Monday, March 25, 2013
A story of a Confederate soldier who met his demise in Herndon.
As you have learned from our last series of articles about Mosby’s Raid at the Herndon Station, Col. John Singleton Mosby frequently operated his Confederate Cavalry unit around the Northern Virginia area. One man who rode with him in was Private Daniel French Dulany, commonly referred to as “French.” French Dulany was the son of a Union officer, Colonel Daniel Dulany. Col. Dulany was an aide to Governor Pierpoint, an unelected governor of the Union-controlled parts of Virginia during the Civil War. In one of Mosby’s escapades in the Rose Hill area near Franconia, he proceeded to a farm to surprise and capture Dulany, who was residing in a house there. The Colonel initially thought Mosby and his men were Union troops dressed as …
Monday, March 18, 2013
On St. Patrick's Day 150 years ago, Col. John Mosby led a raid on Union soldiers in what is now downtown Herndon.
The Herndon Historical Society and many supporters entertained crowds on St. Patrick's Day as a group of re-enactors took over downtown Herndon for the 150th anniversary of Mosby's Herndon Station Raid. Mosby and his Rangers led a surprise attack on the First Vermont Cavalry, stationed at the Herndon Depot downtown. The First Vermont had been on guard for 12 hours and presumed the group of soldiers — who wore blue jackets over their gray uniforms — to be their relief. The Herndon Historical Society and the Herndon Chamber of Commerce sponsored event with support from the Town of Herndon and many local businesses, including: MEDA, HRI Associates, Jimmy's Old Town Tavern, Vision Source - Dr. Finley's Family Eyecare, Aspen Jewelry Designs, …
Sunday, March 10, 2013
On Sunday, March 17, Mosby’s Raid on Herndon Station will be reenacted at 11 a.m and 2 p.m. The Herndon Historical Society and the Herndon Chamber of Commerce are sponsoring the event with support from the Town of Herndon.
On March 17, 1863, Saint Patrick’s Day, Captain John S. Mosby made a raid on a Union outpost near one of his favorite targets, the Herndon train station on the Alexandria Loudoun & Hampshire Railroad. This raid also involved Kitty Kitchen Hanna, one very frightened resident in the village of Herndon. A Union picket post had been deployed at a sawmill near the station at the intersection of today’s Elden and Center Streets. The post consisted of 25 men under the command of Lieutenant Alexander G. Watson, Company L, of the First Vermont Cavalry. At noon, Mosby approached the Herndon train station. He came out of the woods with 40 men who were wearing blue overcoats to cover their gray uniforms. Watson’s men saw Mosby and his men coming, but…
Sunday, March 3, 2013
On Sunday, March 17, Mosby’s Raid on Herndon Station will be reenacted at 11 a.m and 2 p.m. The Herndon Historical Society and the Herndon Chamber of Commerce are sponsoring the event with support from the Town of Herndon.
Many Herndon residents are familiar with Confederate Captain John S. Mosby’s raid at Herndon Station on March 17, 1863. But few may be familiar with the story of a famous Union Officer who was also involved in that raid, Major William Wells. William Wells was born in Vermont in 1837 and attended school at Kimball Union Academy in New Hampshire. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, William and three of his brothers joined the Union Army. He enlisted as a private and joined the First Vermont Cavalry. Within months he was promoted to 1st Lieutenant, and soon after to Captain. By 1862 he had earned the rank of Major. He was only 27 when he rose to the rank of Brevet Major General. By the time he left the military in 1866 he held the rank of …
Friday, February 22, 2013
On Sunday, March 17, Mosby’s Raid on Herndon Station will be reenacted at 11 a.m and 2 p.m. The Herndon Historical Society and the Herndon Chamber of Commerce are sponsoring the event with support from the Town of Herndon.
Much has been written about Mosby’s Raid on Herndon Station, but who exactly was Colonel John Mosby? John Singleton Mosby was born in 1833 in Powhatan County, just west of Richmond, Virginia. He was named after his grandfather, John Singleton. When he was a young boy his family moved to Albemarle County, near Charlottesville. He was a small and sickly child. He was often picked on by school bullies, fighting back but always losing. As an adult he was 5’8” and weighed only about 125 pounds. He enrolled in Hampden-Sydney College in 1847. He left that school after two years and later, in 1850, he enrolled at the University of Virginia. He excelled in literature, Latin, and Greek but struggled with math. After being insulted and threatened by …
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Roberts Carpets and Oriental Rug Co. has been in business in Herndon for 40 years, selling carpets, wood flooring, and ceramic tile.
Chuck Roberts, the owner of Robert’s Carpets, started doing business in Herndon at 697 Spring St., in the building that now is home to Jimmy’s Old Town Tavern. Twenty years later, Chuck moved it to the current location, a few doors away at 681 Spring St. The building that houses Jimmy’s today dates to 1897, when the original owner, Magnus T. Wilkins, opened a general store there. Roberts Carpets operated in Alexandria for six years before opening a second store in Herndon. Chuck ran into Reston developer Robert E. Simon in the early ‘60s, saw what he was doing, and decided to move to Herndon. “You could lay down in the middle of Elden Street at lunch time and you wouldn’t have got run over. It was that slow at that time,” Chuck said. He …
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Another in an occasional series of columns that looks at some of Herndon’s past that can be found in the old Town Council minute books.
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- Carol Bruce
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Sunday, November 18, 2012
This is another in an occasional series of columns that looks at some of the interesting—and sometimes amusing—insights into Herndon’s past that can be found in the old Town Council minute books. From the very beginning, livestock were a topic of considerable interest among the Town’s elected officials. On April 26, 1879, the Council adopted regulations that made it unlawful “to allow horses, mules, hogs, cows, and ox to run at large and graze on sidewalks or highways of the Town.” In furtherance of the cause, two months later—on June 7—it was announced that the first pound for animals picked up running at large had been completed, at a cost of $4.40 for labor and materials. Impounded animals apparently were there on the honor system, …
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Because next Sunday is Veterans Day, we thought it would be appropriate to tell the story of Congressional Medal of Honor winner Wesley L. Fox, a legendary hero within the Marine Corps whose roots are in Herndon.
The Medal of Honor is the highest award that can be bestowed upon an individual serving in the Armed Services. One of those medals was awarded to a Marine who was born in the Herndon area—Colonel Wesley L. Fox. The oldest of 10 children, Wesley Fox was born in 1931 to John Wesley and Desola Lee Fox. They lived off Dranesville Road, not too far outside the Town limits. John, a bricklayer by trade, had a small farm of about 50 acres where he raised cattle, hogs, wheat, and corn. John’s brother, Dave—who lived nearby—also was a farmer. Dave often helped John with his farm. In a recent interview, Fox said that he enjoyed his childhood in Herndon, where the family lived in an old four-room farmhouse with no electricity or plumbing. He recalled …
Monday, October 8, 2012
Remembering Herndon's History remembers Herndon's first Metro.
A 100-year-old newspaper article provides a glimpse back at the origins of Herndon’s 21st century reality. At the Herndon Depot Museum there is a 100-year-old copy of The Observer newspaper, dated October 12, 1912. (The Observer name of 1912 was the inspiration for the name of the more recent Herndon Observer newspaper that served Herndon from 1976 until 2010.) The headline on a front-page article read, “Electric Cars In Operation - New Schedule Convenient and Satisfactory—Some Operating Troubles—Changes in Mail Service.” With Metro opening at the Wiehle Avenue station in 2013 and scheduled to reach Herndon and beyond in 2017-18, this document gives new meaning to the old saying, “History repeats itself,” and the more recent expression, “…
Sunday, September 23, 2012
This is another in an occasional series of columns that looks at some of the interesting—and sometimes amusing—insights into Herndon’s past that can be found in the old Town Council minute books.
Exactly 100 years ago last month the Town began moving toward providing public utilities for its residents. On August 5, 1912, the Town Council passed the Electric Light Ordinance. It said, “it is deemed desirable by the Town Council of the Town of Herndon, Va. that electricity may be introduced into the said Town.” We’re not sure exactly when the contract to the first provider—the Herndon Light and Power Company—was awarded, but on January 7, 1916, the Town Sergeant reported that 16 lamps were lighted “every night when it is necessary and that it would be well to procure more.” Street lamps were a matter of considerable interest. At the October 5, 1917, meeting it was agreed that they would be lit only until 11 p.m. rather than all night…
Barbara Glakas
12:00 pm on Saturday, March 16, 2013
Here’s one last anecdote from John Mosby’s memoirs about a man named Janney who ran a store out of the Herndon Depot at the time of the Raid: “There was more than one ludicrous affair that day. A man named Janney lived at the place and was permitted to conduct a store since he was inside the picket lines. He had just brought a barrel of molasses from Washington to retail to his neighbors, and he … more ›