Figure of the Week

Lyman Kellogg (1813-1897) was the son of Ezekiel Kellogg (1773-1828) and Luna Clark (1778-1842).  He was born in Canada, though his parents later lived in Heartland, Connecticut and Southwick, Massachusetts.  Lyman settled in the Crest area of Stafford around 1838 and in 1850 married Frances A. Waller (1815-1887), the daughter of Sylvanus Waller (1765:70-1843) of Fauquier.  In Stafford Lyman owned and operated Kellogg’s Mill on Potomac Run.  By 1871 his mill, built on a 15-acre lot, was assessed at only $400.  He made improvements to the mill, which both ground grain and sawed lumber.  This facility continued in operation until the early twentieth century.  The remains of the foundation of Kellogg’s Mill survive on the south side of the bridge over Abel Reservoir.  During the War Between the States, Union soldiers occupied his farm and stole his cattle and crops.  At the close of the war, Lyman held some $20,000 in Confederate currency, which was worthless.  However, he seems also to have had other income that hadn’t been affected by the southern economic collapse.  Lyman was a steadying influence in his community following the war.  Union occupation and the resulting vandalism had so devastated the area that many Stafford residents were unable to support themselves here and were compelled to leave the county.  Following the war, Lyman employed a number of the remaining men in his neighborhood, thereby enabling them to stay in Stafford and feed their families.  In 1872 Lyman Kellogg was appointed one of the commissioners of the Free Bridge between Fredericksburg and Stafford, now the Falmouth Bridge.  He also served as a magistrate for Stafford after the war.