Winchester, Virginia

Winchester is an independent city located in the extreme northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The city's population was 23,585 according to the 2000 U.S. Census. Winchester is the county seat of Frederick. Winchester is home to Shenandoah University.

History

The first Native American tribe with real control of the valley were the Susquehannocks, who were then raided and expelled by Iroquois around 1600. 

French Jesuit expeditions first entered the valley as early as 1606 resulting in a crude map drawn in 1632 by Samuel de Champlain, but the first confirmed exploration of the northern valley was by explorer John Lederer who viewed the valley from the current Fauquier and Warren County line on August 26, 1670. This was followed by more extensive exploration and mapping by Swiss explorer Louise Michel in 1705 and then Governor Alexander Spotswood in 1716.

In the late 1720s Governor William Gooch promoted settlement by issuing large land grants and, subsequently Robert "King" Carter, manager of the Lord Fairfax proprietorship, acquired 200,000 acres. This combination of events directly precipitated an inrush of settlers from Pennsylvania and New York, made up of a blend of Quakers and various German and Scots-Irish homesteaders.

The settlement of Winchester began as early as 1729, when Quakers like Abraham Hollingsworth migrated up the Great Valley along the Indian Path (later known as the Great Wagon Road) from Pennsylvania and began to homestead on old Shawnee campgrounds. The first German settler appears to be Jost Hite in 1732, who brought ten other families including some Scots-Irish. Though an Anglican colony, Governor William Gooch had a tolerant policy on religion, and throughout Virginia, the availability of land grants brought in many religious families, who were often given 50-acre plots through the sponsorship of fellow religious grant purchasers and speculators. A legal fight erupted in 1735 when Thomas Fairfax, Sixth Lord Fairfax, came to Virginia to claim his land grant, which included "all the land in Virginia between the Rappahannock and the Potomac rivers", an old grant from King Charles II, and which overlapped and included Frederick county.


Founding
By 1738 these settlements became known as Frederick Town. The county of Frederick was then carved out of Orange County, and the first government was created consisting of a County Court as well as the Anglican Frederick Parish (for purposes of tax collection). Colonel James Wood, an immigrant from Winchester, England was the first court clerk.  The County Court held its first session in 1743, where James Wood served until 1760. Lord Fairfax, understanding that possession is 9/10ths of the law, built a home here (in present-day Clarke County) in 1748. By 1750 the Virginia House of Burgesses granted the fourth city charter in Virginia to Winchester as Frederick Town was now re-named after Colonel Wood's birthplace.  In 1754, Abraham Hollingsworth built the local residence called Abram's Delight, which served as the first local Quaker Meeting house. George Washington spent a good portion of his young life in Winchester helping survey the Fairfax land grant for Thomas Fairfax, Sixth Lord Fairfax, as well as performing surveying work for Colonel Wood. In 1758 Colonel Wood added 158 lots to the west side of town, and then Thomas Fairfax contributed 173 more lots to the south and east.

As of the census of 2000, there were 23,585 people, 10,001 households, and 5,650 families residing in the city.


Apple Blossom

 Winchester is the location of the annual Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival, which has existed since 1924 and draws approximately 250,000 visitors to the area. The festival includes a carnival, the longest fireman's parade and the third longest grand feature parade in the U.S., several dances and parties, and a coronation where the Apple Blossom Queen is crowned. Local school systems and many businesses close the Friday of Apple Blossom weekend.

Winchester has more than 20 different "artistic" apples that are made of various materials including wood, rubber pipe, plaster, and paint. These apples were created in 2005 by occupants of the city, and were placed at a specific location at the artists' request after being auctioned off. For example, a bright red apple with a large stethoscope attached to it was placed beside a much-used entrance to the Winchester Medical Center.
Sports Teams

Winchester is also home to the Winchester Royals of the Valley Baseball League.



Local and Surrounding Area Attractions

Abram's Delight 
As an early settler, Abraham Hollingsworth traveled the Wilderness Trail when it was still an Indian path. He built one of the first grist mills in the Valley and the Hollingsworth home served as the area's first Quaker meeting house. Constructed of stone in 1754, the home is the oldest in Winchester. It showcases a wonderful example of early settlement life in the lower Shenandoah Valley. Furnishings include a fine collection of period art, antiques, and a restored and furnished log cabin.

State Arboretum of Virginia Museum
The State Arboretum of Virginia is part of Blandy Experimental Farm, a research field station for the University of Virginia. The Arboretum collection includes the largest variety of boxwood cultivars in North America and more than half the world's pine species as well as a Virginia Native Plant Trail, an herb garden, extensive collections of perennials, a native plant meadow, and more. The collection emphasizes native trees and woody shrubs and their exotic relatives. It is the only mature arboretum on limestone soils on the east coast.

Belle Grove Plantation 
Once described as "the most splendid building west of the Blue Ridge," Belle Grove Plantation was the home of Major Isaac Hite, Jr. and his wife Nelly Conway Madison, sister of President James Madison. Architecturally inspired by Thomas Jefferson and completed in 1797, Belle Grove has been a focus of Valley life for more than two centuries. Located at the epicenter of the 1864 Battle of Cedar Creek, Belle Grove features compelling Early American and Civil War history, a fine period decorative arts collection, and breathtaking mountain views. 

Frederick County Courthouse
The Frederick County Courthouse was built in 1840, and was possibly designed by Robert Cary Long. The courthouse was a visible landmark during many of the bloody battles that took place in the Winchester area during the Civil War.

George Washington's Office Museum
Between September 1755 and December 1756, Washington kept an office in this small log cabin while he supervised the construction of Fort Loudoun. Original Fort Loudoun cannon on premises, survey equipment, and period artifacts.

Handley Regional Library and Stewart Bell Jr. Archives 
The stately Handley Library, often described as the best example of Beaux-Arts architecture in Virginia, features a copper dome, a three story rotunda, topped by an interior stained-glass dome, historic light fixtures and glass stack floors. A picture depicting a group of Winchester citizens appealing to George Washington for protection hangs over a fireplace in the periodicals room.  The Stewart Bell Jr. Archives, located in the basement, houses an extensive collection of materials on the people, places, and events of lower Shenandoah Valley from 1732 to present. 

Marker-Miller Orchard 
Fresh produce and baked goods; front porch with rocking chairs, children’s play center and picnic area; pick-your-own raspberries, greens beans, pumpkins and apples.

Museum of the Shenandoah Valley 
A visit to this museum is a must in any trip to the Shenandoah Valley! First opened in the spring of 2005, the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (MSV) tells the story of the great region for which it is named. Designed by Michael Graves, the MSV anchors a regional history museum complex that also includes the Glen Burnie Historic House and six acres of spectacular gardens. 

Newtown History Center 
The Newtown History Center is a complex of homes and museums located in a quaint town on the Valley Pike. Learn the story of a great Philadelphia Wagon Road/Wilderness Trail Settlement founded by early Shenandoah Valley pioneers.

Old Court House Civil War Museum 
The Civil War museum, located in the historic 1840 courthouse. The courthouse served as a prison and a hospital to both Northern and Southern troops. Soldiers from both sides wrote their names on the walls. The museum remembers these soldiers and tells their stories through the equipment they carried, photographs of the period, and the weapons and ammunition they used. 

Old Stone Presbyterian Church and Daniel Morgan Statue 
Scotch-Irish settlers built this stone meeting house for worship in 1788, when Winchester was a thriving frontier village. It was in this church that the first Sunday School South of the Mason-Dixon line was organized in 1815. General Daniel Morgan of Revolutionary War fame was a member. 

Opequon Presbyterian Church and Cemetery  
Opequon is the oldest Presbyterian congregation West of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Organized in 1732, it has had continuous worship services since its founding and is commonly referred to as the "Mother Church of the Valley." 

POW/MIA Memorial  Jim Barnett Park 
The Virginia Chapter 1 of Rolling Thunder, Inc. has established a permanent memorial located in Jim Barnett Park in Winchester. The memorial consists of a granite monument with the names of the POW/MIAs from Vietnam emblazoned upon it. POW/MIAs from other conflicts are memorialized with stone benches in an arch around an eighty foot circle. A four foot walkway around this circle is guarded by four by eight inch granite blocks. These blocks are engraved with messages of remembrance from contributors to the project. At the head of the circle, and the focal point of the project, contributors have purchased two foot square granite blocks also engraved with words of recognition.  Flags of the United States, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the POW/MIAs fly behind the granite monument. 

Shenandoah University Conservatory of Music:
Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre 
Shenandoah University Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre is home to a variety of musicals, dramas, and comedic performances. 

Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum
The Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum offers an interactive, hands-on experience for families, which focuses on the science, mathematics, humanities and the arts.  Explore the exhibits in natural history, paleontology, simple machines, and art-in-the-making. Experience Native American culture in A Stop Along the Moccasin Trail. 

Stonewall Jackson's HQ Museum 
As commander of Confederate forces in the Shenandoah Valley, Gen. Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson spent much of the winter and spring of 1861-62 in this house where he laid plans for his now famous Shenandoah Valley campaign. The house contains a fine collection of Jackson items, and his office looks much as it did when Jackson was in residence.

Wayside Theatre
Renowned live professional theatre located in Historic Northern Shenandoah Valley.  It is the Second oldest professional theatre in Virginia. Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of the Shenandoah Valley, Wayside Theatre brings Broadway to the Blue Ridge in an intimate theatre presenting exciting live Equity Professional Theatre.

Winchester Little Theatre 
The Winchester Little Theatre is a volunteer live community theater organization that specializes in four theatrical productions annually. Each production is directed, acted, produced and managed completely by volunteers from in and around the Winchester community. WLT is housed in the old Pennsylvania Railroad freight station, circa 1895. 


Check out the links below for more information about Frederick County / Winchester:
Frederick County, VA (official website)
Winchester, VA (official website)
Frederick County Public Schools
Winchester Public Schools
Winchester Frederick County Chamber of Commerce  
Frederick County, VA weather
The Commonwealth of Virginia