My Virginia

Last week, January 19th, would have marked General Robert E. Lee's 210th birthday. He was born at Stratford Hall, in Westmoreland County, Virginia. In his writings, it was very evident that Robert E. Lee was a strong Christian. Here are some of his famous quotes: "We have fought this fight as long, and as well as we know how. We have been defeated. For us as a Christian people, there is now but one course to pursue. We must accept the situation." Robert E. Lee "Obedience to lawful authority is the foundation of manly character"- Robert E. Lee "It is good that war is so horrible, or we might grow to like it"  Robert E. Lee "I think it better to do right, even if we suffer in so doing, than to incur the reproach of our consciences and posterity"- Robert E. Lee " Never do a wrong thing to make a friend or keep one; the man who requires you to do so is dearly purchased at a sacrifice." " I cannot trust a man to con...

                                  Above: The Farmhouse in 2014  I lived in this house from 1995-1998 as a teenager Me on the Farm in 1997  UPDATE: I have retracted information regarding a certain situation with the previous owners of this dwelling, Mr. Hottel.  As far as the original date of the house, it is unknown, but I believe it to be 1904, because it was verified by a descendant of the original builder. If there ever was a place that would be the perfect setting for a movie, this would be it. I spent most of my teen aged years on this old farmhouse located near the small village of Philomont, Virginia, just 7 miles north of Middleburg. You'll notice that I keep a picture of this farmhouse on the title of this blog. That's because it holds a very special memory  to me. The farmhouse was built in 1904 by a Mr Luck , as a wedding pres...

My grandfather was born William James Gilman, III, on January 20th, 1914 in Richmond, Virginia- to William James Gilman Jr, and Blanche Taylor (King) Gilman.  He had a younger sister named Alice. They called him "Billy" for short. Its interesting that there is a Country singer with the same name today . My grandfather was a very independent sort. He wanted to be an actor, or a writer, or a politician, or all three! As he went through college (Richmond Polytechnic Institute- now commonly known as "VCU"), he discovered writing is what he wanted to do. He never quite finished school there.  He once said to a close friend: "Why waste time on some four green acres? That is all college is to me". Despite his talent for writing, he also had a penchant for gambling. It  all started when he was a young teenager, and a man told him to bet on a horse race . The horse he bet on won. That started his gambling problem. When he was a young man of twenty-three, ...

Above: Army of Northern Virginia Battle flag. While our Confederate shrines, monuments, and flags are still under tremendous attack- mostly by left wing progressives in this country, a strong sentiment of Southern pride is filling Dixie like never before. I believe in a way God is restoring a healing power to the South, and a healing that needed to take place long after 150 years have passed since her defeat. Many Southerners who had anger and bitterness left after the war was over, felt that they were wrongly represented in historical texts- mostly written by Northern victors. Truthfully,  under the false guise of "abolition", the South was invaded by force and destroyed. This is much like what Adolf Hitler and his regime did to Central Europe. Yet in retelling of events, it would have some believe that the South waged a war against the North. This is rubbish. We have but a few Southern points of view in television and film- most notably "Gone With The Wind"...

Here is a write up about my grandfather's paternal side of the family. His name was William James Gilman, III. Many of the Gilmans settled in Hanover County, Virginia. Also connected to this branch of the family, are the Wingfields. From Virginia Biography: Patriarch For a great many years the name of Gilman has been a well known one in Richmond in connection with the building industry, and it is one that  dates in Virginia from ante-revolutionary  days. The ancestor, John Gilman, came  from England to Virginia with the Queen's  Rangers, and as they were a body of men selected for their physical perfection and excellence of character, he must have been possessed of these qualities. His son, John Gilman, was born in Hanover county, Virginia. He served six years in the revolutionary army, enlisting at the age of twenty-one years, was with Washington at Yorktown, and witnessed the surrender of Lord Cornwallis ; later he again served his country in the war of 1812. ...

My great grandfather on my mother's maternal side, John Gifford Skelton was born  on December 12th, 1882 in Richmond, Virginia, in the mist of  a very deep snow storm that year. He was an inventor of sorts, a bit eccentric , and quite the ladies man .  All the women of Richmond adored him, including his many sisters, with whom he was very close. He was heart broken when his youngest sister died, and he never quite got over it. But he had a strong will and driven spirit- something that is definitely a Skelton trait. Born to an old Virginian family on his Daddy's side, he was the grandson of Dr. John Gifford Skelton from Powhatan County. His mother Lucy C. (nee' Landrum) was a beauty from Little Rock, Arkansas, who had family roots  in the Deep South.  John was educated at private schools in Virginia and attended prestigious  Brown University.  As a young man, he had a summer job working  on the railroad in the Catskills of New York, which he...

 Picture d above: The George Rowe House. Fredericksburg, VA Last weekend I had the opportunity to go up to Fredericksburg for a family reunion. It was a spectacular event, in which the organizers put a lot of soul and hard work. The Patriarch of the family was George Rowe and his wife Lucy Leitch Rowe , whom were prominent figures in the history of Fredericksburg, especially during the War Between The States.  George Rowe would be my great great great great grandfather . This is in the branch of my grandfather's mother's side of the family. George and Lucy Rowe were actually first cousins, who had long standing connections to the Northern Neck area of Virginia.  The event was held at their ancestral home, and included guest speakers which talked about the history of the Rowe family in Fredericksburg and nearby environs, as well as their connections and lineage to the Patawomeck Indian tribe. People came from all over the country, including character actor Hansford R...