August 26, 2008
Copied from Free Lance Star
IRVINGTON
–AFTER the Civil War, as prosperity returned to the region touched by the Potomac and Rappahannock rivers, it was the steamboat that hastened change.
In little towns such as Port Royal, Lottsburg and others up and down the river, produce began to flow from farm fields to big-city markets. Canneries sprouted on creeks and other waterways to process everything from tomatoes to herring roe.
Country stores, suddenly able to give customers from King George to White Stone items from Baltimore and beyond, popped up and began to thrive.
From May to early fall, patrons from Reedville to Fredericksburg could see actors and vaudeville productions on the James Adams Floating Theater.
A stage and theater nestled nicely onto a 138-foot barge. The water-going production did several shows a day, making it possible for patrons to see "Peg O' My Heart" without a long trip to a big city.
Church camps also popped up in several places, luring locals and families from as far away as Norfolk and Baltimore to spend weeks in the woods convening in the cool under the trees.
At Wharton Grove in Weems, a Methodist revival camp in Lancaster County, more than 3,000 people would attend Sunday services at the camp that was the closest thing to a vacation getaway for most.
These changes and more are featured in a fascinating exhibit at the Steamboat Era Museum in Irvington.
It's called "Steamboat's A' Comin'" and it chronicles the way the steamboat lines–which moved people, produce and goods along the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers–brought prosperity and social change in the period from 1870 to 1975.
Using oral histories, exhibits and a captivating number of real donated artifacts, the exhibit focuses on four things: canneries, country stores, Wharton Grove and the floating theater.
Museum Director Terri Thaxton noted that after last year's exhibit on the Civil War's impact on the region, it made sense to show how the steamboats were literal engines of change for the region that stretches from Fredericksburg to the bay.
Reaching out to local historians and those with connections to the topics, the museum found rich stories to share.
"We heard from those who remembered the canneries–that when they would empty the skins and other leftovers from canning tomatoes, the creeks would be red until the next tide," Thaxton said. "Everything that didn't go into the cans went overboard."
The cannery exhibit features a working surface where tomatoes were processed, tokens used by those doing the work and a huge carrier that wheeled the cans from wood-fired boilers.
Labels from the era have been reproduced, with names such a "Pride of Kinsale" and "Nomini Brand" on items ranging from corn to black-eyed peas
A similar display uses a storefront and real items from country stores around the region to show how, suddenly, customers at new stores at or near steamboat stops could get new clothes, a pump-action vacuum cleaner and the latest in men's razors.
Wharton Grove, the display shows, was more than just a spot where the Methodist church operated a camp during summer months. An old pump organ, pictures and testimonials from visitors show that this these week-long revivals were for many the precursor to family vacations.
Pictures of the camp at Weems–where the wharf was a quarter-mile long to handle all the boats and steamboats–show people dressed in full suits and dresses under the trees, staying in four-walled "tents" and walking the grounds at night to socialize.
A quote in a promotional piece touts the fact that camp visitors could fish, swim, visit under the trees or simply "join in the happy throngs under the great Tabernacle."
A scale model of the floating theater is joined by handbills and other information about the show that was a regular up and down the rivers and bay.
One advertisement boasts of "flesh and blood" actors, presumably a reaction to the movies that were starting to show up in that period.
The new exhibit is expected to run at least through December.
Rob Hedelt: 540/374-5415
Email: rhedelt@freelancestar.com
June 10, 2008
Forrest Gump said that somethings go together like peas and carrots.
I guess that could be said about the Miss Ann and Tides Inn.
The following is from the Times Dispatch.
By LAWRENCE LATANE III
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
The Miss Ann, an 82-year-old yacht whose elegance reflected the refinements of a Northern Neck resort and the tastes of the guests who stayed there, has been sold.
The Tides Inn in Irvington sold the 120-long steel-hulled vessel last week for an undisclosed price.
The resort listed it with a Florida broker for $1.2 million last winter after wrestling with the decision for more than two years.
Brothers Frank Schroff of Colonial Beach and Guy Schroff of Herndon bought the Miss Ann, said Tides Inn manager Gordon Slatford. Neither could be reached for comment. Slatford said the two plan to put the vessel to work on the Potomac River, running cruises out of Washington.
Slatford said rising operating costs and marine-safety restrictions rendered the vessel — which burns about 40 gallons of fuel an hour — impractical.
The inn wants another "character vessel," Slatford said, but preferably one with fewer maintenance and fuel demands.
December 7, 2007
When purchasing Northern Neck Real Estate you might be in an area that might not really be a town any longer but back in the steamboat days these landings were commercial centers. One such area would be Wellford's Wharf. Today it is only know by locals.
This are names that could be more familar:
Ophelia, Kilmarnock, White Stone, Heathsville, Weems, Warsaw, Burgess, Windmill Point, Irvington, Merry Point, Coles Point, Hague, Lancaster, Kinsale, Reedville, Montross, Callao, Wicomico, Farnham, Lottsburg, Reedville, Mt. Holly, Edwardsville, Mollusk, Sunnybank, Lottsburg, Sandy Point, Tappahannock, Sharps, Morattico, Lewisetta, Bertrand, Edwardsville, Kinsale, Mollusk, These towns are located within Westmoreland, Northumberland, Richmond, Lancaster, Essex Counties.
December 3, 2007
DECEMBER - 2007
1 – Heathsville Golden Christmas – 10-3. RHHT
1-2 – Holiday Open House. Celebrate the holidays with refreshments, tours, tastings, and special holiday wine. 10-5 Sat., 12-5 Sun. Ingleside Oak Grove.
1-2 - George Washington Birthplace Christmas Bazaar. 10-4. Unique gifts in Birthplace book/gift shop at visitor center. Complementary tea, cider, cookies at Log Cabin.
2- Urbanna Holiday House Tour – 10-5. Selected homes and businesses decorated for holiday. 758-9850 $
2 – Tree of Love illumination, Richmond County Courthouse. Christmas caroling, memorial lights, refreshments, tour of decorated museum. 4 pm. Warsaw.
6- “O Come All Ye Faithful” Traditional songs, carols, and hymns sung a capella. Historic Christ Church volunteers and community friends are invited to participate in this seasonal songfest in the beautifully “greened” church. 3:00 pm. Historic Christ Church, Irvington.
7-8 – Annual Christmas at Stratford Hall. 4:30-8:00 pm. Start your tour with a presentation on Christmas traditions in the Visitor Center and then cross the foot bridge to refreshments and caroling. Learn how food was prepared at the outdoor kitchen and then join your guide at the Great Hall for music and dancing. Cost of the tour is $10 for adults and $5 for children. Restaurant is open by reservation only. Cost for dinner and tour is $48 for adults and $24 for children. Stratford.
8 – Santa arrives in Reedville. 9:00 am. St. Nick arrives by boat at the dock of the Reedville Fishermen’s Museum.
8 – Santa arrives at the Richmond County Museum. 1-4 pm, photo with Santa, refreshments, gifts, and corner gift shop open. Warsaw.
8-9 – Annual Christmas on Cockrell’s Creek house tour and holiday event. Reedville Fishermen’s Museum.
8-9 - Holiday Open House. Celebrate the holidays with refreshments, tours, tastings, and special holiday wine. 10-5 Sat., 12-5 Sun. Ingleside
14 – Holly Ball Exhibit – Kilmarnock Museum.
14 – Kilmarnock’s Annual Illuminated Christmas Parade.
14 – Colonial Beach House Tour.
15 – Christmas Open House. Come celebrate the season. Refreshments. Mary Ball Washington Museum. Lancaster.
15-16- Art open house. 11-5, poetry and music. Sunday - 3-5 pm. A-Ibanez Museum & Sunrise Studio gallery
29 – Join in the celebration of the 12 days of Christmas. The Memorial House is decorated for Christmas, candlelit and filled with Colonial music. The plantation will be busy with demonstrations and activities performed by costumed interpreters. 9-6. George Washington Birthplace National Monument.
Remember to keep searching the Northern Neck MLS for your real estate needs.
October 6, 2007
October Events
Farmers markets: Saturdays - May through October
First Saturday – Irvington Farmers Market. 9-1 (through Dec) – 438-9088
Second Saturday – Downtown Urbanna Farmers Market – 9-1 – 758-2000
Third Saturday – RHHT Heathsville Farmers Market (April – October)– 580-3377
1 - Skipjack cruise aboard the Claud W. Somers. 10-1. Reedville Fishermen’s Museum.
3-31 – Archaeology month. A study of Rappahannock pottery. Richmond County Museum. Warsaw. 333-3607
5 - First Friday Walkabout. Special celebration in historic Steptoe's District of Kilmarnock starting at 5:00pm. Sponsored by the Rappahannock Art League with a different theme highlighted each month.
6 – Robert E. Lee 1807-2007: Celebration of an American Icon : Gary Gallagher speaks on Robert E. Lee as Stratford continues its year long celebration of the 200 th anniversary of his birth. Reservations.
6 - Lottsburg Fall Festival. Fourth annual festival scheduled for October 6 between Allison's Ace Hardware and the Women's Club. Pumpking painting, Buzzie the clown, country music, food, vendors, lots of fun for the whole family.
13 – 14 th Annual Northern Neck Seafood Extravaganza. Get the best seafood in the Chesapeake Bay area. Enjoy live music, tours, tastings, wine and gift specials. Reservations. 1-5. $45
13 – Warsawfest. Crafts, rides, parade, food, vendors. Family fun on the grounds of RCC in Warsaw.
15 - Skipjack cruise aboard the Claud W. Somers. 10-1. Reedville Fishermen’s Museum.
20-21 – Striper Challenge. 1 st, 2nd places for each species. Rockfish, Trout (specks or grey). Northern Neck Anglers Club.
20-21- Art open house. 11-5, poetry and music. Sunday - 3-5 pm. A-Ibanez Museum & Sunrise Studio gallery, map & location
26 – Ghost Stories. On the grounds of the museum. Hot cider and other refreshments. Mary Ball Washington Museum.
27 – Reedville’s Annual Halloween Event. Costume parade, haunted house, hayrides, children’s activities. 7-8:30 pm. Reedville Fishermen’s Museum.
27 – Colonial Beach Golf Cart Halloween Parade. 224-8145
29 - Skipjack cruise aboard the Claud W. Somers. 10-1. Reedville Fishermen’s Museum
September 4, 2007
CB and Jane Kemper with assistant Christy Rock are among the 110 exhibitors at the Farmer’s Market in Irvington, VA. The Kempers own and operate Kemper’s Nursery in Farnham, VA and every Saturday during the season you will find them at one of the local markets that rotate through the Northern Neck and Middle Peninsula.
Everything can be found at the market from fresh tomatoes to politics.
Visitors to the market not only can purchase fresh produce but they can also learn about the heritage of the Northern Neck as well with such organizations as the Reedville Fishermen’s Museum, the Northumberland County Library, and Rice's Hotel/Hughlett's Tavern having display booths.
If you think farmers only raise vegetables then you will be surprised to learn about the Northern Neck Oyster Farmers. Many of the residents are growing their own oysters from their piers and at the market they can place orders for the small oysters and purchase the cages to grow them in.
|