Wilderness Presidential Resort located at 9220 Plank Rd in Spotsylvania Virginia 22553 is hosting the Wild Roots Music Festival on Saturday, September 21st from 12pm – 8pm.
Licata Group is proud to be a sponsor of this festival that will consist of 4 live Americana bands, several food trucks, a beer garden and many local artists.
Live Music will be performed by: Karen Jonas, Whiskey Revival, Cabin Creek and the Hive Robbers. The craft beer garden will feature local downtown Fredericksburg Brewery: Spencer Devon Brewing.
This is a rain or shine event with tickets for sale at $20 each, tickets prices do not include the beer garden. Purchase tickets here. Grab your friends and family and prepare for a relaxing Saturday enjoying some good music with delicious food!
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my homeworth?” is the #1 question asked by home owners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.
In April, 1875, the New York Sun reported that Anthony
Smith, commonly known as Anthony Jones, died in New York at the age of 70.
Smith was a former slave who had run-away from the Wilderness of Virginia.
During his life in New York Smith had accumulated a considerable estate but had
neglected to write a will. Lacking a legal heir, the New York Court System took
control of his affairs.
On his death-bed interview, Smith
told the story of his life. Once the property of William Jones, owner of the
Ellwood Manor estate in the Wilderness of Spotsylvania, His master William
Jones had become a widower in the 1820s and several years later William
remarried Lucinda Gordon who brought with her to Ellwood Mansion a personal
slave, Patsey.
Anthony eventually wooed Patsey
and with the consent of their owners they took up housekeeping on the Ellwood
Manor grounds. Four children were born to the couple, but only one, the fourth,
survived. About the time of William’s death in 1845, Anthony ran-away from his
then pregnant wife and the Ellwood estate. He was captured, returned to
Fredericksburg and sold to a new owner. After a trip to the South with his new
master, Anthony again escaped and made his way to New York City, where he lived
out his remaining years. Following the Emancipation, Anthony attempted to
restore contact with his family back in the Wilderness, but with limited
success. Patsey did retain one of his letters and later cited it as proof of
their marital relationship.
The story as related above was
published in the New York papers sometime after Anthony’s death. It was soon
picked up and published by Richmond, Virginia papers. As a result, two sets of
claimants to Anthony’s fortune came forth to the New York Court. One, the
remaining sister and brother of Anthony declared extreme poverty. They were
represented by J. Horace Lacy, their former owner through his marriage to Betty
Churchill Jones, William Jones’ second daughter and heir to Ellwood.
The second claimants were Patsey,
his first wife, along with the sole living child who was born after Anthony’s
first escape. They were represented by lawyers Alexander & Green of
Fredericksburg. When interviewed by the New York court, Patsey explained that
she had waited a number of years following Anthony’s departure before taking in
a new partner. Though partnered, she claimed to have been the wife of Anthony
(citing the letter she retained) and therefore a legal heir to his estate.
The New York Court wrestled with
the judgment for nearly a year. They recognized that New York and Virginia laws
on marriage differed considerably in the pre-war era. Numerous testaments and
affidavits were heard or submitted. Many of the claimants appeared before the
referee at least one time. In the end, based on Patsey’s proof of their pre-war
marital relationship, the court sided with Patsey. She received the estate,
then valued at $20,000, cash and property.
Continue to Chapter 6: Relive the Battle of the Wilderness
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my homeworth?” is the #1 question asked by home owners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.
Do you know your family’s history? How far back can you trace your lineage? If you are an African American descended from
slaves, that quest can be very difficult, often impossible. Most of what we know about the history of
slaves and their families comes from oral traditions carried from generation to
generation. Such is the case of Anthony
Jones, a slave on the Ellwood Plantation in the first half of the 19th
century, and his family.
Shortly before his death in New York City, Jones
shared a believable story of his family and their roles at the plantation. Anthony was the son of Ester and Anthony
Jones, Sr., likely the Black Minister for the plantation’s slaves. Anthony, Sr. and Ester had 8 children, some
of whom are documented on slave censuses from Spotsylvania and Orange Counties.
William Jones, the owner of Ellwood, was widowed in
1825. He remarried a few years later at
78 to Lucinda Gordon, a 16 year old grandniece of his first wife. She brought her personal slave, Patsy, with
her to Ellwood. Like most slaves during
this period, Patsy developed a specialty – her skill was weaving. The younger
Anthony took a shine to Patsy as she sat weaving and, after wooing her for an
extended time, asked her to marry him.
Patsy agreed and Anthony, as the law then required, had to ask for
permission from the plantation owner; after William Jones agreed, Anthony and
Patsy took up residency in the laundry house at Ellwood. They had four children over the next 13
years – the first three (Isaac, Aaron, and Lucy) died in infancy.
Over time, Anthony grew increasingly unhappy with his
Ellwood life, working the fields and gold mining on plantation property. In the early 1840s he opted to run away,
leaving his then pregnant wife Patsy, his parents and his 7 siblings
behind. He was captured and returned to
Fredericksburg where he was jailed and sold to a slave trader, John Ellis. After the sale, Anthony had to accompany his
master on a trip into the Deep South. On
their return by boat, Ellis became sick and died, leaving Anthony in charge of
the owner’s personal belongings. Instead
of returning to Fredericksburg, Anthony stayed on the ship headed to New
York. On arrival, he locked his owner’s
trunk, gave the key to the ship’s captain, and announced that he was going to
Church. He never returned to the ship.
Anthony obtained employment in New York and for the
next few years attempted to correspond with Patsy; she later claimed to have
received only one letter which had to be read to her by the local postmaster
(Almond). Unfortunately, she lost that
letter during the Civil War. She and her youngest child, Anthony III, later
laid claim to the wealth her husband accumulated during his New York working
days. The elder Jones’ siblings, Isaac
Smith and Elizabeth Keaton, also pursued the estate through the New York
probate court. Those proceedings (1873-1876) and their related testimonials
afforded considerable insight into the family, some of which are shared in this
article.
(The rest of the story, obtained from the court
proceedings, will appear in the next episode.)
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my homeworth?” is the #1 question asked by home owners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.
Initially, this series on History in Our Backyard
described how the Wilderness became the Wilderness. Now we will delve into the early inhabitants
who came to what would become known as “The Wilderness.” All things Wilderness
were synonymous with Alexander Spotswood, the colony’s Royal Lt Governor in the
early 1700s. He initiated the economic progress of the region through his
efforts to establish Germanna fort and an iron industry. One source states that
“there, thirty miles from the last outlying farms, the Germans set to work,
clearing a site on the riverbank and building a fortified town.” The same
source references the fort being supplied by pack-trains of mules and horses.
Exhibit 2 Germanna Fort
Those same pack-trains were instrumental in his 1716
venture into the mountains to the west. His band of adventure-seeking explorers
departed from the Germanna fort accompanied by animals laden with supplies
including a healthy supply of spirits. He later awarded each participant with a
golden horseshoe pin thereby identifying them as the “Knights of the Golden
Horseshoe” for eternity.
At the time of Spotswood’s term as Lt Governor of
Virginia in 1722, he had firmly established his presence in the area. Through a
somewhat devious plan he had accumulated over 80,000 acres of land. Records
show that he never sold a single acre of the land, choosing instead to lease
lots, mostly in 50 acre parcels, a few in parcels of up to 500 acres.
English law at that time dictated that settlers
construct a home and plant an orchard on their leased property within three
years. They also had to clear and plant a minimum one-acre garden and/or cropland.
Initially, many chose to plant tobacco. The Colony was cash-strapped in those
days and tobacco became the medium of exchange in most commercial transactions.
A 1724 inventory of Spotswood’s properties shows that
he owned his fort, his large home, dozens of farm animals and the basis of the
iron works, namely the Tubal site, about 12 miles east of his residence. At
Germanna, he established the first County seat of Spotsylvania and held court
in his home. The presence of the court quickly brought its own society;
travelers arrived routinely for appearances before the justices.
County courts developed “Order Books” in those days.
Both the Spotsylvania and later Orange (after 1734) books contain references to
orders issued to Spotswood, primarily dictating that he organize work crews to
maintain the road to Germanna and the bridge over Wilderness Run, located near
the present day intersection of State Route 3 and US 20. Local residents
provided the labor for the crews, usually their slaves. Spotswood did maintain
the ferry that operated over the Rapid Anne River, today’s Rapidan. He also
maintained his own road from Germanna to the Tubal Iron Works.
Eventually, small enterprises sprang up in the area.
Those that were not located at the Court complex would be found along the
Germanna Road. Retail stores, grain mills, saw mills, post offices, wagon
makers and leatherworks businesses all found their place. Physicians took up
residence in the area and church spires began to become part of the local
scenery. By 1725 there were 7 plantations alone in the area surrounding the
Tubal Iron Works site. The new Wilderness society was beginning to take shape.
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my homeworth?” is the #1 question asked by home owners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.
Early May 1864 witnessed the first time that
Confederate General Robert E. Lee and Union General Ulysses S. Grant – the two
giants of the Civil War – met in battle in an area known then and forever more
as the Wilderness. The area had been
known as the Wilderness for more than one hundred years before the Civil War
but it was this bloody battle that would put the Wilderness on the map and in
the history books forever. What made
these seventy square miles different from the rest of early Virginia? How did the Wilderness become the
Wilderness? To answer these questions,
we must go back to the early 1700’s when Virginia was still a British colony
and Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswood envisioned starting an iron
smelting industry in this area.
Spotswood arrived in Hampton Roads in June, 1710,
after being appointed Lieutenant Governor of the Virginia Colony. Iron ore was known to exist in the area that
would become the Wilderness even before Spotswood arrived in Virginia. The British Government at that time restricted
manufacturing to the home islands and looked to the colonies to produce and
export raw materials back to England while importing finished goods
manufactured from those raw materials.
Despite the lack of permission from the British Government to smelt iron
in the colonies, Spotswood initiated the iron smelting operation in Virginia
anyway. His initiative was in fact the first attempt at moving away from an
agricultural to an industrial based economy in Virginia and actually in any of
the colonies.
There are three elements in that land that are
critical to the smelting of iron ore:
the ground must contain iron ore; there must be large forests for fuel,
and water for power must be available.
All of these features were abundant in what was to become the Wilderness
and Spotswood began acquiring land in this area shortly after his arrival in
Virginia. Within just a couple years he controlled over 80,000 acres in present
day Orange and Spotsylvania Counties.
But there was still one feature missing before
Spotswood could turn his dream into reality and that was the presence of
experienced manpower that could conduct the smelting operations. So he arranged for the emigration of German
iron workers to Virginia; the first emigrants began arriving here in April,
1713. They were the original settlers of
the Germanna community, located on the south bank of the Rapidan River near
today’s State Route 3 and Germanna Community College. By 1715 Spotswood had established the Tubal
Furnace below the confluence of the Rapidan and Rappahannock rivers and was
smelting iron. By 1750 there would be at
least six blast furnaces smelting the area’s iron ore.
The smelting process required a fire hot enough to
reach the iron ore’s melting point, 2,190 to 2,810 degrees Fahrenheit, and it
had to be burning continuously for weeks at a time. The amount of fuel for smelting the iron was enormous
– nearly two acres of hardwood per ton of smelted iron – and some furnaces
could burn as much as seven hundred acres of timber per year. To obtain the fuel required clear cutting
vast segments of the virgin forest in the area.
The second growth forest that sprang up afterward consisted of smaller,
scrubbier trees which allowed the growth of ground covering vegetation. The vines, briars, honeysuckle, poison ivy
and other lower growing vegetation created an almost impenetrable wall of
vegetation and resulted in the area, by at least 1750, becoming known as “The
Wilderness.”
Exhibit 1 The Wilderness Virginia
It was this second growth forest that was in place
during the Civil War. Although the 1863
Battle of Chancellorsville was fought in and around the Wilderness, it was
really the first encounter of Lee and Grant in May 1864 – right in our backyard
– that the iconic name of “The Wilderness” became forever etched in Civil War
and American history.
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my homeworth?” is the #1 question asked by home owners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.
History in our Backyard, a product of the Friends of
Wilderness Battlefield (FoWB), was created by FoWB’s Special Programs and
Education Outreach Committees. It
consists of a series of articles designed to share the history of the
Wilderness region with the residents who live in and around this hallowed
ground. The articles focus on either a
particular event or a historical period that brings to life the area’s rich and
vibrant history dating from the earliest settlers to the present day. These brief glimpses into the Wilderness’
history are intended to encourage residents of all ages living in and around
Spotsylvania and Orange Counties to learn and appreciate the significant impact
that this area has had on our local and national history.
For years the Battle of
the Wilderness has been under-appreciated by most Americans. Experience tells
us that local residents have a limited knowledge of the 1864 battle’s impact,
as the first battle in the Overland Campaign and the first face-to-face
encounter between Generals Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee. Further, many residents are unaware that the
history of the Wilderness in general is both a microcosm of Virginia history even predating the birth of our Nation and a story of agricultural and general
economic development in a rural setting.
History in our Backyard is also designed to capture our FoWB
members’ wealth of knowledge about various aspects of the Wilderness. We encourage our volunteers to share with
others a particular moment, event, or period in Wilderness history about which
they are knowledgeable. These are not
intended to be scholarly works of history but rather tidbits of information about
the land for the people who share that land today. We hope our neighbors will become more
engaged with their surroundings by having their neighbors – our
volunteers – share their insights into the region through this brief
picture.
Our initial concept was
to make these short pictures into history available to local communities’
newspapers, magazines, newsletters, and websites. But History
in our Backyard is growing beyond our initial expectations. We anticipated no more than a handful of
articles a year but that number is increasing and we are reaching more local
communities and at least one county-wide medium. Possibly the most significant expansion will
be this compilation of all the articles, as they get published elsewhere,
residing on our webpage.
We welcome your comments and suggestions for improving our product and for future subjects. We would even welcome your participation as an author of an article on a topic that is of interest to you and would add to the knowledge of our readership.
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my homeworth?” is the #1 question asked by home owners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.
Friends of Wilderness Battlefield, Inc. (FoWB) began in 1995 as a small group of local residents who recognized a need to assist the National Park Service (NPS) in the preservation and maintenance of the Wilderness Battlefield which was located in their back yard. Over the years the organization has evolved and grown to over 200 members with dozens of member volunteers who not only provide maintenance assistance to NPS, but also provide education and advocacy for the Park, the battlefields and the local area.
One of the pressing questions we, as an organization,
continuously ask is “How do we instill a sense of ownership in the general
public so that they feel compelled to preserve our national treasures, like our
battlefields?” One of the answers is
“Educate folks on the rich and varied history of the area in which they
live”.
This series of articles called History in our Backyard will hopefully help local residents,
and all visitors to the area for that matter, realize that the local history of
Orange and Spotsylvania Counties needs to be preserved and shared with
generations to come.
Kudos to all of our volunteers who have taken the time to
write these great articles!
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my homeworth?” is the #1 question asked by home owners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.
Come on home to a country feel yet minutes to everything you could need. Close to the Spotsylvania and Orange County line you will find this cozy home nestled amongst the trees with plenty of privacy. Let the children play and the chickens roam, the chicken coop will even convey. The wood stove does not convey but there is the perfect place waiting for you to install your own if you chose to do so. Detached garage provides plenty of storage and work space. Many updates have been made to this home, you must see it!There is nothing quite like a quaint country home with it’s charm and tranquility. Hurry! This one won’t last long!
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my homeworth?” is the #1 question asked by home owners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.
Civic Club Hosts Reception for LOWA BOD Candidates by Pat Licata, President
Please join the Civic Club on Wednesday, July 11th, at 5:30 PM, as we host a Reception for the Candidates in the Great Hall of the Clubhouse. We encourage you to mingle with the candidates from 5:30-6pm, with the forum beginning at 6pm. Each candidate will have 2-3 minutes to deliver his/her message to the audience. A cash bar will be available, and light hors d’oeuvres will be served.
The Lake of the Woods Board candidates are Heidi Brown, Pete Brown, Ralph Debnam, Walt Diercks, Bill Feterle, Bill Logan, Allen Priester, and Adrien Terrenoiere. The candidates will be vying for 3 Board of Directors vacancies on the 7 member Board. LOWA will mail ballots to lot owners near the end of July and the balloting will conclude on September 1st at the Association’s Annual Meeting.
The Reception for the Candidates is open to all members of the community. Please plan to attend so you may become better acquainted with the candidates. We look forward to seeing you on the 11th
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods Va or Waterfront property in Virginia or homes for rent we are your professionals for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove and Central Virginia, we are your proven Real Estate professionals. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, that’s the #1 question asked by home sellers. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. The Question is how much is it worth? Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site!
by Pat Licata, President
You are cordially invited to join the Civic Club in welcoming our June 20th speaker, Sheriff Mark Amos, at our meeting being held in the Clubhouse Great Hall at 7pm. There will be plenty of time allotted for questions, so please bring yours!
Sheriff Amos, born and raised in the town of Orange, was graduated from Orange County High School in 1980. He has dedicated his life to serving the public, having been a member of the Orange Volunteer Fire Company since 1979. After honorably serving in the United States Air Force as a firefighter, he moved back to Orange and began working in the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in the mid 80’s as a patrol deputy.
Amos worked his way up the ranks to the position of Chief Deputy prior to being elected as our Sheriff in 2007. Mark is a lifetime member of the Orange Volunteer Fire Company, a member of American Legion Post 156, and is the current secretary for the Virginia Sheriff’s Institute.
Please plan to attend this informative presentation. You’ll learn a little more about how the Sheriff’s Office works with security, about crime in our area, and the jurisdiction the office has in our Lake of the Woods community. Hope to see you there!
Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods Va or Waterfront property in Virginia or homes for rent we are your professionals for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove and Central Virginia, we are your proven Real Estate professionals. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, that’s the #1 question asked by home sellers. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. The Question is how much is it worth? Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.
To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site!
