Historical Society sponsors trip to Ohio River Valley
Did you ever wonder about the other end of the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike? Have you ever been interested in
exploring the history in the region that was once part of August County’s historical boundaries? The Augusta
County Historical Society is sponsoring a trip to the Historic Ohio River Valley to be led by Katharine Brown. The
three-day trip runs from September 30 to October 1.
Two historic towns on the banks of the Ohio River are the destination for this fall tour. Parkersburg, West Virginia,
at the other end of the turnpike, will be the base to explore the area. The oil and gas boom in the region in the late
19th century gave this Ohio River town a bustling economy that was reflected in the construction of robust
commercial, sacred, and public buildings and private mansions in the many Victorian era architectural styles, much
as happened in Staunton.
Across the river in Ohio, the beautiful college town of Marietta reflected its post-Revolutionary New England
heritage with wide streets, gracious mansions, a Congregational church, and a town cemetery laid out around a large
Indian mound.
Travelers will depart Staunton on Friday morning, September 30, by motorcoach, traveling through the Alleghenies
to Tamarack, the West Virginia arts and crafts center. Lunch on your own at the Greenbrier-operated cafeteria. Later
in the day, the group will visit Point Pleasant battlefield and monument that honors the soldiers, many of whom were
Augusta County men, who fought there under Andrew Lewis against Cornstalk in 1774. Augusta County native
Charles Lewis died in the battle and is buried on the battlefield site.
The day ends in Parkersburg where travelers will check into the restored 1881 Blennerhassett Hotel. In the evening a
walking tour of the Julia-Ann historic district ends at the 1878 Second Empire family home of historical society
board members Katharine and Madison Brown for a buffet supper. On the way back to the hotel, the group will tour
the restored 1926 Smoot Theater and have dessert on the stage.
Saturday’s activities include a tour of the Oil and Gas Museum and the Blennerhassett Museum followed by a boat
ride to Blennerhassett Island for a box lunch, a wagon ride around the island and a tour of the reconstructed
Georgian mansion built by Irish aristocrat Harman Blennerhassett. In 1807, President Thomas Jefferson had
Blennerhassett arrested, along with U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr. They were brought to Richmond for trial on
charges of treason. Dinner that evening will be at the Blennerhassett Hotel.
On Sunday the group will visit Marietta, touring around the town, lunching at the Historic Hotel Lafayette beside the
river, and visiting the 1855 Gothic Revival historic house, “The Castle,” and the Campus Martius Museum, before
boarding the bus for the return trip to Staunton.
The trip costs $500 per person. This includes transportation, luxury hotel (double room; single room is $75 extra),
breakfast buffets, two lunches, two dinners, a theater dessert, and all admissions to sites visited. For more
information or to sign up for the trip ($50 deposit per person), contact Katharine Brown at klbrown@cfw.com or
540-886-5979.