4 July 2011
Amended 19 August 2012
Unfortunately, I have been unable to enlarge the photograph further without significant loss of detail. The near corner of the house is to the southwest, the ridge of the house running east-west. Another building can just be seen in the left edge of the photo--that was the kitchen, which burned to the ground in the early to mid 1960s. Additional rooms had been added to the east and are not visible in this photo.
This inventory was done about 3 months before my birth. In my earliest recollections there was no trace of the old school house mentioned below. I do remember the "old barns," which were actually sheds both to the west (along with the "necessary," the outhouse) and to the northeast of the house. The main farm buildings were (and still are) on the east side of old Route 628, across from the house and yard.(WHS*)
During the 1920s there was telephone service to Hillsboro but it had been discontinued before my time. There was no electrical service up to the time Hillsboro went out of my family's possession (infra), and heat was provided by fireplaces and wood-burning stoves.
For additional land record information, see the Notes of John Randolph Haddox, Clinton Bolivar Haddox, Warren Abiff Haddox and Linnia Katherine Haddox.
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The following was copied from a November 1863 map of Rappahannock Co., VA, produced by the "Engr. Office 2nd Corps," and is held in the Library of Congress Division of Maps, 1665G. It shows the location of "Hittle Rvr." & "Hillsboro" in relation to Flint Hill and to the main north-south road (now U.S. Route 522).
The following photo was probably taken in the early 1900s and is looking toward the west-northwest. The smoke house is at the far left. (Photo in possession of WHS*)
By the 1950s the house was showing signs of disrepair, as seen in this view from the east:
The following photo is on the reverse of a post card in my possession, addressed to "W.A. Haddox Esq., Huntley, Virginia." Standing on the right and leaning on the spring house is Warren Abiff Haddox. His sister, Linnia Katherine Haddox, is seated to the left. I don't know the three people between them. The Blue Ridge Mountains are in the background, to the west. Below that photo is one I took in 1983. The spring house is north and slightly west of the main house and faces south. A pipe ran from it to a small room in the house, where it flowed through a concrete basin used as a chiller for milk & some foods. The kitchen relied on water carried by hand.
The following photos were taken by me in 1983. On the left is the smoke house, which stands to the south and slightly west of the main house and faces north. On the right is a silo build by my father in the 1920s using multiple wooden slats, then coated on the inside with concrete. It disappeared some time in the 1990s.
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Following is a letter from the effects of Linnia Katherine Haddox, which I transcribed from the handwritten original. Several names were written only with the capital letter and a following blank, as shown herein. I believe the "characters" are Gibson, Clinton & Haddox
Hillsboro, Va.
June 15, 1867
Mr. Editor:
I write now from a point, a county seat, located at the foot of the Eastern Slope of the Eastern range of the Blue Ridge of the Alleghany mountains.
Sixty years ago, this place was the residence of a gentleman who lived in all the splendor which the country then offered. Rich in land and servants, like Abraham his "flocks roamed over a thousand hills" and his abode was visited by the gentle men of leisure as well as of letters.
The rich and the learned partook of his hospitalities and enjoyed the refined and elegant society of that mansion. It is a beautiful yet romantic place To the west stretches out to the mountain's base a lovely plateau, rising to an elevation of about twenty degrees, covered now with golden wheat and rich clover fields, here and there shaded by rich clusters of the forest oak.
To the North is an undulating range of green hills covered with blue grass upon which herds of Cattle and Sheep are feeding -- On the east is a field of growing Corn -- South and afar off in the distance, beyond fields of grain and grassy landscape stand half a dozen different and distinct mountains -- the Peak -- the Fodderstack -- the Mulky -- Hickerson, Hickman, &c. -- Rushing down hillsides and along through fields and forests over grey rocks and beds of golden sand rolls the clear bright sparkling waves of the mountain rivulet and from every direction tumble and Crawl down the sloping landscapes a score of other Smaller streams leaping and frothing as they pass along and lose themselves in the larger one.
It seems as if a spirit seeking some location halcyon in appearance equal to the lost and lovely Paradise, wearied in its search for a moment, rested upon the mountain slope above and gazing down beheld the spot, and swift as thought went back and told it to the refugee from Eden's fields, that hope and happiness might again be his.
Here Mr. G____ lived -- "monarch of all he surveyed" his flouring mills his mammoth distilleries his stores of merchandise.
He grew rich, proud, opulent and raised a lovely and interesting family of children ripened to a green old age -- and died leaving to his children this wealth accumulated by a life of industry and success.
Whilst he was in the full enjoyment of a successful tide to fortune there came to his house a young man, poor and pennyless -- engaged to work for this rich man as a day laborer at fifty cents per day. Diligent at work and faithful to his employers interest, he toiled on -- hoping, trusting that continuing industry would find its reward. Years passed away. This day laborer was surrounded by a small family of children to which he taught that golden rule to success. The rich man at length died -- his estate was divided among his children -- "the riches took to themselves wings and flew away." The day laborer still prospered & today his children own to [sic] proud old estate of the rich man -- which forty five years ago he commenced to purchase by his perserverance and industry at fifty cents per day. His oldest, C____ now owns the old mansion house. and eight hundred acres around of the best and most picturesque localities in the Union.
In the fall of 1864 the federals visited this section and drove away two or three thousand head of Cattle and horses, besides hundreds of sheep. This place was visited by them and C____ lost Seventy three head of fat cattle and forty two horses. When the war closed besides their their [sic] land the people had nothing.
Now they are recovering from their losses and soon the traces of a ravaging strife will be entirely obliterated. C___ is a whole souled and has a wife that is the very "model of divinity" in household affairs.
Surrounded by an interesting family, he is richly deserving all the success in the life which can possibly be afforded mortal man and like our friend H____ in the barrister after we had partaken of a very elegant and sumptuous dinner prepared for us by his excellent lady said, "I wish he all success and life, health and happiness and enjoyment ad in finitum."
Written to the Mexico Weekly Ledger
/s/ C.C. Ricketts
NOTES:
The Post Master General directed the publication of a
national list of Post Offices and their Postmasters in 1813. In Culpeper
County, VA there was a Post Office named "Hillsboro" with the Postmaster being
Moses Gibson. (genealogytrails.com) According to postalhistory.com,
the Hillsboro Post Office existed between 180? and 1822.
At the 1850 Census there is a Charles C. Ricketts, 27 year old school teacher, born in VA, living with others in the household of Lewis Moore. Also present in that household are Mary Ricketts, 70 years old; and Nancy Compton, 23 years old, born in VA. On the same page are Robert H & John W. Sears, physicians. (Rappahannock Co., VA - Pg 109B)
At the 1860 Census Robert H. Sears is on the same page as John D. & Lenna Haddox (Rappahannock Co., VA – Pg 75). There is a C.C. Ricketts, 30 year old male Lawyer, born in Virginia, living with several others in the Allison household (Mexico, Audrain Co., MO – Pg 115).
The “Mexico Weekly Ledger” is a now-defunct publication from Mexico, Audrain Co., MO.
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One cannot talk about Hillsboro without including Ida & Nancy Jones. Ida was born in 1905 and when very young was "given" to my grandmother to raise. Ida had one child, Nancy, who was born about 1925. I never saw Nancy dressed in anything but men's clothes and with her hair cut in a male fashion. Ida did the cooking and cleaning, while Nancy worked on the farm as would a man.
Ida & Nancy initially lived in a large room over the kitchen. Later they lived in one of the farm hand houses, the one at "Douglas Orchard," which was further up Riley Hollow Road. When that house burned to the ground, they moved into the "Brooks House" which still stands (albeit poorly) on Riley Hollow Road next to Hittles Mill Stream, just down the hill from the Smoke House:
Nancy still lives in Flint Hill with one of her sons, who razed the old house and build a new one there for his mother and himself.
Hillsboro could not have functioned without the hard work and dedication of Ida and Nancy Jones.
Nancy Jones,
December 2010
I received word from Nancy's daughter, Nancy Freeman, that her mother had passed away on May 14, 2019. After a service at the Macedonia Baptist Church of Flint Hill, she was buried next to her mother at the Odd Fellows Cemetery. She is missed.
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Ownership of Hillsboro left the Haddox/Sothoron family with the death of my uncle, George Mortimer ("Mort") Sothoron in 1949. A mortgage on it was held by Lyle Jordan Millan, M.D., a family friend (who is also buried at Flint Hill). After a law suit involving Uncle Mort's daughter Lucy and Dr. Millan, there was a settlement with Dr. Millan gaining full ownership.
Upon the death of Uncle Mort and until such time as his estate was settled my father assumed responsibility for running Hillsboro. Along with Uncle Mort he had inherited ownership after their mother died, but had informally given his share to Uncle Mort. We lived on a 300 acre farm in Carroll Co,. MD so this became a huge load. Our hired hands in Maryland (Frank Surrett & Harry Pierce) spent weeks at a time at Hillsboro at harvest time, and we hired additional help in Maryland. I stayed at Hillsboro for several weeks each of 2 summers to help with the work. When needed in Maryland all of us (including Nancy) would return there until it was accomplished. We hauled cattle from Maryland to Hillsboro for additional grazing space, and locust posts from Hillsboro to Maryland for our fencing needs. It was a very busy 2 years!
After about 3 years Dr. Millan sold Hillsboro in 2 separate parcels, the major portion (including buildings) going to Robert Henry Scroggins. Scroggins sold the place to Col. Earl Holmes, USMC (Ret) in 1954. After a fire destroyed the house he rebuilt it on the original site with stone, with a similar but much smaller footprint.
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This sign was still in place in July 2012. It is at the northeastern extent of the road, where it dead-ends on the west side of US Route 522, immediately south of the road to Wakefield Manor and about one mile south of Huntly. The road no longer goes through to Riley Hollow Road--its southwestern end is now part of Mellon Orchard Lane, a private road on what used to be Hillsboro.