aestham river, and empties like it into the Rappahannock. The surface is finely diversified with hill and dale, and contains large bodies of excellent land; of the same general character which pervades the counties generally on the eastern foot of the Blue Ridge. Population in 1820, 20,942-1830, 24,027. Culpe- per belongs to the 11th judicial circuit, and sixth district. Taxes paid in 1833, $3309 95-in 1834, on lots, $136 40-land, $1930 29-on 3222 slaves, 8805 50-3119 horses, $187 14 -- 9 studs, $122 00-43 coaches, 899 75 -- 33 carryalls, $40 75 -- 16 gigs, 89 10. Total $3330 94. Amount expended in educating poor children in 1832, $1012 93-in 1834, $735 01.

HISTORICAL SKETCH .- Culpeper county, at all times respectable, but . chiefly distinguished in the revolutionary war, for the services of her ED- WARD STEVENS, her JOHN GREEN, and her gallant MINUTE MEN, who, as Mr. Randolph said, in one of his speeches in the United States Senate, "were raised in a minute, armed in a minute, marched in a minute, fought in a minute, and vanquished in a minute;"-was first created in 1748, out of a part of the county of Orange. Every thing therefore of a prior date which relates to the present county, must be sought either in Orange, or in Spottsylvania, from which Orange was taken in 1734, or in Essex, from which Spottsylvania was taken in 1720; or lastly, in the old county of Rappahannock, which was divided in 1692; and Essex and the county of Richmond made out of it; with a direction that the records belonging to the county court of Rappahannock, prior to that division, which was in fact an extinction of it, should be kept in Essex .- In 1793, Madison was taken from Culpeper, and in 1833, she was still further reduced in importance and extent by the act of assembly, which created a new county and revived in it the name of Rappahannock, with this difference, that it is now the soil from which that valuable stream derives its sources, instead of that through which it flowed in the full majesty of its accumulated strength. The boun- daries of Culpeper, at the present time, are the same that formerly existed,

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EASTERN VIRGINIA-CULPEPER.

except the dividing line between it and Rappahannock. That, unfortunately, is so described, that it is impossible to say with certainty, what it is. The act directs that the boundary line of Rappahannock shall begin "at the cor- ner of Madison and Culpeper counties upon the top of the Blue Ridge of mountains, and run thence with the line of said counties to the point where it is intersected by Hugh's (Hughes's) river, above the junction of Hugh's (Hughes's) and Hazel rivers; thence with Ilugh's (Hughes's) river to the junction of the aforesaid rivers; thence to a bend in the river near a point called the Giant's Castle; thence to Horner's mill upon the Fauquier and Culpeper line;" and thence with the lines of the bordering counties to the beginning. Unluckily Hughes's river crosses the Madison line into what was formerly Culpeper, at the point which seems to be indicated by the foregoing description, in the natural construction of the words ;- flows some distance, bends, and recrosses into Madison, -making a sort of insulated area between the river and the county line -- and then some distance below crosses again into Culpeper, at a point still above the junction with the Hazel. In the natural construction of the language, Culpeper still retains jurisdiction over soil that is thus entirely detached from the body of the county, and which for convenience sake ought to belong to Rappahannock. The commissioners for running and marking the county line have perform- ed their duty fully, as it seems to us, and yet have not touched this ques- tion ; which will perhaps occasion some difficulty, in various ways, unless the assembly shall interpose to make it clearly a part of the one or the other county.

Culpeper, in its original shape, comprehended all "the debateable ground" between the Crown of England and Lord Fairfax, that lay on the eastern side of the Blue Ridge, and was formerly the subject of a very interesting controversy, that deserves still to be remembered for the expla- nation it affords of some things, which otherwise would be inexplicable. Charles the Second, while a fugitive from his kingdom, granted to Lord Hopton and others "all that entire tract of land, situated within the heads of the rivers Rappahannock and Quiriough or Potomac, the courses of the said rivers, as they are commonly called and known by the inhabitants and descriptions of those parts, and Chesapeake bay, together with the rivers themselves, and all the islands within the banks of them;" and on the 8th of May, 1669, after his restoration, and after that patent had been surren- dered, "in order that he might regrant the lands with alterations,"-again granted the same tract of country to the Earl of St. Albans and others .- These afterwards sold their right to Lord Culpeper; and James the Second, in the fourth year of his reign, but after he had in fact ceased to reign, con- firmed the patents, and granted the same tract to the Lord Culpeper, his heirs and assigns, forever. Such was the origin of the proprietary title to the Northern Neck of Virginia :- but if any doubt as to its validity could have existed, it was entirely removed, not only by universal acquiescence during the colonial government, but by solemn decisions of the highest judicial tribunal in the commonwealth after the establishment of an independent government here. From Lord Culpeper this magnificent estate descended to his heir, Lord Fairfax; who (or his descendant, with the same title of nobility) afterwards removed to Virginia, and made it his residence. As the proprietors of the Northern Neck thus owned, the land lying between the Rappahannock, from its head to the bay, on the one side, and the Poto- mac, from its head to the buy on the other, -- and the Crown retained its title

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to all the lands not included within those limits or otherwise granted away, -it was perfectly clear, in the first settlements,-which commenced on the seaboard,-to whom the settlers were to apply for a title to their lands. Below the falls, the Rappahannock was a well defined natural boundary : and as the land happened to lie on the north or the south side of it, the title was to be derived from the Proprietary or the Crown. But where the set- tlements upon that river extended towards the mountains, it was discovered that it was formed by the confluence, a short distance above the falls, and at the point which is now the extremity of Culpeper county towards the sea, -of two streams so nearly equal in magnitude, that it might well be doubted which of them led to the "head" of the Rappahannock. The one formed of several tributaries that might well dispute among themselves the honor of being the main branch of that arm of the river, has its source at Ches- ter's Gap in the Blue Ridge, and in its whole course from thence to the point of the Great Fork of the Rappahannock, (as it is called to distinguish it from the Little Fork, formed above by the junction of this stream with Aestham's river,) separates the present counties of Fauquier, and (to a very small extent) Stafford, on the north, from Rappahannock and Culpeper on the south. The other, formed in like manner, has its source at that point in the Blue Ridge where the four counties of Orange, Madison, Rocking-" ham and Shenandoah meet; and in its whole course from thence to its con- fluence with the former, it separates the present counties of Orange, and (to a very small extent) Spottsylvania on the south, from Madison and Cul- peper on the north. If the latter were the main branch of the Rappahan- nock, and consequently the boundary of the proprietary tract,-grants of all the lands lying in what-from 1748 to 1793-was Culpeper co. (and now makes the three counties of Culpeper, Madison and Rappahannock,) were to be obtained from the proprietors of the Northern Neck: if the former, then from the Crown. And by drawing one line on the map of the state, from Fairfax's store, at the head of the North Branch of the Potomac, on the Back Bone of the Alleghany mountains, between the counties of Hardy and Randolph, to the former,-and another from the same point to the lat- ter, (head of the Rappahannock,) it will be found that the title depended upon the same considerations, to a larger tract of country on the western side of the Blue Ridge, than even these three counties on the eastern.

As early as the year 1705, upon the presentation of a patent for lands lying within the limits of this debateable ground,-to be signed by the pro- per agents of the royal government in this colony,-the agent for the pro- prietor of the Northern Neck objected to it -- and thereupon an order of council was made, that neither the Crown or the proprietor should issue patents for such lands, until the dispute should be settled, and that commis- sioners mutually chosen should view the two branches of the Rappahan- nock, which we have before described. They were accordingly chosen, and reported that the streams appeared to be of equal magnitude :- and some other persons (styling themselves Wood's trustees,) by the request of the proprietor's agent, certified the same thing. After this the colonial goverment seems to have treated the territory on the south side of the North Fork of the Rappahannock, rising at Chester's Gap, as belonging to the Crown :- for in 1720, an act of assembly was passed, creating the county of Spottsylvania, which, in declaring its boundaries, directed a line to be run over the high mountains to the river on the north west side there- of, thence down the said river until it comes against the head of Rappa-

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EASTERN VIRGINIA-CULPEPER.

hannock, thence to the head of Rappahannock river; and down that river to the mouth of Snow Creek. And in 1734, an act was passed for divid- ing Spottsylvania, which directed that all that territory of land adjoining to and above the dividing line thereby established, bounded S. by the line of Hanover county, (as it was then called,) northerly by the grant of the Lord Fairfax, and westerly by the utmost limits of Virginia, should be "thenceforth created into one distinct county, and be called and known by the name of the county of Orange." In 1748, an act was passed for dividing the county of Orange, which created the county of Culpeper ;- and until the creation of Rappahannock in 1823 Culpeper always extended to that North Fork and to Chester's Gap em in fact, in tracing the titles to land in the old county of Culpeper, it is found, that the patent, during this period, was usually granted in the name of the King-sometimes in the name of Lord Fairfax. In 1733 that lord obtained from the King instruc- tions to the colonial government to appoint commissioners to settle the dis- pute about the boundaries, and to issue no mo e patents for lands lying within the contested districts, until the dispute was ended; but these instruc- tions were not communicated to the governor and council until 17309. In that year Lord Fairfax arrived in the colony with the instructions; and in the course of that and the succeeding year, a survey, in pursuance of them, was made of the Northern Neck, by the commissioners, who, differing in opinion, made separate reports; which, in 1733, were referred to the com- mittee of the council (in England) for plantation affairs, upon whose report, the King, on the 11th of April 1745, determined that all the lands contained between the head springs of the Potomac and the south branch of the Rap- pahannock, as we have before described it,) and the mouths of the 2 rivers, belonged to Lord Fairfax. In the meantime the commissioners had made their reports to the colonial government, which, from the alarm thereby oc- casioned to the holders of lands within the unsettled limits, who had derived their titles from the Crown, produced remonstrances and counter petitions. before the governor and council :- and they confirmed the survey and re- port, that were most favourable to Lord Fairfax, upon the terms, that he should establish all the grants that had been made by the Crown; to which effect an order was made by the Lord on the 21st of December 1738. The royal order in council, already mentioned, also recited that Lord Fairfax had consented, and indeed proposed, " that all the grantees of lands under the Crown within the boundaries aforementioned, should quietly enjoy their lands according to their respective grants; and likewise to do and consent to all such acts as should be thought necessary to confirm and decree such grantees in the quiet possession of their said lands ; and thereupon directed that the colonial government should not make any grants of lands within the said boundaries, or molest or disturb Lord Fairfax in the quiet posses- sion and enjoyment of the lands contained therein ; provided the said Innds should be subject to the grants made of any parts thereof by his majesty, or any of his royal predecessors, and that the Lord Fairfax should comply with his proposal before mentioned. And in 1748, an act of assembly was passed. which gave the form, and sanction and validity of law to this com- promise, as it might properly be called,-establishing the head spring of Rappahannock, commonly called Conway, as the proprietor's sonthern boundary, and confirming the titles of grantees from the Crown. At the same session the whole of the land, on the eastern side of the Blue Ridge, which had been the subject of this important and protracted controversy,

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A new and comprehensive gazetteer of Virginia, and the District of Columbia, Part 19

Author: Martin, Joseph. ed. cn; Brockenbrough, William Henry Publication date: 1835 Publisher: Charlottesville, J. Martin Number of Pages: 1278

Author: Martin, Joseph. ed. cn; Brockenbrough, William Henry
Publication date: 1835
Publisher: Charlottesville, J. Martin
Number of Pages: 1278