PATRICK COUNTY
Patrick
County, Virginia, was formed in 1791 from Henry County. Harden Hairston, son of
George Hairston, was born in 1786 and married Sally Stovall Staples of Mayo,
Patrick County, Virginia. During the War of 1812. Harden was Master of
Transportation in the Southern Division of the American Army. He lived at Old
Fort, Patrick County, Virginia, until he moved to Lowndes County, Mississippi,
between 1837 and 1840. He was the father of 16 children.
Harden and his wife Sally Stovall Staples Hairston lived at Fort Mayo on the
Mayo River in Virginia. All of their children were born here. They buried four
babies before they left to go to Mississippi. We will see the graves of these
four children and the place where the Hairston home stood. There are two very
large trees here and a chimney. The graves have a rock fence around the four
stones, and a walnut tree also guard the graves. In the spring a lilac bush
blooms just as if Sally might have planted it for her babies.
This homesite is truly peaceful and nostalgic.
Harden and Sally are buried in the Hairston Cemetery in Lowndes County,
Mississippi.
The
town of Stuart in Patrick County was named for General J. E. B. Stuart who
gained fame during the Civil War. Bethenia Letcher, the stepdaughter of George
Hairston I, was J. E. B. Stuart's grandmother.
Another highlight in Patrick County is the Reynolds Homestead, which was the birthplace of R. J. Reynolds. It contains many original family furnishings and is a living history museum and continuing education center for Virginia Tech. The Reynolds Homestead is a Virginia and National Historic Landmark listed in the National Registry of American Homes.
This page was written by Mr. O. E. Pilson for the 1996 Hairston Reunion