Period flags from 1776 waved in the slight breeze at the Letcher home-site at Laurel Hill on June 29, 2026, as the JEB Stuart Birthplace Preservation Trust joined Patrick County Tourism in hosting the first of a week-long series of events around the county commemorating the 250th anniversary of American independence. More than 150 visitors braved the summer heat of southwest Virginia on an otherwise beautiful evening to enjoy barbecue, kindly provided by the Ararat Ruritan Club, along with cake by the Trust and much-appreciated cold lemonade provided by Ann McConnell and the ladies of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The Fisher Peak Timber Rattlers provided a backdrop of lively period music.
Patrick County’s own local historian, Mr. Tom Perry, delivered the evening’s main event, a program highlighting two of the area’s most prominent figures from the Revolutionary period, JEB Stuart’s great grandfathers William Letcher and Alexander Stuart. William Letcher’s resting place on the Laurel Hill property is the oldest known marked grave in the county, and his story serves as a reminder of the high cost of liberty and that the War of Independence touched even this far corner of Virginia. Mr. Perry spoke of what life was like for families such as the Letchers and Stuarts in this part of Virginia during the War, which was then still considered frontier. He told of the tensions between Patriots and local Tory loyalists and how those tensions culminated in William Letcher’s murder at the hands of a Tory in his own house in August of 1780.
Revolutionary War re-enactors from the Sons of the American Revolution gave visitors a glimpse of what life was like for American soldiers and militiamen 250 years ago, with demonstrations of formations and uniforms and a 21-gun salute with flintlock muskets, punctuated by a few cannon volleys courtesy of Mr. Bob Tabor and his artillery crew.
As dusk approached, Trust Board member Chris Corbett and the Ararat Volunteer Fire Department delighted spectators with a thundering and colorful fireworks display from the high ground at neighboring Laurel Hill, a most fitting commencement to Patrick County’s week of celebrating a quarter-millennium of American independence.
David Robinette – Director,
JEB Stuart Birthplace Preservation Trust
