Did You Know?
May 2009
"Did You Know" is a new monthy feature of the website and newsletter to honor, remember, and celebrate the past and present of Emmanuel Church and Episcopalian lore. Please contribute your story about Emmanuel's history, and how Emmanuel has been and continues to be a part of your life. Send your story to: Janet White: 364-4522 or witecranes@msn.com
Emmanuel Episcopal Church
Delaplane, VA
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The Gray Ghost: John Singleton Mosby
Early in the war, John Singleton Mosby, a small-town Virginia lawyer with no military background, became a trusted scout for Confederate Gen. J. E. B. Stuart. Recognizing the potential for partisan welfare behind enemy lines, Mosby gained approval to raise his own command-the 43rd Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, also called the Partisan Rangers-and conduct raids in Union-controlled territory. In their most famous raid, Mosby and his men slipped into Fairfax Courthouse, captured Union Gen. Edwin Stoughton, and spirited him back to Confederate lines. Although 1,900 men may have served under Mosby at one time or another, he usually operated with just a few dozen because they could attack and disappear quickly. The Rangers operated throughout Northern Virginia but especially in the area bounded by Snickersville (now Bluemont), Aldie, White Plains (The Plains) , and Markham. This was known as Mosby’s Confederacy. Besides disrupting Federal communications and destroying wagon trains and railroads there, Mosby also organized a four-gun artillery battery that stalled union railroad construction and forced the Federals to abandon the Manassas Gap Railroad line that supported the Union army’s campaigns in the Shenandoah Valley. Mosby considered this his most important accomplishment. At the end of the war, unable to secure a truce for his command, Mosby assembled his men at Salem (Marshall) on April 21, 1865. Overcome by emotion, Mosby had his adjutant read his order disbanding the Rangers; “I have summoned you together for the last time. The vision we cherished as a free and independent country has vanished, and that country is now the spoil of a conqueror. I disband your organization in preference to surrendering to our enemies.” Mosby lived in Warrenton for several years after the war and is buried there.
Exerpt from “Mosby’s Confederacy” Mosby Heritage Area
What about the daffodils?
The daffodils on the bank of the churchyard were planted over 50 years ago by Clara McCarty. Clara also started and grew all the boxwood on the church property. She used to grow two rows of zinnias in her garden so that the church would have a good supply of flowers for the altar during the summer months. Back in the 40's the Diocese wanted to close Emmanuel due to low attendance but Clara let them know that this could not be done because "this is a historical church!" How appropriate as we celebrate 150 years of this wonderful "historical" church.
John Marshall - Emmanuel's Neighbor
John Marshall, future Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, was born in a log cabin on September 24, 1755 to Thomas Marshall and Mary Randolph Keith. He was the eldest of 15 children born to this family who made their home in Germantown, near modern-day Midland, which at the time was considered the edge of the American frontier.
John Marshall served his country in the Culpeper militia during the Revolutionary war and studied law at William and Mary. He then represented Fauquier County as a member of the Virginia State Assembly and Virginia in the united States House of Representatives. He was appointed to the office of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1801 during the Presidency of John Adams. He would go on to serve on the Supreme Court for thirty-four years.
Marshall is perhaps best known for his decisions while serving as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. He was the first justice to establish the right of Marbury v. Madison. The John Marshall Birthplace Park became Fauquier County’s first public park in the late 1970’s. By that time , two markers had been placed on the property by two separate legal fraternities. The first marker was erected in 1902 by Phi Delta Phi, a legal fraternity of George Washington University. A second marker enclosed the previous one and was unveiled in 1928. The current park has a trail which ends at the marker and a small picnic area. Interpretive signage at the trail head adds to the educational experience. The trail is also popular for birdwatchers -THAT’S ME!
More info: www.dgif.state.va.us <http://www.dgif.state.va.us/>