For the next couple of weeks, we’ll be exploring the rich history of the Anthony family. I’m especially fortunate this week to be joined by Joy Branham, a direct descendant of the Anthonys, as my co-author. I’m very thankful for Joy—this time around, all I had to do was ask the questions, and she provided the well-researched answers.
In the 1830s, 22-year-old Benjamin Allen Anthony, son of John Austin “Jack” Anthony and Mary Allen of Bedford County, moved to a farm along what is now County Line Road in Patrick County. The property was a wedding gift to his 19-year-old bride, Martha Ann Rebecca Cobbs, from her parents, John Croton Cobbs and Martha Rebecca Hunt of Halifax County.
John Cobbs, a substantial landowner with over 25,000 acres to his name, reportedly disapproved of the marriage—but didn’t forbid it. Instead, he gave his daughter the farthest-away farm he owned, stating that he “didn’t want to have to look at his son-in-law across the dinner table every Sunday!” In the family, Benjamin was affectionately referred to as “Granddaddy Ben Allen.” Census records list him as a schoolteacher, and his love of literature showed in the names he chose for his children.
Benjamin and Martha had nine children — seven daughters and two sons: Mary, Martha, Sarah, Susan, John Virgil (who would go by Virgil), Celestia, Columbia, Morgiana, and Homer. Although we often think of the 1800s as a time of deep-rooted settlement, the Anthonys were surprisingly mobile. Their descendants quickly spread across the South and beyond, to places like North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Arkansas, and Texas.
For the rest of the story, we will focus on Benjamin and Martha’s oldest son, Virgil, his wife, and descendants. After Virgil’s father’s death in 1860, relatives in Mississippi urged the family to move west, promising fertile farmland and a fresh start. At the time, Virgil was attending Emory and Henry College, but he paused his education, gathered essential farming supplies, and headed toward Mississippi to scout the move. Those plans were soon interrupted by the war.
At just twenty years old, Virgil enlisted in Company A of the 11th Mississippi Regiment—famously known as the “University Greys.” Under the command of Captain Tom Watson and General Barnard Bee, Virgil rose to the rank of first lieutenant. He fought in both battles of Manassas (Bull Run), and his regiment camped at Arlington Heights on their advance toward Washington, D.C. After Captain Watson was killed in battle, Virgil took command but was seriously wounded and sent to Lynchburg for medical care.
He later fought in the Seven Days Campaign near Richmond. Tragically, his cousin Henry Anthony—who had volunteered with him—was killed during the fighting and buried in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond. Virgil, wounded again, returned home to Patrick County on sick leave and was assigned to track down Confederate deserters.
After recovering, he rejoined the war effort, this time with Company H of the 51st Virginia Infantry under General Jubal Early. On March 2, 1865, during the Battle of Waynesboro, he was captured by Union troops and sent to Fort Delaware, a prison camp. The journey was brutal: already weak and underfed, many prisoners perished while crossing swollen rivers. A young Union lieutenant took pity on Virgil, offering him the tail of his horse to hold onto while crossing one such river—an act that may have saved his life.
Virgil was released from Fort Delaware on June 19, 1865, and walked all the way back to Patrick County. Following the war, Virgil’s mother purchased a farm in the Spencer area of Henry County, mainly because the house on the property was still livable. It’s believed that the family’s original home at Cedar Hill in Patrick County had burned during the war and was never rebuilt.
On November 8, 1876, Virgil Anthony married his father’s first cousin, Felicianna Nancy “Nannie” Jones Anthony, the daughter of Abner Anthony and Almira Arthur of Bedford County. Together, they would go on to raise a remarkable family whose stories we’ll begin to explore next week.
Special thanks to Anthony descendant Joy Branham for generously sharing her research and photographs, which made this article possible. For questions, comments, or to share your own family memories, Woody can be reached at rockcastlecreek1@gmail.com or (276) 692-9626.
