Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1898-09-15
EARLY VIRGINIA HISTORY.
COLCHESTER ON THE OCCoQUAN.
(CJntinued)
No. 81.

Durmore, the last OF the colonial vice
regents. Failing in his attenp: 10 suit
juga;e the people of the province to his
arbitrary rule be was compelled to flee
lrnm Williamsburg, and Collecting a
law le.s band of bis adhereuts, tories
4nd negroes, he embarked with them
on fl ct of vessels schooners and
soops. aud commenced series of hal
rassipg incursions upon the plantations
and settlements ali along the tide water
regions. They sailed up the OIcoquan,
turned the flour mills. a number OF
dwellings and portion of the lapdiDgs
nut were compelled on the appearance
f me Prince William militia TO retreat.
Colchester bee. me post town doubt
ess at the time Of the Ere nch and It.
ian wsr, for Beuj amin Franklin, then
postmaster general, was in Virgin eS
b;ishlpg mail routes and post offices
B, old leGgers of merchants II IL evideu'
tatan office was established there be-
r. 1860 No record, how yer, Of The
fact exss in the post Office dela .
,us Mt a, Was oin2ion earlier Il au 1890.
Then William Thompson was pos
master and held the Office until 1893
men Il chariah Ward succeeded him
and conluued until 1904, then Samue
B iley succeeded aud continued until
1913, then Thomas Morgan succeeded
aud continued until 0, t t,ber 1915, when
he office was discontinued.
OF the families which left the fire.
sides of the old town in its 0ecadenc,
and bent their ways toward the open
ing lands OF the sun setting beyond the
Aleghanies, to the rich lands of the
OHIO, the Wabash, the Illinois and the
NJ ssissippi. who shall tell? Who
shall tell the story of their migrations?
Who shall tell how they scatter
ed and branched to the re.
mote regions of the earth as the years
went OIL? Some of them mayhap did
not fad the Canaans of their hopes and
dreams and came to grieve that they
had lefl the pleasant banks Of the q =
coquau. To others perhaps the lie
ines fell in favoring places and they
Jospered and were glad that they had
taken the dust of Virginia from THAR
e..
Forty years ago the writer first visit
d this Interesting locality and with oil
the eagerress of a historic pilgrim lis
tel e 10 the recitals OF aged men who
we're we'll grown boys before the disas-
trous calamities already noted befel the
town. From these living witnesses he
gathered many OF the facts set forth in
his sketch and ne trusts that the ef
forts here made to preserve few OF
he old landmarks OF Virginia from ir
retrievable destruction may stimulate
others of like tastes and inclinations to
similar work in other directions of the
wide field Of our much neglected CO.
lonial history. There were oil slaves
ID the surrounding plantations who re-
membered much about the early events
If the Occoquan region. They told also
strange stories they had heard from the
lips Of tneir fathers and grandfathers of
he circumstances of the elder days as
h,v tended together the "bacca and
cav craps" or sat grouped on winter
nights in the glowing fire light of the
log cabns-stories of Indian massa'
cres, of dead flons hanging in chains
oy the waysides and of slavers landing
their cargos of men and women from
de coast of Guinea" who chartered in
their strange tongues Like monkeys"
a. they went off in gangs TO de way
back plantations"
During the first year of the civil war
the locality OF Colchester was alter.
nl,ely occupied by the scurrying troops
outG OF the contending armies. Now
was the troopers of Stuart or Mosby
or Hampton dashing over the fence
less fields of seige and cedars. Now 1t
was the raiders of Custer and Sheridan
galloping down the quilted and other
wise fJrsakeu highways. The pensive
waylarer as ne passes over the site OF
| this vanished town which was founded
Two years before the fleet of Commo-
dore Keppel with the arny Of General
Braddock sailed up the Potomac to
Alexapdria, signs as he recalls the din
and traffic orcs heard along the streets
of f sex, Fairfax and Potomac in the
early colonial days, and with sadne'
akin to grief thinks OF the forgotten lie
histories-the Joys and sorrows, the
homes and fears and disappontnents
wnich were realized by the generatiops
whose places shall know them no more
forever.
Where life and besuty
Dwet long ago,
The waving sedges
And brambles grow.
All who met there
In days of yore
Now see not, hear not,
They are no more.
But go at the cleaning
Down by he rivers side
And listen, listen
To its hurr. ing tide.
In its rpplings and its rhythms
In fan you msy hear
Some token low or knelling
OF each forgotteo year
In passing along with the thread c
our story We nus, not lose sght oi To-
"Old Kings Highway" forli Was !rnl!
an historic landmark; none N all ou