Historical Articles

“Safe in the hallowed quiet of the past“ James Russell Lowell The past and present come together in the village of Palmyra, Fluvanna’s county seat. It begins with a visit to Maggie’s house, the headquarters of the Fluvanna Historical Society and where the first...

“Oh, give me a home where the buffalo roam, Where the deer and the antelope play Where seldom is heard a discouraging word And the skies are not cloudy all day” Home on the Range The last history article was about Indians and this one is about cowboys – one in...

The sounds of drums reverberate through the forest. In the village, the firelight casts eerie shadows as the dancers move in a circle. Their chants fill the air. Little do they know that the same wind whistling overhead through the pines is filling the sails of strange vessels heading towards their shore.

The winds of war came once again to Fluvanna County in 1861. The War Between the States, or as it is most commonly known, the Civil War. Troops were raised in three ways: from the regular army, from the militia, and through volunteer companies organized by influential...

“Lafayette, we are here.” Attributed to General Pershing in 1917 In August of 1824, the 67 year old Marquis de Layfayette arrived in New York. Years ago, when he was only 20, he had come to this country offering his services to General Washington in our war for...

“Now listen my children and you will hear” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow This isn’t about the midnight ride of Paul Revere or even about the ride of Jack Jouett. To learn about the ride of another unsung hero of the Revolution, read on! On that spring night in 1781, it...

Walker Timberlake was a Fluvanna County official, a businessman, an officer in the State Militia, and a Methodist minister. Most important of all, he was one of the founders of the town of Palmyra. His father, John Timberlake, was originally from Port Royal, Caroline...

There is a point in Fluvanna County where the Rivanna River flows into the James. It is appropriately named Point of Fork. During the Revolutionary War, an arsenal was located there. It was comprised of an armory, a magazine, barracks, shops,…

“The past is a foreign country; They do things differently there.” Lesley Poles Hartley The name Fluvanna means “Anne’s River.” Both the Rivanna River and the westward fork of the James (west of Columbia), known as the Fluvanna River, were named in honor of Queen Anne...