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Falls Church, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
 

Falls Church Home Front

Cherry Hill Farm in the Civil War

 
 
Falls Church Home Front Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Kevin Vincent, March 12, 2013
1. Falls Church Home Front Marker
Inscription. Although soldiers repeatedly overran and raided Cherry Hill Farm during the Civil War, this ca. 1845 farmhouse and the ca. 1856 barn behind it survived almost intact. William Blaisdell, of Massachusetts paid $4,000 for the 66-acre property in 1856. The migration of Northerners to this area resulted in a populace of mixed loyalties on the eve of the Civil War. Blaisdell and twenty-five others in the Falls Church District voted against secession in the statewide referendum held on May 23, 1861, while forty-four voted in favor.

The Blaisdells, like most families in town, felt the effects of both Confederate and Union occupation. Confederate forces occupied the village after their victory at Manassas on July 21, 1861. Most Northerners fled, leaving their houses vulnerable to looting and vandalism. The Blaisdells's nearest neighbor, Mary Clover, wrote of such an experience on November 11, 1861: "The rebels did not get our silver nor likenesses for we toock them with us. We toock our fether beds and our bedclothes. ... Everything that was left was taken away. [Most] Beaureau drores were taken off bot the frame was left."

In 1861, the Blaisdells lost 7 hogs, 3 cows, a carriage and two-thirds of their household furnishings to looters. Confederate troops departed on September 25, 1861, but then Union soldiers moved in. Farmers
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reported losses of crops, timber, and livestock. Artifacts recovered at Cherry Hill indicate that Union troops camped here.

By the war's end farmers in the area had recovered, and the nation's growing capital increased the demand for produce. Blaisdell sold Cherry Hill Farm for $7,000 in 1865.
 
Erected 2013 by Virginia Civil War Trails.
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Civil War Trails series list. A significant historical month for this entry is May 1865.
 
Location. 38° 53.13′ N, 77° 10.4′ W. Marker is in Falls Church, Virginia. Marker is on Park Avenue, on the right when traveling north. located on the edge of Cherry Hill Park in the City of Falls Church. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 312 Park Avenue, Falls Church VA 22046, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Cherry Hill (within shouting distance of this marker); George Mason (within shouting distance of this marker); Iraq War Memorial (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); Falls Church Area Veterans Honor Roll (about 500 feet away); War in Afghanistan Memorial (about 500 feet away); WWI Memorial (about 500 feet away); City of Falls Church Veterans Memorial
Cherry Hill Farmhouse image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Kevin Vincent, March 23, 2013
2. Cherry Hill Farmhouse
(about 500 feet away); Virginia Training School (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Falls Church.
 
Also see . . .
1. Other Civil War Trails markers in Falls Church and Northern Virginia. (Submitted on March 24, 2013, by Kevin Vincent of Arlington, Virginia.)
2. Cherry Hill Farm. (Submitted on March 24, 2013, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia.)
 
Cherry Hill Farmhouse with marker in foreground image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Kevin Vincent, March 23, 2013
3. Cherry Hill Farmhouse with marker in foreground
Cherry Hill ca. 1880 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, October 4, 2014
4. Cherry Hill ca. 1880
Close-up of photo on marker
Mary Riley Styles Library
Voter List image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, October 4, 2014
5. Voter List
Ordinance of Secession Referendum, Blaisdell appears as Blasedale, page 2, bottom of right-hand column.
Close-up of images on marker
Library of Congress
"<u>The Ordinance of Secession</u>" image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, October 4, 2014
6. "The Ordinance of Secession"
Poll taken at Falls Church, Fairfax Courthouse, Va, on Tuesday the 23rd day of May 1861, upon the Ratification or Rejection of "An Ordinance to repeal the ratification of the Constitution of United States of America, by the State of Virginia resume all the rights and powers granted under said Constitution," adopted in Convention at the City of Richmond, on the 17th day of April 1861--
Detail of image on marker
W. A. Blaisdell's Name image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, October 4, 2014
7. W. A. Blaisdell's Name
in the rejection column.
Detail of image on marker
You Are Here image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, October 4, 2014
8. You Are Here
Close-up of map on marker
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on March 24, 2013, by Kevin Vincent of Arlington, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,112 times since then and 17 times this year. Last updated on May 18, 2013, by Ronald J. Baumgarten, Jr. of McLean, Virginia. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on March 24, 2013, by Kevin Vincent of Arlington, Virginia.   4, 5, 6, 7, 8. submitted on October 8, 2014, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 18, 2024