Historic Fredericksburg Virginia

Boyhood home of George Washington and the site of crucial Civil War Battles Fredericksburg is one interesting place to hang out & visit. There are trolley tours  or horse drawn carriages to go site seeing in town but we chose to drive a car & walk around the historic areas.

The first place we went to was Mary Washington's house ~ Mary mother of George...

In 1772, George Washington purchased a house from Michael Robinson in Fredericksburg, Virginia for his mother. Mary Ball Washington spent her last seventeen years in this comfortable home. The white frame house sits on the corner of Charles and Lewis Streets and was in walking distance to Kenmore, home of Mary's daughter Betty Fielding Lewis. Also to her other son's, Charles, house which is now called Rising Sun Tavern which is what it was turned into after he sold it.  You can also tour that.

Tradition has it that, during the Revolution, General Lafayette found Mrs. Washington in her garden attending her favorite hobby. The President-to-be came to this home to receive his mother's blessing before attending his inauguration in 1789.

In 1891, the house was scheduled to be disassembled for travel to the Chicago World's Fair for display. However it was saved and the house underwent a restoration and was opened to the public. A mirror, Mrs. Washington called her "best dressing glass" and other possessions are on view in the house.

We take our everyday living for granted and don't even realize it until we visit places like Mary Washington's home and hear how they lived hundreds of years ago.  It was while we were here that they told us that back in the 1700's they took baths maybe 3 times a year and washed their hair only about twice.  I could hardly believe it and my head started to itch just thinking about that.

Her sundial still tracks the time of day in the garden.

Here are some other things that made me think hmmmmm ~ Glad I was born when I was.  They didn't washed their plates & silverware they just wiped them off after they were done eating.  They wealthier people always took their own utensils with them when they went to dinner at someone elses home.  They also told us that is why when they got sick it was one of the reasons it spread so fast throughout the lands.  Between bathing, washing your hair, wearing the same clothes by letting them air out and using dishes that were not washed ~ by the time I left there I was a little yukked out to say the least!  LOL LOL

After we visited here we went to Rising Sun Tavern which was once owned by Charles Washington.  What a fun and interesting tour this was. As soon as you walk in you are transported in time and treated like a guest from the late 1700's.  Here you will learn how a tavern operated during those times and learn a lot of interesting sayings that you have heard before but never know how they got started.  You’ll be greeted by a wench who is there to get you settled, show you around and attend to your needs. Please remember that this is the only proper tavern for 50 miles so be respectful.

Ladies, please leave all your literature (except the Bible) in your suitcases, as they are not welcome here. Gentleman, please enjoy yourselves but not too much as we will be getting you on a stagecoach in the wee hours of the morn.

This house, built by the younger brother of George Washington, was a popular stop for many, including John Marshall, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, George Mason, and John Paul Jones, among others, during the American Revolutionary War.  It was the site of George Washington's "great reception" after the Battle of Yorktown. It was also the site of the first meeting of the Virginia Chapter of the Society of Cincinnati in 1783. The property was sold to Larkin Smith in 1791 and turned into a tavern.

There were several other places we visited throughout the day ~ Mary Washington's grave & Memorial, A Confederate Cemetery, A Masonic Cemetery and many old historic buildings and homes.  It was a fun day indeed...

Have Fun, Travel Safe & Stay Healthy!!!

Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson

While in Fredericksburg we made our way to the Chancellorsville Battlefield.  This is where Stonewall Jackson was wounded and soon after died from complications "pneumonia".  Some say that he was run down from battles and between that, being wounded and the dampness he contacted the pneumonia.  Even though he loss his arm he would have survived the wound he got from friendly fire.  We visited the battlefield and there we saw where he got shot and where they finally got him off his horse ~ then we followed the trail from Chancellorsville to the train station where he died.  They still have the house with the original bed that he died in.  Learning the story of Jackson was very interesting for not only was he a General but also a loving husband and a new father of a 6 month old child. As with all battlefields this was very sad as we imagined the time and all the men who lost their lives.

Here is a little history on the events:
Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson  was a Confederate General during the American Civil War, and one of the best-known Confederate commanders after General Robert E. Lee. His military career includes the Valley Campaign of 1862 and his service as a corps commander in the Army of Northern Virginia under Robert E. Lee. Confederate pickets accidentally shot him at the Battle of Chancellorsville on May 2, 1863; the general survived with the loss of an arm to amputation. However, he died of complications from pneumonia eight days later. His death was a severe setback for the Confederacy, affecting not only its military prospects, but also the morale of its army and of the general public. Jackson in death became an icon of Southern heroism and commitment, joining Lee in the pantheon of the "Lost Cause"

Chancellorsville Battlefield

Military historians consider Jackson to be one of the most gifted tactical commanders in the nation's history. His Valley Campaign and his envelopment of the Union Army right wing at Chancellorsville are studied worldwide even today as examples of innovative and bold leadership. He excelled as well in other battles: the First Battle of Bull Run (where he received his famous nickname "Stonewall"), Second Bull Run, Antietam, and Fredericksburg. Jackson was not universally successful as a commander, however, as displayed by his weak and confused efforts during the Seven Days Battles around Richmond in 1862


House Jackson died in

Losing Stonewall Jackson during the battle at Chancellorsville took a tole on the Confederate armies and his wife, who never remarried. We enjoyed the history and following the trail from the battle to the Guinea Train Depot where Jackson finally died from pneumonia.



Actual bed that Jackson died from pneumonia in

This area around Fredericksburg is full of history not only from the Civil War but the Colonial times too.  It is a great place to visit for a week or so.  You should come and stay for a while in this historic town

Have Fun, Travel Safe & Stay Healthy!!!