Hype for the Future 99A: The Frontier Culture of Augusta County, Virginia

Disclaimer

Within the Commonwealth of Virginia, independent cities can occasionally be classified within the associated counties; however, the cities are politically separate from the surrounding counties as per the state constitution. This post pertains to the Cities of Staunton and Waynesboro in addition to Augusta County proper.

Introduction

Traditionally a significantly larger county associated with the entire frontier of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the County of Augusta, named for Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha, continues to serve as a place of historical significance within the Appalachian backcountry and old frontier of the United States of America, originating with the Scots-Irish and German communities dispersed throughout the region.

Communities

The Cities of Staunton and Waynesboro are geographically within Augusta County but are politically separate from the county proper. The governmental offices are increasingly relocating from the City of Staunton to the Town of Verona; additional communities within the county include, but are not limited to, Fishersville, Jolivue, Stuarts Draft, and Grottoes (primarily in Rockingham County).

Attractions

Many of the scenic overlooks, including the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive themselves, are located along the eastern county line with Nelson County, Virginia. However, the Cities of Staunton and Waynesboro also provide distinctive opportunities for local and regional tourism, including the relevant backstories of the associated Scots-Irish and German communities.

Associated with the southern portion of the Town of Grottoes is Grand Caverns, a notable tourist attraction in the region for which the nearby community of Weyers Cave to the west may have been named for. The Grottoes Pool and the Fountain Cave Adventure Tours are also associated with the community.

Waynesboro Area

Within the City of Waynesville and the associated immediate vicinity into Augusta County are the Virginia Metalcrafters Marketplace and Historic District in the east and the more centrally located Plumb House Museum and Main Street corridor areas. Along the Main Street corridor are the following notable amenities, from west to east:

• Mural: Poochie
• The Russell Museum (Art)
• Shenandoah Valley Art Center, Inc.
• Waynesboro Heritage Foundation
• The Augusta County Railroad Museum
• P Buckley Moss Gallery Waynesboro

Staunton Area

For the City of Staunton (pronounced “Stanton”) and immediate vicinity into Augusta County, the most notable portion of the area is the Frontier Culture Museum and associated Octagon Barn. The Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum is located on the northeastern side of the inner city, while the Virginia Scenic Railway represents the southwestern portion of the city limits.

The inner city of Staunton is most notable for the Camera Heritage Museum, the Staunton Mural, the Artisans Loft, and the CoArt Gallery representing the numerous art institutions of the community, while the Downtown Staunton Visitor Center and the R. R. Smith Center for History and Art are each located further east.

Institutions

The City of Staunton serves as home to Mary Baldwin University as well as a number of historic hotels and places to stay, most notably the Blackburn Inn and Conference Center in the southeast portion of the city. The Historic Inn at Oakdene, Hotel 24 South, the Storefront Hotel, and the Frederick House are perhaps some of the most notable places to stay within the city.

Hype for the Future 50R: Appalachian Folk

Appalachian folk traditions are often related to Scots-Irish traditions, as well as to the traditions of the Melungeons, a mixed-race group associated with the region and without an obvious association with any given race in particular. Folk traditions, such as “Rocky Top” in East Tennessee, are often remnants of the cultural traits of Scots-Irish settlement to the present-day United States.

Hype for the Future 50Q: Greater Appalachian Scots-Irish

Overall, the Scots-Irish settlement of British Colonial America, overwhelmingly between 1717 and 1775, has largely been determined by numerous overlapping forces that had ultimately resulted in the migration of significant numbers of Scots-Irish to British Colonial America, and a significant majority of the settlers were originally associated with Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and the surrounding area. However, unlike the German settlers to the Lancaster area, including Amish and Mennonite communities, the Scots-Irish were often identified as frontiersmen by tradition and many were pushed to the frontier regions, including around Washington County, Pennsylvania, and into the western portions of Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and even South Carolina. The Colquhoun family, which has largely evolved into the Calhoun (along with numerous alternate spellings) family, has largely represented the area in Upstate South Carolina around Abbeville, including by way of the notable John C. Calhoun descendant of the Scots-Irish.

Hype for the Future 50O: Scots-Irish in Context

Though Óengus I is often identified with the very beginning of the modern-day identity of much of Scotland, and especially the southwestern part of Scotland where most of the Ulster Scots would eventually depart to the northern part of Ireland from, not all of Scotland would be identified as strictly nor inherently Scots-Irish by default. However, locales more commonly associated with the Scots-Irish include, but may not necessarily be limited to, the Lancaster area in Pennsylvania alongside the German communities (including Amish and Mennonites), the backcountry regions in Virginia and the Carolinas, and the extended region ultimately representing Appalachia at large. In rarer cases, Scots-Irish were also associated with the later settlements in the Tidewater region of the South, and in even rarer cases still, even New England settlements.