Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-10-17

|
RUIN OF OLD FAIRFAX HO
cution of the work the south wing of the
Capitol, and $4,000 to the service of the
to comply with your directions as TO forward
the progress of the works to the utmost extent
of the limited resources of this city. The
mass Of the building which has been erected
is the best evidence Of the industry and fidelity
of the workmen who haze been employed. bnt
the hopes which were entertained that it might
be possible TO complete the hall of representa-
tives in time for their occupancy, during the
present session, have been disappointed. The
public and private buildings. which have been
carried in the District and at Baltimore,
rendered it difficult to procure any considerable
body of workmen. and the q,nrries Of free
stone at Aqua have proved more than usually
precarous in the supply Of the larger and
finer blocks required for the interior Of the
Capitol"
In a foot-note applied to that para
graph of the report and which you
will find in the documentary History
of the Construction and Development
of the United States Capitol Building
and Grounds is this:
THE freestone of Aqua. used in the public
buildings is n caIcareous sandstone Of very
excellent quality. and the quarries are in ap-
pearance. inexhaustible; it is, however. sub
ject to clay-holes. to nedules of iron ore tpy-
and durability of the rock is often very various
in the same stratum it also suffers expansion
and contraction. from moisture and dryness; to
a greater degree than any stone with which
am acquainted, even after block is taken out
of the quarry and delivered in the city. and
in some cases after 1t has been wrought ii is
liable to fly to pieces II rapidly dried by vio-
lent heat wind. but II 1t once becomes dry
and remains sound it has never been known
to fall
1t was into the old country of Free
stone point. but new to him. that the
Rambler walked one golden Sunday
morning. not knowing what reward
would come from the adventure. but
believing that some story would de-
lvelop which might be worth telling
He feels that to him came such a
Irecompense.
When the Rambler left the Wash
ington, Lorton, Colchester, Occoquan
and Neabsco limited, which makes it a
point of honor to pas no place with
out stopping, he saw but one man at
the station, and he seemed to be
there because it was his business. He
had by his side pretty child, about
five or six years old. and in this mat
a fair guess. Her name was Barbara;
beg your pardon. Old Grammaticus.
her name is Barbara.
The man was w. o. Neill and he
keeps the station. flags the train
when travellers are to be taken on
and tends the draw of the big
Neabsco bridge when schooners. light
or lumber or cord wood laden, are
to be passed, at intervals of weeks
or months, up or down the creek.
Once it was a prosperous creek, but
things are different now 1t is not
SO much used for navigation as for
fishing, and where men gather in
that neighborhood the theme is bass,
bass, bass.
Mr.. Neill's father kept the draw of
the older railroad bridge. which still
stands upstream from the present
bridge. 1t was probably the first
railroad bridge over Neabsco creek.
for that part of the Richmond Wash
ington line was extended north from
Quantico about 1871. Neill. the father.
try was married to Miss Margaret
Brammell, who was descended from
branch of the old Maryland family.
Odenton. members of which lived
long ago at Benedict, in Charles
county. The Rambler asked Mr.. Nein:
Who lives now on Freestone point? ?"
Nobody" There are 600 acres of land
on the point between the railroad
and the river 1t was bought from
the Fairfax family and is now owned
by J. r. Hayden, rich Omaha man.
who bought the land for it's timber.
This has been pretty well cut off
Mr.. Neill said there was no house
on the neck. but there was the fire
ruin of the house that had been the
home of Col. ]. W. Fairfax. who was
the father of Col. Henry Fairfax of
Leesburg. Col. ]. w. Fairfax moved
away good many years ago, and
the house, at the time vacant, was
burned about three years ago. Yes.
there was an old graveyard in the
woods. 1t was with this information
500 acres. characterized by steep
ridges. hills and deep little valleys
For the most part, it is upgrown with
second-growth timber. small trees
that the axmen passed by, and here
and there are groves of good-sized
gled over large areas with green
brier, honeysuckle and other vines
mingled with high blackberry bushes
and raspberry canes. 1t was a stretch
of wild country in which a city man
might feel a sense of lonesomeness
if he had not reveries and reflections
as attendants.
* * =. x
In this country the Rambler found
the sites Of two houses that disap-
peared SO long ago that the Oldest
people in the Neabsco neighborhoed
do not recall ever having heard their
fathers say that houses stood there
Following the trace of a road. the
Rambler came to a mound of brick
which had been a house perhaps half
a century ago. Then. rounding
bend in the old road, he came in
sight of the river and a ridge sloping
toward the river. On that slope is
the fire-ruin with the two chimneys
still intact, of the fine old house
which was the home of Col. J. W.
Fairfax. In tangled copplce and at
considerable distance from this ruin
is a tall iron fence supported by stout
granite pillars, inclosing two marble
headstones. The epitaphs are: Eliza
beth Fairfax. wife of Henry Fairfax.
Snr.. died Nov. 6. 1S47. in the seth
year of her age; Daughter of Thomas
Lindsay and Martha his wife; was
born March LIST. 1892. Henry Fairfax,