Jeanne Johnson Rust

“ Taking matters into their own hands, two hundred men (including men from the Fairfax County area) joined under the leadership of Nathaniel Bacon. They incited the Occannechi to massacre the Susquehannock. Then, having disposed of the worst enemy, they turned on the Occannechi and murdered them. The few Indians who survived stabbed at the colonists occasionally but gradually drifted into Pennsylvania taking the Doegs with them. The frontiersmen and governing gentry, however, still remained at odds and another cleavage began to appear. This one was centered around the men's livelihood—tobacco. ”

“ Most of these men were not ready to make their homes here, however, for this area was still infested with unfriendly Indians. Instead they hired indentured slaves who came from England, Scotland, Ireland, France, etc., who worked the land for a few years, earned their freedom and then became land owners in their own right. It stands to reason, therefore, that the society of the Fairfax County area at that time was necessarily crude. These indentures, though vigorous and having outstanding individuals among them, had the reputation of not being given to the amenities. ”

“ The new rich who had prospered by government contracts during the war took the place of men who had lost their business along the coast line and of men whose homes had been ramshackled by English troops. Currency fell and prices rose. The farmer, who had by now turned to wheat instead of tobacco for his livelihood, was receiving high prices and seemed to be getting rich. ”

“ John Marshall said "there is no part of America where less disquiet and less ill feeling between man and man is to be found than in this commonwealth, and I believe most firmly that this state of things is mainly to be ascribed to the practical operation of our county courts". ”

“ Zion Church had been used as a storehouse for munitions for a while and had then been torn down by Union soldiers to provide material for their winter quarters. In February, 1867, Rev. W. A. Alrich was sent to undertake reorganizing the Church. He found eighteen communicants for whom he held services in the court house. He reported "a deep interest manifested in religious matters, and a willingness to make every sacrifice for the sake of the Master and his cause. The people, in their impoverished condition, are making an earnest effort to rebuild their Churches." ”

“ Since men could only "seat" themselves on this land, most of the indentures went over into the valley where they could work land that belonged to them. Thus the development of this territory was delayed for years.
However, when King Carter found what seemed to be substantial deposits of copper in the northern part of the county, he and his sons opened up a pre-existing Indian trail which came from Occoquan, past the future site of Payne's church, near the future site of Fairfax Court House, where it veered west and continued towards Chantilly. ”

“ In spite of difficulties, however, the farmer saw the need for a good road to Alexandria, where he could export his wheat. Thus the farmers of Fairfax, Alexandria, and Loudoun Counties joined together to build The Little River Turnpike, which was one of the first improved roads in the United States. This road was completed in 1806 and as stated before, tolls were collected for it at Earp's Ordinary. Another strong factor in the completion of this road was the establishment of the County Court House at the present site in the Town of Fairfax. ”

“ The gentry in Fairfax seemed to be the exception for George Johnston, a prominent lawyer living between Alexandria and Mt. Vernon, backed Patrick Henry in his protest. George Mason wrote the Non-importation Resolutions in 1769, his Fairfax Resolves in 1774 and his famous Bill of Rights in 1776. George Washington, Fairfax planter, was, of course, Commander in Chief of the Continental Army and brought the country through to victory under the most difficult circumstances.
Large numbers of able-bodied citizens in the County served under Washington in the Revolution. ”

“ There are two black churches. There are three schools for elementary students, one junior high school, and one senior high school, and construction will begin soon for a college. There are three shopping centers, several apartment buildings, a medical center, two large telephone buildings, a library, and a bank. Extensive additions have been made to the original court house and an eight acre tract of land has been purchased on South Payne Street for the future Town Hall.
Fairfax is just one small example of the results of colonization. ”

“ Although the settlement by colonists helped to slow down this burning process, it did not stop it altogether. The colonists cleared their land by burning also and when they had exploited one area moved on to another. (They did not burn as large areas as the Indians.) As other freemen came, they pushed upward and inward along the waterways to find unexploited land. This, of course, hastened the development of the Fairfax County area but it left acres of "old fields" going idle for want of a little fertilizer. ”

“ The colonists learned to grow and store the Indian foods for cold winters and they learned to earn their livelihood from the export of the tobacco they grew.
In the northern part of Fairfax County, the Indians grew corn. They fished, mined, and herded buffalo. In order to have sufficient grassland for their "cattle", or buffalo, the Indians deliberately set fire to the forests. ”

“ Many ignorant overseers of large land holdings knew little of fertilization or replenishing the soil and they too, when they had exhausted one part of the proprietorship, moved on to another, which they cleared by burning. They gathered slaves from other plantations to help fell the trees and at night large groups of negroes gathered round the mound of burning trees and raised their voices in the spiritual singing that was characteristic of them. ”

“ At Jamestown the colonists found that they could not succeed without expanding the Indian's agriculture. They found the savages of the Tidewater section growing corn, muskmelon, pumpkin, watermelon, squash, maypops, gourds and peas in their fertile well-organized gardens. Grapevines were cultivated at the edge of clearings and there were rich harvests of chestnuts, hickory nuts and acorns. Strawberries and other small fruits grew in abundance and mulberry trees stood near every village. Tobacco was grown to itself, in carefully prepared hills arranged in well-organized rows. ”

“ Many of the schools, churches, and private homes in this area are landscaped with American and English boxwood which the Willards grew as a hobby. When the land was bought for development, hundreds of boxwood bushes became dispersed throughout the town and its environs.
Joseph Willard became a lieutenant-governor of Virginia and an Ambassador to Spain during the administration of Woodrow Wilson. He had married Belle Layton Wyatt from Middlesex County who was a distinguished hostess. Their home became the scene of many brilliant affairs. ”

“ The Jamestown colonists in their search for unused land had gradually started to move into Fairfax County around 1649. Word had spread that the area farther north (part of which is now known as Fairfax County) was the "land of opportunity" and wealthy land-holders began buying large units of five hundred to three thousand acres for speculation. Among these were the Masons, Draytons, Baxters, Brents, Vincents, Merriweathers, Fitzhughs, Hills, Dudleys and Howsings. ”

“ As a rule, the parish halls of the various churches were used to house the students.
The children of the poor learned from their parents the art of working in the fields. The wealthier families sent their eldest son to England to be educated and other sons were educated at the College of William and Mary which had been established in 1693. ”

“ The runway from the cellar to the highway where the barrels were loaded is evidenced today by a road leading to a log house near the grape arbors. The tenement house, now owned by Mrs. Douglas Murray, boasts a concealed attic room, hidden behind a closet. Here Confederate soldiers picked off the Union troops as they marched past. The house was raided many times by Union troops but still managed to keep its secret.
Beyond the D'Astre place was the home of Charles Broadwater, which has recently been torn down for widening of The Little River Turnpike. ”

“ A HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF FAIRFAX
When man reaches out into space to explore a new planet, his adventure will be comparable in many ways to that of the colonists who braved the space of water in the early seventeenth century to establish their proprietary rights on a strange continent called "America". ”

“ Fairfax County itself was gradually being occupied by men from two of the colonies: viz., Maryland and Jamestown. The Maryland colonists were English traders who, for one reason or another, had left their colony (1632) and taken up their residence among friendly tribes along the Virginia shore of the Potomac. The Maryland colonists [Pg 9] preceded the Jamestown colonists by a few years. ”

“ She was devotedly attached to the Confederate cause and sought every opportunity to become possessed of the secrets and movements of the Union Forces. She is reported to have been a maiden lady of great intelligence and high accomplishments and was very well spoken of by people who knew her. She resided near Fairfax during the entire war, communicating with Mosby whenever he came through this section, and it is a mystery that she succeeded in eluding the vigilance of Union Scouts. ”

“ Two thousand people were to come in all types of conveyances—from the best Washington had to offer down to the backwoods ox cart. Some were even to walk as far as thirty miles to pay tribute to their fellow man. ”

“ Sometimes a house was erected on one of the old fields which had outlived its usefulness and there the children of the plantation owner along with those of relatives and neighbors would attend school under the supervision of a tutor hired by the main family. ”

“ Willard and Antonia were married. Seven years later Antonia died (some think due to malnutrition suffered from her stay in prison) and left one son, Joseph.
This son lived with his grandmother at Fairfax until his marriage when he built the beautiful large home on the original Willard estate, which now includes Layton Hall Subdivision, University Drive extended, the Belle Willard School, the Joseph Willard Health Center. (His father before him owned the Willard Hotel in Washington) .
Joseph and his wife lived a life of luxury, traveling abroad and entertaining in their large spacious home. ”

“ These colonists found themselves confronted with the need to feed, house and clothe themselves with unknown and untried materials reaped from a wilderness which hid their enemy, the red man, and housed the dread mosquito which carried the deadly malaria. ”

“ Lord Culpeper had received the titular grant to all of this area [Pg 12] and a great deal more besides. He was happy in England, however, and not at all anxious to come to Virginia. He was 47 years old at the time and described as "able, lazy, unscrupulous".
While waiting for his return, the people became desperate. Taking hoes and farm tools, they roamed the countryside pulling up and cutting tobacco plants wherever they went. Some destroyed their own crops. ”

“ Mosby's Rangers at this time were composed chiefly of young men from Fairfax and the adjoining counties, with some Marylanders. Among the men from Fairfax County were Franklin Williams, Richard Ratcliffe Farr, Capt. V. Beattie. The men had to arm, equip and supply themselves, so although they turned captured cattle and mules over to the Confederacy, they kept any horses they were able to find. They wore Confederate uniforms and through necessity on occasion captured overcoats. ”

“ There is yet another kind of sport which the young people take great delight in and that is the Hunting of wild Horses which they pursue sometimes with Dogs and sometimes without. You must know that they have many Horses foaled in the Woods of the Uplands that never were in hand and are as shy as any Savage creature. ”

“ In his will the slaves were divided among his wife and children. Some of the slaves were valued as high as $600 each, while others were valued at a dollar.
In 1836, when Mr. Ratcliffe died and the town had to be surveyed in order for his estate to be divided, John Halley, the surveyor writes: "In laying off I commenced at the northwest corner of Rizin Willcoxon's Tavern House, Robert Ratcliffe having [Pg 33] represented that that house was considered when built as being exactly on the corner of the lot on which it stands, and the side and gable ends of said house ranged with the streets. ”

“ Growers began to go deeper and deeper into debt.
Major Robert Beverly and William Fitzhugh, young planter-lawyer from this area, concluded along with other prominent men that the solution lay in some type of crop control but England refused. She did not want to lose the two shillings tax on each hogshead of tobacco. She advised the colonists to wait until Thomas, Lord Culpeper, the titular governor of the colony returned to Virginia. ”

“ It was also the custom at this time to send out notices of funerals. A typical notice was published in a local newspaper as follows:
"Yourself and family are respectfully invited to attend the Funeral of John R. Richardson from the Presbyterian Church to the Public Cemetery, this afternoon at 3:00 o'clock. Funeral services by Rev. John Leighton.
Palmyra, Friday, June 8, 1855"
By 1859 Providence had taken the name of "Fairfax" when Culpeper abandoned it, and being located in a border county was destined to be the scene of the very first skirmish of the Civil War. ”