History of Manassas and Buckhanon

Manassas was founded because of the railroad’s influence. In 1850, the Virginia Legislature authorized the construction of a new railroad line that would join an existing line at the site of the Town. The point at which these two railroads came together was first known as Manassas Junction. During the 1850’s,a small rural settlement grew up and flourished as a direct result of these railroads. In 1861, Manassas Junction’s proximity to Washington, DC, and the strategic nature of the two rail lines, made Manassas an important prize to both the Union and Confederate forces. As a result, considerable fighting took place in the area, including the first major battle of the Civil War and a second significant battle a year later respectively called the First and Second Battles of Manassas. The Civil War gave Manassas an identity. However, true growth and development of the area did not occur until after the war ended. Much of what is referred to today as “Historic Manassas” is the area where that growth began. (1)

Manassas is an awesome place to live and they have a lot of things to do like the jubilee, the national night out and many more fun things and I cannot forgot the Christmas parade and the double decker train ride with Santa Claus.

The European-American history of Upshur County begins with the settling of the Buckhannon River Valley. The brothers Samuel and John Pringle were English soldiers serving in the French and Indian War (Seven Years' War) who in 1761 deserted their post at Fort Pitt (present-day Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). They traveled southward and upstream along the Monongahela and Tygart Valley rivers, continuing up what is now called the Buckhannon River. They were said to arrive in present-day Upshur County in 1764 and took up living in a huge hollow of an American sycamore. They lived there for 3 years, living off game and fish. Finally one went out for more ammunition and found the war was over. After his return, they moved to the South Branch settlements. John later went to Kentucky, but Samuel returned to the river valley with his new wife Charity Pringle (née Cutright), her brother John Jr., friends Thomas Hughes, and John and Elizabeth Jackson with their sons George and Edward. The City of Buckhannon was established on January 15, 1816, named after the river. Some accounts say both are named for ; others that they are named after an early missionary John Buckhannon. The city was chartered by the Virginia General Assembly in 1852. Buckhannon was part of the Commonwealth of Virginia until the secession of West Virginia on June 20, 1863 during the American Civil War. Because of its near-central geographic location, Buckhannon was long considered as a prospective site for the capital. In 1866, the legislature approved a bill including Buckhannon among the choices for capital, but officials decided the river was not wide enough to accommodate desired commerce.The first courthouse was built in 1854. It also served as an opera house and town hall. Electricity was installed in 1891 to replace oil lamps. The building suffered fire damage in the first six months of electrical service. It was razed in 1898. In its place, a Classical Revival style courthouse, designed by Charleston architect Harrison Albright, was begun in 1899 and completed in 1901. It is still in use today. An annex of the same style was added in 1995. In the cornerstone of the main building is a time capsule filled with turn of the 19th century artifacts. (2) (3)

I grew up in Buckhannon it is a very small town with a lot of people in it it is surrounded by mountains which is insane.

Sources

(1)    http://www.manassascity.org

(2)    www.buckhannonwv.org

(3)    www.visitmanassas.org