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Union Bell Baptist Church was organized October 28, 1922, in White Oak.  In Fredericksburg, soon after the Civil War, members of the African Baptist Church resumed meetings in houses and a warehouse. Union Bell began the same way in an old lodge before erecting. What started as a lodge hall is now the driveway of…

Located on what was once the Sanford Farm is a newly preserved and rebuilt building that was once home to an enslaved family. Called the Sanford-Burgess Slave Quarter, it is one of the few examples of housing for enslaved peoples in Stafford County. The Sanford-Burgess Slave Quarter is a one-and-a-half-story log cabin built around the…

From the 1720s until about 1800, Falmouth served as a primary shipping point for goods coming and going from the upper Shenandoah Valley.  The town’s proximity to vital water power facilitated the growth of post-Revolution commercial flour and textile mills. Falmouth’s industries supported a wide range of skilled and unskilled workers.  The town included businesses…

In early September of 1963, a wood-framed house owned by the Baker family, which consisted of the two Baker parents and their ten children, caught on fire. It started while the Baker parents were at work, and 4 of the 10 children were at school. Nearby neighbors were the first to notice the blaze and…

On August 28th, 1966 the Klu Klux Klan held what would be the first of four rallies in Stafford County. The goal of these rallies was to raise support and money for the Klan’s prejudice and hateful cause in Northern Virginia, with the Klan actively trying to get money and donations from attendees. The first…

Elnora Allen was born in Widewater to Horace and Martha Harris Allen on 10 May 1919. She was the fifth of eight children. Her parents instilled the importance of education and although opportunities for Black students were limited, Elnora attended school. As a teenager, she did domestic work for local families. The 1950 Federal census…

The house that is now known as Hartwood Manor was built in 1848 by Ariel and Julia Foote, who moved to Stafford County from Burlington, Connecticut, near Hartford, in 1836.  The Footes had no family in Stafford, but Virginia was not an unknown place to them.  Ariel’s older brother, Jairus, had lived in Alexandria, but…

Historical Record of the Patawomeck Tribe The Patawomeck tribe was based in areas we now know as Stafford and King George Counties, along the Potomac River, documented by John Smith in 1608. The English pronounced the name of the tribe as “Potomac,” from which the Potomac River derived its name. In the 17th century, at…

In November 1991 the Stafford County Planning Department contracted with Traceries and PMA Consulting Services to conduct a survey of the county’s historic resources and prepare an archaeological assessment report. Traceries, a Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm concerned with architectural history and preservation, provided overall management of the survey, conducted the archival research and on-site survey,…

Stafford County, Virginia was the boyhood home to the most famous person in the Revolutionary War, George Washington. However, it was also the boyhood home for another, often overlooked, Washington.  This was George Washington’s second cousin once removed, William Washington.  William Washington was born and spent his early life in northern Stafford County and went…

The Holiday Inn North was a popular destination for tourists and locals during the 1960s and 70s.  It was located near the intersection of Route 17N and Interstate 95. Holiday Inn North of Fredericksburg post card Holiday Inn North of Fredericksburg matchbook Holiday Inn North of Fredericksburg matchbook (inside) Advertisement for the Coasters playing at…