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Aurora (the Pink House)
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Aurora (the Pink House)

Aurora, also known as the “Pink House,” is a favorite site in Patrick County, close to Spencer. Aurora is listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register (1990) and the National Registry of Historic Places (1991).

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How did Henry County end up in Virginia?
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

How did Henry County end up in Virginia?

The leaders of the colonies of Virginia and North Carolina decided the necessity for a dividing line. Frequent conflicts arose concerning the location of the line, settlers were procuring grants from the North Carolina proprietors, and both sides made grants for the same tracts of land.

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Early leaders paved the way for Henry County
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Early leaders paved the way for Henry County

This area has a rich history. It was a stop along the Great Road, through which thousands of immigrants traveled. It was the home of Patrick Henry and home to the largest landowner in Virginia at one time. That would be George Hairston, who owned 280,000 acres at one point.

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The mineral springs hotel of Ridgeway
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

The mineral springs hotel of Ridgeway

The Phospholithia Hotel in Ridgeway was near the Phospho-Lithia Springs and sat on 100 acres. It was built from 1897-99 by E.H. Hayes. The hotel charged $15 for a one-week stay and promised guests chicken three times a day. The spring water was recommended by doctors, including Dr. J. Beverly DShazo.

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The Maps of Thomas Jefferson
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

The Maps of Thomas Jefferson

Cartology specialist Zack Fleming give a history of the maps that defined Virginia and the colonies - first of Peter Jefferson, then his famous Founding Father son, Thomas Jefferson — including an early look at MHC, when Chestnut Knob was called Wart Mountain

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Secrets under the courthouse
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Secrets under the courthouse

The old Henry County Courthouse held secrets not only within its walls but underneath it as well. That includes a tunnel and two underground chambers.

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Ohev Zion Synagogue
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Ohev Zion Synagogue

By 1927 Martinsville had 25 Jewish people, who formed the core group that built the synagogue

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Major Bryce Martin
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Major Bryce Martin

Major Brice traveled on many frontier expeditions with his brother, General Joseph, and General Joseph’s son Colonel William L. Martin for most of thirteen years.

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Globman’s
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Globman’s

The two kids grew up in the store where Masha and Abe worked side by side from 8 a.m. to dark during weekdays and to midnight on Saturdays.

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Jesse M. Shackelford, MD, 1869-1941
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Jesse M. Shackelford, MD, 1869-1941

He bought property in Irisburg and built a home, a wing of which was used as a hospital from 1895 to 1899.
In 1921, Dr. Shackelford purchased the Teague residence on Church Street and created a hospital there.

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The Drs. Shackelford and their hospital
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

The Drs. Shackelford and their hospital

Dr. John Shackelford: “Practicing medicine wasn’t easy 33 years ago. I used to operate at night on a kitchen table by candlelight. There had to be someone standing by fighting off the flies.”

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C.B. Bryant left his mark
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

C.B. Bryant left his mark

Col Bryant “was a very efficient officer, and the town never had a more enthusiastic booster and promoter of expansion.” He had little means himself, but he had the ability to “make plans so plain and plausible to others, that he easily elicited capital in many enterprises that meant for the town’s prosperity.”

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Frontier women held families together
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Frontier women held families together

In a 1990 book on Ridgeway, Virginia, Mary Pace and Mary Pace McGee wrote “When one considers the constant back-breaking toil…and that this was accompanied by frequent child-bearing with little or no medical care, there is no wonder that young women soon became haggard and unkempt, lost most of their teeth, and often died at a early age.”

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Early education in Henry County
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Early education in Henry County

By 1871 it was reported that there were 19 white and 10 colored schools which operated for an average of 4.4 months with 26 male and 3 female teachers. Thirty years later in 1901, there were 75 white and 32 colored schools, operating an average of 5.5 months each, and at a total cost of $15,048. (Rock Run School is shown in the picture.)

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Rodman and the Courthouse Cannons
Holly Kozelsky Holly Kozelsky

Rodman and the Courthouse Cannons

Rodman’s new modified system of hollow casting replaced the sand core with an insulated iron pipe through which large amounts of water was circulated quickly. The barrel, as it cooled from the inside out, would cause each successive layer of metal to shrink upon the cooler inner layers.

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